Debashish Paul, born in 1994 in the Nadia district of West Bengal, graduated with a BFA and an MFA in Sculpture from the Indian College of Art and Draftsmanship, Kolkata and Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, in 2019 and 2021 respectively.
His solo exhibitions include Nastanirh (The Broken Nest) at Kala Hubba as part of BLR Hubba, Bengaluru, 2026; and A Thousand Years of Dreaming curated by Mario D’Souza, Emami Art, Kolkata, 2024. Notable group exhibitions include Disobedient Objects: The Biography of Clothes presented by India Art Fair, curated by Sreyansi Singh, in association with Fashion Design Council of India for Young Collectors’ Programme at STIR, New Delhi, 2026; Intersections: Site of Becoming, showcasing Inlaks Art Alumni in collaboration with Arthshila Delhi, 2026; Memory Keepers, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai, 2026; Obsessions, Possessions, Coventry Biennial 2025-26, UK; 2570 Revolutions Around the Earth, CREA OPEN 2025, Venice, 2025; Chennai Photo Biennale Open Call Exhibition, 2025; Between Fire and Flow, MAC, Lima, 2025; Samudra Manthan or The Stir of the Milk Ocean, Tenerife Espacio de las Artes, Tenerife, Spain, 2024 as part of the residency; The Magic of the Silver Swan curated by Kinnari Sariya, Bowes Museum, Bernard Castle, UK, 2023-24; Prince Claus Fund Biennial Symposium in Sri Lanka, 2023; a performance program with HH Art Space, supported by Pro Helvetia’s To-gather International Collaboration, 2023; Cite internationale des arts, Institut Francais Paris Residency supported by Prameya Art Foundation, and the French Institute in India in 2023; Kochi-Muziris Biennale Performance Residency in collaboration with HH Art Space and Nikhil Chopra, 2022-2023; The Students’ Biennale in Kochi, 2021; Of Liminal Beings and Other Spaces, Emami Art, Kolkata, 2021; Beyond Binaries: Sensing Art through Queer Lensing, Kolkata Centre for Creativity, Kolkata, 2021; and Emami Art Open Call Exhibition, Emami Art, Kolkata, 2020.
Emami Art has presented his works at India Art Fair 2026 and IAF 2023 where he was also an Artist in Residence; Art Mumbai 2025 and 2024; Art Dubai 2024 in the Bawwaba section as a solo project curated by Emiliano Valdez; and Art Dusseldorf 2023. Paul performed at the Jaipur Centre for Art as a part of the India Art Fair's Special Patrons Program in 2025. His performance and sculptural costume have been studied and discussed by Susan Marshall in her book Insubordinate Costume: Inspiring Performance, published in 2025. His performance film The Song for Peace (2023) was part of KADIST’s Ecologies of Memory and Resistance for EAEFF25 and is now streaming on KADISTtv.
Paul has several awards and scholarships to his credit, including the BW Art Excellence Award 2025; Inlaks Fine Art Awards and Residency at 1Shanthiroad Studio Gallery, Bengaluru, 2022; Kalanan
d Scholarship 2022-23 by the Prafulla Dahanukar Art Foundation; Seed Award by the Prince Claus Fund, 2022; Inlaks Fine Art Award by Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation, 2022; Allegro 1st prize by Contemporary LYNX, London, 2021; and the Indian Artist Relief Fund 2021 by Museum of Art and Photography in partnership with 1Shanthiroad Studio Gallery.
Presently Debashish Paul is an artist in residence for two years (2026 - 2028) at the Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten, Amsterdam, NL.
He lives and works in Varanasi and Nadia, West Bengal.
