Kiran Nadar

Kiran Nadar is the founder and chairperson of the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art in New Delhi. She was named for the Padma Shri in 2024 in the field of art, from Delhi ^[1].

Early career

She was born on 3 May 1951 and graduated in English from Miranda House in 1970 ^[2]. She worked in advertising and branding, and later as a director at NIIT, where she helped shape the company’s brand in its early years ^[2].

The museum

She opened the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art in 2010 as India’s first private museum devoted to modern and contemporary Indian art, run on a not-for-profit basis ^[2]. Its collection now holds more than 13,000 works, and it runs exhibitions, publications and education programmes aimed especially at young people ^[2]. The museum has worked with institutions such as the Reina Sofía in Madrid, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Tate Modern, and in 2019 she led India’s pavilion at the Venice Biennale ^[2]. A new, larger museum building is planned near Delhi’s airport ^[2].

Bridge and philanthropy

Nadar is also a leading bridge player. She won bronze for India in the mixed team event at the 2018 Asian Games and led the team that won the 2018 Commonwealth Nations Bridge Championships ^[2]. With her husband, Shiv Nadar, she set up the Shiv Nadar Foundation, which funds educational institutions including Shiv Nadar University and the Vidyagyan schools ^[2].

In 2023 France made her a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour ^[2].