India's Punjab is the land of the five rivers, five (Punj) rivers (Aab) - Ravi, Satluj, Chenab, Beas and Jhelum. It is also the birthplace of Max Kandhola's family, who historically were landowners, with connections to farming, agriculture and also to the military. Max Kandhola decided to go back to Punjab after completing his project "Illustration of Life" (2002) in which he documented his father's last moments of life, and reflected on issues within Sikh ritual, immortality and death. Over the last four years, he has visited the region as part of a continuing project to map family history through an odyssey of ancestral narratives, exploring memory, diaspora and identity. For him it is a land which is unfamiliar, yet it provides both a context and a beginning. Kandhola's journey began in Nurmahal, in the district of Jalandhar, from which most of his family originally came. Using this as a starting point he travelled from the centre of Punjab outwards.

Illustrated with pieces from museums across the world, Masterpieces of Indian Art is a rich and stunning portrayal of the most precious treasures of Indian art. Extensive photo research and detailed examination of every facet of the arts make it nothing less than a book of illustrated art history. Its scope stretches across nearly four millennia, and it covers ground beginning from the art of the Harappans to Chola bronzes, Mughal miniatures, and the exquisitely crafted jewellery and textiles of India. Written by an expert whose reading of art history for the ordinary reader manages to be both simple and subtle, it is both lucid and thorough. Ambitious in its range, meticulous in its details, and insightful in its commentary, 'Masterpieces of Indian Art' is a jewel of a book.