Tasneem Zakaria Mehta

Art Historian, Writer, Designer, Curator; Managing Trustee & Director Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Mumbai
Tasneem Zakaria Mehta is an art historian, writer, curator, designer, and cultural activist. A leaders of India’s heritage preservation movement, Mehta has successfully pioneered the revival and restoration of several of Mumbai’s important cultural sites. As managing trustee and honorary director of the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum, Mehta conceptualized, curated, designed, and implemented the institution’s restoration and revitalization. In 2005 the museum was awarded a UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Award of Excellence and has become an important cultural hub and platform for showcasing contemporary and historic exhibitions. Mehta is also vice chairman of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage and a Mumbai chapter convenor. She is a member of: the advisory board of the National Gallery of Modern Art; the Governing Council of the National Institute of Design; the museum Expert Committee in the Ministry of Culture; and the Academic Council of the National Museum Institute of the History of Art, Conservation, and Museology. She is also a trustee of the Kochi Biennale Foundation. Mehta is past chair of the Task Force for Culture and Museums for the Confederation of Indian Industries. She was a two-term member of the Salar Jung Museum board. She is a member of the International Council of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and has been a nominator for the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Creative Arts awards.