In the mid 1940s Chughtai became obsessed with the idea that he was directly descended from Ahmed Mimar Lahori, the Moghul Emperor Shah Jahan's chief architect, believed to be the inspiration behind the Taj Mahal. This view was fuelled by his his elder brother Abdullah, a scholar who had written his dissertation on the Taj Mahal. Chughtai's own son even created a lineage tree tracing their ancestry to Mimar Lahori. With these facts in mind the painting's subject becomes clear. The master architect is shown cradling the Taj Mahal like a child. The landscape is bear except for a distant view of the Taj Mahal on a red sandstone base. Beautifully painted and very personal, the repeated subject matter points to Chugtai's obsession.

We are grateful to Marcella Sirhandi for confirming the authenticity of this lot on the basis of a transparency.