Gone in 30 seconds

As I walk up the steps of a fivestar hotel in South Mumbai and turn left into the corridor the clicking of my heels resonates with my heartbeat The weight of the art catalogue for Osianrsquos Creative India Series 4 doubles in my arms and a nervous tingle in my tummy sharpens in excitementu00a0I am attending my first art auction and scenes from numerous Bollywood films flash through my mind The famous dialogue mdash lsquoEk lakh ek ek lakh do ek lakh teeeeenrsquo One lakh one one lakh two one lakh three mdash ring in my ears u00a0I open the gigantic door of the room and catch a glimpse of myself in its ornate mirrorwork I and sigh in relief My hair is behaving itself today Auctioneer Angira Arya has conducted 120 auctions in the past 12 years He has half a dozen wooden gavels which he has got a carpenter to make specially for him Pics Shadab khan Once in I am transported into the world of art Works by artists from Goa South India and Cholamandal are leaning against the walls mdash I recognise an oil sketch by the famous European artist Henry Singleton mdash The Assault and Taking of Seringapatam and a few works by KCS Paniker FN Souza Laxma Goud and J Sultan Ali from the catalogue The room is brightly lit and art enthusiasts are scattered around high round tables munching on wafers whispering strategies to their partners A few are at the counter collecting their paddles numbers placards with which they will make their bids In one corner eight laptops and telephone lines are neatly placed on a long table This is where the telephone bidders will be seated They will be on the phone with their buyers all evening advising them and making bids in their behalf Fortynine yearold auctioneer Angira Arya announces in a crisp seasoned tone that the auction is about to start and lsquobuyersrsquo are requested to take a seat I oblige u00a0Dressed in a formal suit a vibrant orange and blue tie his sixfoot tall frame commands the attention of this rich crowd He reads out the rules and sets the pace for the eveningrsquos biddings The crowd is thin the eveningrsquos photographer tells me ldquoThe Mantralaya fire has kept at least 15 to 20 probable buyers awayrdquo he says The crowd quickly settles into a hushed silence and gets down to business Without wasting much time Arya explains the categories of buyers mdash buyers physically present in the room buyers on the telephone lines and buyers in the book with the auctioneer They are the ones who have already submitted their bids Arya will conduct every alternate bid on their behalf I spot a telephone bidder wiping beads of sweat off his brow Why Itrsquos not even his money I wonder before realising that it is the adrenaline rush that is adding to the tensionu00a0Five minutes into the auction Aryarsquos oratorical skills come to the fore He develops a comfortable but clever relationship with the crowd holding the attention of the bidders gently coaxing them to try a higher bid with a remark and at other times with a long pauseu00a0 Lot 1 which consists of one or multiple works together put for sale is a pair of carved Dwarpala wooden carvings from the late 18th Century A couple sitting in front of me casually raise their paddles all the time what seems like whispering sweet nothings into each otherrsquos ears Arya doesnrsquot mind the disturbance for they are deciding to bid higher He maintains eye contact ldquoWould you like to raise your bid sir The lot is still with my buyer in the bookrdquo And they raise the bid by Rs 50000 once again and again ldquoLot no 1 selling to the person on my right A fair warning to allhellip and sold to the gentlemen on my rightrdquo All this happens within a span of 30 seconds After 12 years and 120 auctions Arya is able to read the faces of the buyers He prolongs his pauses and keeps the crowd guessing as to why he isnrsquot closing the bid but only he and the bidder sitting in the 13th row know that he is likely to raise the bid ldquoPeople who are not interested in the lot may get bored but Irsquom here to sell not entertainrdquo he tells me later For every lot the gallery decides a reserve amount below which a lot cannot be sold For example if the estimated price of an artwork is between Rs 3 and 6 lakh the reserve will be approximately Rs 26 lakh which only the buyer and seller are aware of ldquoI may start the bid at a price much lower than the reserve just to build up momentumrdquo says Arya who plays the neutral role of a mediator between the buyer and the seller in the bidding process While the two hours of an auction are the most important the auction house begins preparing five months in advance Their work involves finding rare works mostly by deceased artists whose works are not available in the market ensuring they are original works and getting in touch with buyers Though I was all ears to Aryarsquos auctioneering I couldnrsquot help eavesdropping on the conversation going on in the row ahead of me ldquoWhat have you bought so farrdquo queried a wellheeled woman who joined a couple 15 minutes into the auction ldquoOh just a few things here and thererdquo they said matteroffactly And that readers is the size of an art buyerrsquos pocket