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Himmat Shah's bronze and terracotta sculptures have a monumental presence. "Himmat's favoured material is terracotta, a material that reflects India's longstanding village economies, supported by the cycle of birth and rebirth of the essential material, clay. Only some terracotta objects pass into history, many do not bear the imprint of the artist, and all speak of the early wonder of man mimicking nature. It is entirely possible that... Himmat Shah's bronze and terracotta sculptures have a monumental presence. "Himmat's favoured material is terracotta, a material that reflects India's longstanding village economies, supported by the cycle of birth and rebirth of the essential material, clay. Only some terracotta objects pass into history, many do not bear the imprint of the artist, and all speak of the early wonder of man mimicking nature. It is entirely possible that Himmat's response to clay, which needs the other elements of water and fire to gain form, is at the level of the philosophical, as much as of the material." (Gayatri Sinha, An Unreasoned Act of Being, Ahmedabad: Mapin Publishing Pvt. Ltd., 2007, p. 38) Shah uses terracotta to create a continuum between the past and present by offering a commentary about man and the mark he makes on the earth.

Shah's heads speak of a disquieting humanity as his cubist forms are anti-classical and have a more powerful depiction. He creates markings and cross-hatching on the clay to suggest the destructive forces that come into play with man's existence. His background in painting and drawing is reflected in his use of the line to create texture on the clay. Having shown himself as a multi-disciplinary artist, Shah immersed himself in many mediums before coming to the realisation that he was most passionate about his sculptural practice. "In a sense, his works are portraits, but their locus draws from past and present, generic and individual man. The patina, furrows and the sharp cleavages of long years of human experience are visible, as Himmat invites us to share in a monumental quietude and fraternity of being human." (Sinha, p. 51)

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