What is highlighted as a notable characteristic of modern Indian art in terms of subject matter in the 1940s and 50s?

1. Urban life as the primary focus
2. Rural India as a significant source
3. Mythological themes and deities
4. European landscapes

2

Answer: Rural India as a significant source
The subject matter in painting and sculpture in modern Indian art was largely drawn from rural India.

An interesting fact to note about modern Indian art is that the subject matter in painting and sculpture was largely drawn from rural India. This is the case even with the Bombay Progressives and the Calcutta group during 1940s and 1950s. City and urban life rarely appeared in works of Indian artists. Perhaps, it was felt that real India lives in villages. The Indian artists of the 1940s and 1950s rarely looked at their immediate cultural milieu.