Some children grow up collecting marks. Navnath Kshirsagar grew up collecting moments.
Born in a small village in Maharashtra’s Marathwada region, Navnath was drawn to the world around him from an early age. He sketched village scenes, made clay toys and found fascination in the ordinary things around him. That fascination, however, came at a price.
His love for art was so consuming that he failed his Class 10 examinations. For many, that could have been the moment when a dream was quietly put away. For Navnath, it became a detour, not a destination.
He cleared the examination the following year and moved to Pune to study at Abhinav Kala Mahavidyalaya. What happened next changed the direction of his life. The boy who had once been written off by an examination went on to graduate as a university topper in 2007. He later pursued a Master’s in Fine Arts. But becoming an accomplished artist wasn’t an overnight transformation.
Alongside his artistic journey, Navnath built an academic career, teaching for years at architecture institutions. He eventually became faculty at the Indira School of Architecture and Design, bringing together his understanding of art, design and visual expression. Yet somewhere beneath the profession was the same village boy who still wanted to paint.
When the Safe Road Wasn’t Enough
In 2021, Navnath made a decision that demanded more courage than any examination ever had. He left his academic career and chose to pursue art full-time as a freelance artist.
His canvases began carrying the memories he had grown up with, Maharashtra’s villages, agriculture, old farm implements, folk traditions, childhood toys and, most prominently, the spiritual world of the Pandharpur Wari. In works such as “Bhakti,” “Journey (Shared Burden)” and “Walk of Tradition,” he brings together the physical labour of rural Maharashtra and the devotion of the Warkari tradition.
His exhibition journey includes appearances at Balgandharva Art Gallery and Ray Art Gallery in Pune, Jahangir Art Gallery in Mumbai, the State Art Gallery in Hyderabad and the Bombay Arts Society, among others. He has also held a solo exhibition and participated in numerous group shows, workshops and art camps.
His early recognition included awards such as the On-the-Spot Landscape Award at Ravindranath Tagore Chitrakala Mahavidyalaya in 2005, an award from Abhinav Kala Mahavidyalaya in 2006, First Prize at Nav Krishna Valley College of Fine Art in 2007, the V. V. Oak Award in 2007 and recognition at the Pune Festival in 2009.
His work has since received recognition beyond the art circuit as well, including national media attention and appreciation from prominent personalities.
The Boy Who Couldn’t Stop Drawing
His story isn’t about failing Class 10. It’s about refusing to stop. From a village boy who sketched everything around him to a university topper and full-time artist, Navnath carried his roots with him.
The soil, the people, the faith, he simply gave his memories a canvas.
