Akbar Abdul Ibrahim (born 1963) known professionally as Akbar Saheb, is an Indian-origin contemporary artist, painter, and sculptor, based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. He is credited with developing the painting style Depthism a conceptually driven painting practice characterized by layered surfaces and structural depth. His paintings explore themes of belonging and displacement, cultural memory, lived heritage, psychological states, and historical experience, and he is also known for his narrative art and expressive visual storytelling.
Akbar gained international recognition after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015 and later was selected by the Prime Minister's Office (India) to create twelve paintings for his book Mann Ki Baat – A Social Revolution on Radio, launched at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, and he was personally acknowledged by the Prime Minister during an international broadcast.
Akbar is known for his philanthropic contributions, including donating artworks and proceeds to social causes. His collectors include Prince Charles, Narendra Modi, Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, M.A. Yusuff Ali, Lubna Al Qasimi, Charlie Adams, Rahul Singh, G. Kishan Reddy, Amit Shah, and Hassanal Bolkiah.
Akbar was awarded the Golden Visa by the UAE government in 2022 for his contribution to the arts. The same year, the Government of India and the Prime Minister's Office (India) hosted a nationwide travelling exhibition of his paintings across six notable art institutions, including the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.
Themes in his practice are often treated in series; notable series include A Royal Journey, Visions of Sheikh Mohammed, Chronicles of India's Growth Mann Ki Baat, Prime Minister, Tolerance, Modern Classic, UAE Culture and a collection of Polo and Horses. He also co-created a Guinness World Record for the largest pop-up greeting card (8.2 sq m), in collaboration with India's highest Guinness record holder Ramkumar Sarangapani.
Early life Akbar Saheb was born in 1963 in Udupi, Karnataka, India, and spent his childhood in Sringeri, located in the Chikkamagaluru district. He was raised in a modest household as one of seven children, his father was a coppersmith and part-time Qawwali lyricist who also ran a kitchenware and bicycle repair shop.
From the age of five, Akbar liked to draw and often made sketches in secret because his father did not support his interest in art. In eighth grade, a school art teacher noticed his talent and urged his father to support his artistic development, but this was not encouraged. Akbar was later introduced to Chandra Shekhar, a Fine Arts student from Sringeri studying in Bengaluru. During Shekhar's outdoor landscape painting sessions, Akbar shaded him with an umbrella in the sun and rain, which allowed Akbar to observe painting techniques directly. Nevertheless, at the age of 18, Akbar's father sent him to work in an automobile repair shop garage in Mumbai. He returned to Sringeri at age 19 due to an appendix illness, where he painted local shop signboards and helped international students with biology illustrations assignments in exchange for small fees.
Career
1984–1993 In 1984, at the age of 21, Akbar moved to Bengaluru to pursue an art career. His first professional role was at Graphic Arts, a design and print studio on Brigade Road, Bengaluru, where he worked as a layout artist. Akbar later joined Hindustan Thompson Associates (now J. Walter Thompson), which was one of India's leading advertising agencies at the time,Our Correspondent (3 September 2002). "HTA returns as J. Walter Thompson". *The Telegraph India*. Retrieved [date you accessed it]. where he worked as an illustrator. At the agency, he learned airbrush painting and later became a lead airbrush artist. In 1989, he moved to Mumbai, where he worked with MullenLowe Lintas Group. He continued developing his personal painting practice, creating narrative art inspired by life in the city.
1994–2004 Akbar visited his cousin brother in Dubai in 1995, where he worked as a freelance illustrator and painter for a three months, and then returned to India. In 1996, he relocated permanently to Dubai, and joined the Al-Futtaim Group as an illustrator and Image editor. After work, he painted at night in his bedroom, focusing on themes such as horses, Arab heritage, and regional culture. He had no formal teacher and built up his skills on his own through regular practice. In 1998, he exhibited his paintings in group exhibitions organised by the Consulate General of India in Dubai, where he exhibited with Indian painter M. F. Husain.
Between 1997 and 2004, Akbar began painting a series of 38 paintings titled A Royal Journey, each depicting a year in the leadership of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, which captures his role in the formation and development of the United Arab Emirates. The series was viewed by several Emirati dignitaries, including Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan and was later valued at AED 38 million. In the same period, Akbar also created 32 paintings titled Visions of a Leader, which focused on Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and his vision for Dubai's growth and leadership.This country has given me everything. Khaleej Times. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2025.World's largest pop-up greetings card record broken in Dubai. Gulf News. 30 December 2020. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
2005–2013 Between 2005 and 2013, Akbar began creating a collection of narrative art, contemporary style paintings. He used the impasto technique using oil paint with paintbrush and palette knife. He explored themes on cultural identity, history, human nature, and social harmony. During this period, his paintings were often figurative or abstract, encouraging multiple interpretations. He also experimented with watercolour paint, acrylic paint, and mixed media, developing his own visual styles.
