The Art of the Sale
Mallika Sagar ’98 was first exposed to the world of auctioneering as a summer intern at Christie’s. She later became Christie’s first Indian woman auctioneer.
A "New Level of Confidence"
I am from Mumbai and went to school there until 10th grade, then spent 11th and 12th grades at a boarding school in Connecticut, which proved to be great fun and the perfect preparation for college.
I had a tough time my freshman year getting financial aid as an international student. I transferred into Bryn Mawr and was fortunate to get an almost-full scholarship, thanks to Deans Karen Tidmarsh and Sonya Mehta, whom I remember fondly. As my older sister had attended BMC, I knew and loved the campus, but I didn’t know how I felt about a women’s college. Once there, the advantage of being in a women’s environment became clear: It empowered me in a lot of ways and gave me an entirely new level of confidence.
I studied history of art. For my thesis, I wanted to do something on modern Indian artists. No one at Bryn Mawr taught Indian art, but Professors David Cast and Lisa Saltzman were amazing and worked with me to create my own topic—guiding me on what types of issues were relevant and how to think and develop a cohesive argument.
I worked at Christie’s for two summers, in Mumbai and then New York. Christie’s offered me a job a few months after graduation.
An Unusual Opportunity
As the then-India representative was moving countries, Christie’s thought it wise to enroll me in their graduate training program to prepare me to replace her. I learned how to do valuations, write catalogue notes, and understand the business of running all parts of an auction.
During this time, I was fortunate enough to be a spectator at the weekly auctioneer training, even though that was usually reserved for more senior members of the company. Thanks to the woman who ran the program, I was trained as an auctioneer very early on in my career. I learned the numbers, the method, and the drama—it’s a lot of theater, so all go hand in hand.
I took my first auction in New York in December 2000, selling baseball memorabilia to a room full of men, who were more than a little shocked to see an Indian woman selling exclusively American male collectibles.
A Return to India–And Auctioneering
I moved back to India at the end of 2000 to take over the India office. In 2004, I left Christie’s to spend a year with my mother, who was unwell. I started my own practice as an art consultant and did that for a few years, but my first love was always auctioneering.
In 2011, I was asked by a respected member of the art fraternity to help auction a very important collection of paintings in India. He asked another ex-Christie’s colleague as well, and together we set up Pundole’s, holding our first auction in April 2011. We have been fortunate to see tremendous growth in the collector base and the market in the last 12 years. Indians love auctions! It brings out the best of their competitive spirit.
Pundole’s also started the concept of estate sales in India— selling entire homes that include furniture, silver, carpets, lights, and porcelain. That was not previously part of our culture; some Indians are superstitious about buying second-hand pieces. But in the West, it’s an entire industry. We saw a superb response.
Paying It Forward
Over the years, I’ve been lucky to work with various charities and NGOs to raise money through auctions with no commercial interest. We have also had the pleasure of training many students who want to understand the Indian art market.
Bryn Mawr taught me how to think. It taught me how to write. And it really blew through the boundaries of what I thought I was capable of academically. It gave me the confidence to speak and to express a well-thought-out opinion. It’s a very special place, thanks to professors who are deeply invested in their students and the community.