was born in 1922 at Akola in Maharashtra. He completed his Diploma in Fine Arts from the reputed Sir J.J. School of Art in Bombay in 1952. Employment at the government-run Weavers Service Centre as a hand-loom textile designer made him shift from Bombay to Madras, and then to New Delhi. Here, he met like-minded artists like J. Swaminathan, Rajesh Mehra and Himmat Shah with whom in 1962 he formed Group 1890.

His works are essentially a window to the world view of his soul. With his subaltern origins and a childhood deeply influenced by Gandhian ideals, Ambadas’s works are marked by a deep-seated quest for spirituality. He was part of a generation of artists that was swayed by the many social, political and cultural churnings of the 1950s and 60s, and got attracted towards following abstract and non-representational art. The artist believed in getting beyond the surface, corresponding into a formless, abstract reality, where his intentions played no part in his works.

Ambadas has held several solo and group exhibitions in India as well as internationally. His works are in many collections including the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi; Glenbarra Art Museum, Japan; the Ben & Abbey Grey Foundation, USA; and the State Gallery, Norway. A retrospective of his work was held in 2008. The Lalit Kala Academy has felicitated him with the prestigious National Award in 1963. Before the shift to Norway where he lived from 1972, Ambadas travelled on a scholarship to the U.S.A. and Germany.