Manu Parekh is one of India’s foremost Expressionist painters, known for his vibrant, highly energized canvases that explore the raw, spiritual drama of existence. While his early influences came from his work in theatre as a set designer and his exposure to Indian folk traditions through the Weavers’ Service Centre, his defining body of work is the iconic Banaras Series, which began after a pivotal visit to Varanasi in 1980. Parekh sees the ancient city not merely as a physical landscape but as a profound metaphor for the cycle of life and death, proclaiming it a "city full of energy where you can witness life and death together." His paintings capture this intense duality using bold, almost volatile color, explosive geometry, and thick, aggressive impasto. Whether depicting the teeming ghats, the ceremonial Flower Sutras, or the highly charged Heads series, Parekh applies a theatrical sensibility to his subjects. He paints with dramatic light and shadow, framing the spiritual and the mundane with equal intensity. The colors—often electric blues, searing oranges, and deep indigos—are not decorative but are used to convey raw emotion and spiritual combustion. Unlike the gentle lyricism of some of his contemporaries, Parekh's art is a fierce, almost visceral articulation of faith, chaos, and sublime beauty, cementing his place as a dynamic and powerful voice in post-Independence Indian modernism.