Sat, Jul 5 01:05 AM
The frenzy of everyday life stares you in the face, draws you in, past the multitude with their wares.
Look beyond it all, into the horizon, as the millionth sun sets behind Chandni Chowk. Artist Sanjib Saha sets out to immortalise the home of nawabs and shayars in his latest exhibition, Chandni Chowk.
"It is our responsibility as artists," says Saha, "to make people aware of the beauty of this part of Delhi. Sometimes people neglect the old city, but there is so much beauty there," he says.
It may not be obvious, looking at it now, but Chandni Chowk was actually a planned city, with clear pathways marked by arches, Saha explains. "And it's like mini India - when you enter there's a Gauri Shankar Mandir, there are historical mosques, one of the oldest churches in India, and people from every community live there," he continues, visibly passionate about his project.
Saha himself is from Durgapur, in West Bengal, but Delhi is home. "I moved here in 1992 because exposure is always good for an artist, it helps him improve.
" Through the years, Saha has worked on interior designing, advertising and a lot of visual artistic avenues. The reason: "I get to incorporate different points of views into my work.
" Though Saha has also painted Rajasthan's monuments, he feels that Delhi is a richer pasture, as it has every kind of architecture to rouse an artist. His last few series explored the various monuments of the Capital.
"Delhi is different from any other city, there are Unesco-affiliated monuments in the same space as 1,000 to 2,000 unnoticed, forgotten ones. We, as artists, have to present our city in a way that inspires people to conserve it.
" This brings him back to Chandni Chowk. "Every art student comes here to buy colours from the wholesale market," Saha continues.
"Whatever people may say, the character of Chandni Chowk is nothing like a market in Benarus or Kolkata. When you see women in burkhas haggling with shopkeepers, you are transported to an old Arabian country.
In the backdrop of the Jama Masjid, a vendor sells Nataraj and Buddha statues while another sells kulchas." Similar in style to Impressionist art, Saha's use of colour and bold strokes recreate beautifully the madness and method in Chandni Chowk's being.
At Triveni Kala Sangam, 205 Tansen Marg, till July 13.
If you are young, have a hectic social life where you drink and party, and have applied for a job, chances are you will lose out to someone who is a teetotaler.
| Copyright © Yahoo Web Services India Pvt Ltd. All rights reserved. Questions or Comments Privacy Policy -Terms of Service - Copyright Notice |
