Krishen Khanna (born 5 July 1925) is an Indian painter known for his abstracted figurative artworks depicting street scenes of the country.

This was followed by close acquaintance with the remaining members of the Progressive Artists' Group – M. F. Husain, H. A. Gade, S. H. Raza, K. H. Ara, and Sadanand Bakre.

His work News of Gandhi's Death was displayed in the Golden Jubilee Exhibition of the Bombay Art Society at the Cowasji Jehangir Hall, which was highly praised.

This painting depicted Hindus and Muslims reading a newspaper story of Mahatma Gandhi's assassination standing around a traffic island in Delhi.

[5][6] The famous art critic of the time, Rudolf von Leyden wrote extensively about this work by Khanna and said that he would become one of the best artists of India.

[4] Khanna's first painting was sold in the late 1940s for Rs 225 to Dr. Homi Bhabha who was then collecting works for the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.

[11] The early phase of Khanna's artistic style is known for its figurative works which depicted the life and inhabitants of southern India.

[14] Khanna's early themes were inspired from the life style of the fisher folk – their brown southern complexion glowing in sunlight and the moods of the sea.

Vegetable and fruit sellers on city pavements, storytellers ringed by street urchins, people at leisure in neighbourhood cafes and dhabas, bandwallahs in their crimson red uniforms with shining braids and buttons, celebrations of festivals and processions.

[17] In this series, the truck is depicted as a symbol of the world moving towards a catastrophe with the overpowering technology and a steadily decaying moral & social context.

[20] On 7 June 1964, The Illustrated Weekly of India called him a non-objective painter of note and quoted,"His is a comparatively sophisticated, self-conscious manipulation of tones and textures.

It matters little whether they relate directly to the Indian scene...in the final analysis they are a biting comment on the visible increase of violence in the world and its grim tolerance and acceptance of death.

"[23] Some of Khanna's well known paintings include News of Gandhiji's Death (1950), Truckwallahs (1970s) and Bandwallahs (1980s) series, The Last Supper (1979), La Pieta (1988), and A Far Afternoon (2014) to name a few.

These artworks are examples of the richness of the world, whose colour-behavior, paint brushing, dynamism of lines, skill of arrangement and sensibility of subjects have a deep impact on the viewer.

[24] Khanna's oil painting The Game depicting a conference was installed in the boardroom of Larsen & Toubro's Mumbai office.

[25] The lobby of ITC Maurya Hotel in New Delhi features a mural created by Khanna, titled The Great Procession.

The review of this exhibition mentioned that "the rhythmical foliated pattern and sense of colour in these works showcase that something of the Mughal painting tradition is here being brought up to date.

[30] About 120 of his works were displayed in his retrospective exhibition (23 January to 5 February 2010) organized by Saffron Art in the galleries of Lalit Kala Akademi located at Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi.

[38] Socialite Evenings (1989) written by Shobhaa De finds a mention of a painting by Delhi painter Krishen Khanna.

[40] Beside the Shadblow Tree: A Memoir of James Laughlin (1999) contains an excerpt where the author describes a painting party hosted by Khanna and the experience of getting involved in the same.

The works discussed in the volume are based on life in India and Christian themes, including The Raising of Lazarus and The Last Supper.

[45] Incarnations: A History of India in Fifty Lives (2016) by Sunil Khilnani features interview excerpts with Khanna in the chapters dedicated to Amrita Sher-Gil and M. F.

[47][48] Rushdie wrote about this discussion with the two artists in his book Joseph Anton: A Memoir (2012) which provides detailed information about the conversation they had on the lost portrait.

[49] A Far Afternoon – A painted saga by Krishen Khanna (2015) is a feature documentary directed by Sruti Harihara Subramanian and produced by Piramal Art Foundation.