Akbar's early narrative art was first exhibited in public In 2009, in group exhibitions at Tashkeel Art Gallery, and The Art Centre at Dubai Ladies Club alongside M. F. Husain and Abdul Qader Al Rais. In 2013, Akbar's work was recognised by educational institutions and governmental institutions from different states in the UAE. American University of Sharjah held a solo exhibition of his UAE cultural paintings and a few paintings from his series A Royal Journey, which was inaugurated by then Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan. That same year, he was invited to exhibit these paintings at Ajman University, which was attended by Sheikh Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi III. In October 2013, Akbar had a solo exhibition titled Tribute to the Legends in Ras Al Khaimah, held under the Ministry of Culture of Ras Al Khaimah and the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi. The exhibition commemorated the International Day of Non-Violence by exhibiting paintings inspired by Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy of non-violence and peace, and cultural connections between India and the UAE. The exhibition was inaugurated by Sheikh Sultan bin Jamal Al Qasimi of the Ruler's Court, who presented a recognition award to Akbar.
In 2013, Akbar started a series of twelve paintings titled PM series: The Man, The Visionary, The Leader. The paintings showed accomplishments, and challenges, from the life and career of the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi.Dubai-based artist views Modi through portraits. Khaleej Times. 13 August 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2025. Akbar stated the series was not made for political reasons, and was inspired by the prime minister's public speeches and campaign pledges before and during the 2014 general elections, presenting his journey through symbolic and imaginative paintings.
2014–2022 Akbar held his first collaboration with the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce through a solo exhibition, starting his association with the Government of Sharjah in 2014. The exhibition featured original prints of his painting series A Royal Journey and culturally themed paintings. The same year, he presented a display of paintings at the Dubai World Trade Centre.
By the mid-2010s, Akbar was receiving commissions from corporate clients. Lexus Motors commissioned him to create cultural paintings, which were exhibited during the opening of their Ras Al Khaimah showroom in January 2015. That same year, Patak's CEO Kirit Pathak commissioned Akbar to create a series of paintings titled Patak's and horses. That same year, Akbar was invited to present his paintings at VadFest, a state-sponsored cultural festival in Vadodara, Gujarat. However, his participation drew protest from a group of local artists and former students, leading to his withdrawal after a meeting with the event organiser. Akbar instead held an independent exhibition at Kalanidhi Art Gallery in Vadodara, attended by collectors, dignitaries, including then Chief Minister Anandiben Patel, Charlie Adams and the Israeli Consul General David Akov.
Akbar set up the Akbar Saheb Art Foundation in 2014 to support free art classes and workshops for children with special needs and for underprivileged communities. Through the foundation, he has held art sessions in schools, shelters and special needs centres in India, including Sankalp, MPC Trust and Cambridge School. He has also run programmes in the United Arab Emirates with organisations such as Sanad Village, the Merint Determination Centre and the Widad Centre. The foundation has raised funds through charity sales and auctions linked to his exhibitions. As part of an initiative called Art for Silence, Akbar has used impasto techniques to create heavily textured paintings that blind and visually impaired children can feel. The foundation also takes him into slums, shelters and low-income neighbourhoods, where he paints without publicity. He often undertakes this work together with his children, Naureen, Tanveer and Afsheen.
In 2015, during the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the United Arab Emirates in over three decades, Akbar had a private meeting with the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi at the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi. Akbar presented Prime Minister Modi with a painting titled Mother Blessings, part of the painting series The Man, The Visionary, The Leader. That same year, the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce organised an exclusive solo exhibition highlighting his works themed around UAE Culture. His paintings were also displayed at the American University of Sharjah.
During this period, Akbar also received several commissioned assignments, including one for Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, which was presented during a majlis attended by the Indian Ambassador to the UAE,This country has given me everything. Khaleej Times. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2025. and themes on Abdul Kalam, the former President of India. Akbar was also commissioned by M.A. Yusuff Ali, chairman of Lulu Group International, to produce a collection of paintings, including a biographical work.
Akbar was selected by the Prime Minister's Office and the Government of India to illustrate Mann Ki Baat: A Social Revolution on Radio, a book based on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's radio address series. In 2017, Akbar created all illustrations and the cover design, capturing themes such as Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, Yoga Day, and rural empowerment. The book was launched at Rashtrapati Bhavan in the presence of President Pranab Mukherjee, and Akbar was formally recognised and awarded for his contribution. In the May 28, 2017, edition of Mann Ki Baat, Prime Minister Modi publicly acknowledged Akbar Saheb's contribution. In October 2018, Akbar was awarded by the Consulate General of India in Dubai and Palette Art Training and Consultancy.