Ali Adil Khan grew up in Karachi in the 1970s and 80s very close to the Indus Gallery, but never once stepped into it as he never had the inclination towards arts while pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering from NED University. Soon after graduating in 1985, he left for the Far East where he was hired by Schlumberger to work on the oil rigs of Indonesia and Australia. He then ended up in the United States where he earned his MBA and eventually moving to Canada in 1991.
Adil’s interest in art sparked in the late 90s and early 2000s, as he got involved with organizations like the South Asian Visual Arts Collective and Friends of South Asia of the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. During this period, he met and befriended many artists and art historians from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Seeing the difficulty faced by South Asian artists upon arrival to Canada, in getting exhibition space and establishing a name for themselves, Adil along with his wife Shehla, in 2002 opened the South Asian Gallery of Art (SAGA) in the basement of their Oakville home to provide a platform for South Asian artists. The gallery was inaugurated by none other than the respected music composer Sohail Rana and opened with an exhibition of works by great masters M.F. Husain and Sadequain from India and Pakistan respectively. Over the next 20 years, SAGA organized over 50 exhibitions by emerging and established artists from South Asia in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). During this period, Adil built a keen interest in South Asian art amongst private and public collectors in North America and a trusted name in dealing with genuine art pieces, mostly consigning directly from the artists. He visited India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to meet artists and visit the art institutions such as J.J. School of Art in Mumbai, National College of Art in Lahore, Indus Valley School of Art in Karachi, Depart of Fine Arts of Dhaka University and the University of Visual and Performing Arts in Colombo. He met masters like M.F. Husain, S.H. Raza, Akbar Padamsee, Raghu Rai from India; Shahid Sajjad, Mansur Rahi, Anwar Maqsood, Shakil Siddiqui from Pakistan; Muhammad Kibria, Qayyum Chowdhary, Shahid Kabir from Bangladesh; and Jagath Ravindra, Jagath Weerasinghe and Chandraguptha Thenuwara from Sri Lanka to name a few. This led to greater understanding and appreciation of South Asian art. Later he met and promoted emerging contemporary artists Tazeen Qayyum, Sumaira Tazeen and Reeta Saeed as they were settling down in Toronto.
Between 2002 and 2025, Adil amassed a significant collection that comprised of over 700 works by South Asian artists, including over 100 vintage posters, hand painted billboards and lobby show cards and photographs from Bollywood going back to 1940s.
In 2019, Adil established the Shehla and Adil Giving for Arts Foundation (SAGA Foundation) with the aim of sharing his collection and wealth with the public. Since its establishment, SAGA Foundation has funded numerous awards and sponsorships to art programs and artists in support of their practices. Karachi Biennale (2022 and 2024), Art Gallery of Mississauga (2023 and 2024), Royal Ontario Museum (2023), Oakville Galleries (2025), Amin Rehman (2021and 2024), Syed Iqbal (2023),
Between 2019 and 2021, Adil gifted over 60 paintings by Indo-Canadian artists P. Mansaram and Y. Verma from his personal collection to the 5th largest museum in North America, the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). Then in 2022, to mark Pakistan’s 75 Years of Independence, Adil gifted 20 remarkable Pakistani contemporary miniature paintings by Tazeen Qayyum, Sumaira Tazeen, and Reeta Saeed who are acclaimed Canadian artists of Pakistani origin and trained at the National College of Arts (NCA) to the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto.
In 2023, Adil bequeathed an ornate hand-carved Jharoka, circa 1880, by renowned Punjabi architect Bhai Ram Singh to the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). Through these bequests and gifts estimated to be over C$350,000, he joined the Currelly Legacy Society, an inspiring group of donors who are shaping the future of ROM.
“Ali Adil’s genuine friendships with artists across South Asia and the diaspora made him a central figure in growing the South Asian art scene in Canada,” says Dr. Dewan. “We are grateful not only for his support in the acquisition of pivotal pieces by modern masters like Sadequain and Zainul Abedin, but also for the artworks he has donated to the Museum.”
In 2024, Adil gifted 100 pieces estimated to be over C$110,000 from his collection of Bollywood art to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) for future research, publication, archiving and exhibition.
Most recently in 2025 and in association with the Oakville Galleries, Shehla and Adil Giving for Arts Foundation (SAGA Foundation) announced an exciting new program for international artists by offering artist residencies at their Gairloch Gardens location, situated on the picturesque shores of Lake Ontario. Funded by the SAGA Foundation, one annual artist residency will focus on visual artists from South Asia and its diaspora, which constitutes the sub-continent comprising India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Afghanistan. Selected by a professional jury, an annual artist residency will be awarded to an artist for up to 4 weeks. The artist will be free to make use of the studio to create, contemplate and re-examine their art practice by visiting art institutions in the Greater Toronto Area.
An independent jury headed by Seamus Kealy, Executive Director of Oakville Galleries nominated emerging artists from South Asia and amongst the finalists selected Sameen Agha (b. 1992, Pakistan) for the Artist In Residence (AIR) program. Her practice explores the emotional landscape of the home while considering its social and physical attributes as they intersect with gender and self-identity. Working through her personal experience and memory, the works confront the complexities of loss, belonging and remembrance.
Agha works across sculpture, painting and installation. She is the recipient of the 2024 Sovereign Asian Art Prize and received a BFA from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2016.
Seamus Kealy, Executive Director of Oakville Galleries said, “This new, annual artist residency is part of our overall vision to enable a wider and more diverse exposure to and engagement with global, contemporary art. I am thankful to the SAGA Foundation for their support of this international artist in residence program, a distinctive program for the Oakville Galleries.”
Ali Adil Khan, Founder and Director of SAGA Foundation said, “the sponsorship of this Artist in Residence program is inspired by the Rockefeller Foundation funded visits by artists to America in the 1960s and 1970s, who later emerged as pioneers of modern art in South Asia. It is our hope that this residency will make a similar impact on the art and lives of emerging artists from South Asia. I am grateful to Oakville Galleries for partnering with SAGA Foundation on this important initiative that has the potential to make a profound impact on the art practice of South Asian artists.”
It is highly commendable that Ali Adil Khan has set an example by illuminating a path of philanthropy that no other South Asian thought of doing before in Canada, in a way giving back to his country of residence, region, culture and a community that he loves and belongs to. In the end, he believes that his passion for art that turned into an obsession for collecting will be enjoyed by many Canadians from different walks of life. In this way, he has opened a window to the rich heritage and art emanating from South Asia for Canadians and his name and legacy will live on in the eyes and minds of future generations that view his collection at these world class institutions.
ABOUT SAGA FOUNDATION Shehla and Adil Giving for Art Foundation (SAGA Foundation) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting South Asian art and culture in Canada and globally. SAGA Foundation’s aim is to promote and support the art of South Asian artists in Canada and globally. It supports a wide range of art forms emanating from South Asia and offers a platform for exhibitions, private as well as public art projects, artist development and residencies, publications, and art archiving-related initiatives.

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