Born in 1961 at Khanpur, West Bengal, Shyamal Mukherjee is an artist who has spent his entire life in Calcutta, only venturing out to attend showings of his works, and only speaking in Bengali. He holds a BFA and an MFA qualification from the Ravindra Bharati University, Kolkata.

He likes to focus on the fact that each individual has a great deal in common with every other one. This is why he paints people in pairs or larger groups, highlighting that though they are physically separate and unlike each other, there is no real difference between their characters and behaviors.

Shyamal is one of those cheerful artists from Kolkata who radiates happiness and goodness in his life, which finds a voice in his adorable works, the inspiration of which comes from observing everyday people. What better way to create this joi de vivre than through art that is joyous, colourful, in the durable medium of reverse oil, or acrylic painting on a transparent acrylic sheet. The entire concept of these plump, grotesquely rotund characters with rosy, over-sized cheeks makes one smile. Most of the people Mukherjee paints are performers of some type, putting on an act for everyone else - something all of us do every day of our lives. These figures are dressed in gaudy shades of orange, red and green costumes that street performers wear, their faces cartoon like and their plump fingers overshadowed by rings and bracelets. Bengal School’s strong figurative tradition is presented in a very contemporary idiom, highlighting the spirit common to all of us.