As a result, she was among the first group of women students to join in the Government School of Art, Calcutta from where she graduated in 1949.

The following year, her postage stamp design of the gateway of the Sanchi Stupa was selected and awarded in a pan India competition.

[2] A major assignment came her way in 1950 when she was asked to design a special nine feet-long alpana for the sets of the Jean Renoir film, The River.

[2] Her studio training at the academy as well as studies of European masters further developed her interest in human figures, especially the nude.

In 1964, she joined the newly opened Modern High School for Girls, where she taught full-time until her retirement in 1988.

[1] Along with her studies at the art school, Karuna had become an accomplished classical vocalist while training under teachers like Hirendra Goswami and Sachin Das Motilal.

Over time, she also became a regular participant in the All India Radio programmes, and two of her Rabindra Sangeet records were released by His Master's Voice.

[6] Introducing Karuna in the exhibition catalogue, art critic Prasant Daw wrote, 'No discussion of contemporary art in India would be complete without reference to the valuable contribution made by Karuna Shaha, one of the most forthright and fearless women artists of Bengal.