Born in Pandharpur, Maharashtra, Maqbool Fida Husain was a self-taught artist. Hussain was an important member of the Progressive Artists Group along with Francis Newton Souza, Syed Haider Raza, Krishna Howlaji Ara, Hari Ambadas Gade, and S Bakre. After a brief stint at the Indore Art College, he migrated to Bombay and his work got recognition in 1947 when he won an award at the annual exhibition of the Bombay Art Society. Hussain has made a substantial contribution to the shaping of modern art in India.

A versatile artist he started his career in Mumbai by painting cinema hoardings for a livelihood. His paintings are characterized by bold lines, colours and his experimentation with various material and themes that depict very real events. His artist oeuvre has not been restricted to painting and Husain has dabbled in a multitude of media such as designing toys in wood, furniture, murals, drawings, graphic-prints, installations, documentaries, short films, feature films etc.

His first film 'Through the Eyes of a Painter' won a Golden Bear Award. Husain was conferred the Padma Bhushan(1973) and the Padma Vibhushan (1989).