Asit Kumar Haidar was born in 1890 in Calcutta. He attended the Government College of Arts and Crafts and studied under Abanindranath Tagore. Between 191 1 -23 he was the Principal of the Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan. In 1923, he went on a study tour through England, France and Germany. On his return, he became Principal of the Maharaja's School of Arts and Crafts, Jaipur where he remained for a year, before moving to the Maharaja's School of Arts and Crafts in Lucknow which he built up along with Bireshwas Sen. Through the early part of his career he was associated with the Indian Society of Oriental Art. He held his first solo show there and exhibited with them in other Indian cities and at the Festival of Empire at the Crystal Palace, England (1 91 1)..In 191 4, his work was included in the 22nd Exposition of the Soci&t6 de Peintres Orientalistes Frangais which travelled to Europe, In 1924, he participated in a travelling exhibition organised by the American Federation of Art. In 1938, the Haldar Hall was inaugurated at the Allahabad Museum.