Amrita Sher-Gil

Some countries define a list of national treasures. In Japan and South Korea, it's buildings and art pieces that are deemed to have high cultural value. In France, it's mostly art. In America, it's a very average movie starring Nicolas Cage and its even-lamer sequel. In India, it's... people. And one of those people is a Jew. Yes, one national treasure of India is a Jew. Boy, it sure took us long to get to this point!

India's national treasures is a select list of writers and artists. Nobel literature laureate Rabindranath Tagore is one. Amrita Sher-Gil is another.

The Budapest-born Sher-Gil, daughter of an Indian father and a Hungarian mother, has been compared to Frida Kahlo for mixing western and traditional themes in her art. (Unlike Kahlo, she didn't have to lie about being Jewish, as her mother was! Amrita was even expelled from Catholic school for claiming to be an atheist. Bonus points for that one.)

Despite dying at the age of 26, Sher-Gil is considered a "pioneer in modern Indian art" and "one of the greatest avant-garde women artists of the early 20th century". More interesting than whatever Nicolas Cage found, that's for sure!

Verdict: **Jew**.

_October 10, 2025_