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The life of Bapu through
new-age art and technology is on display at the NGMA, Kala Ghoda.
 The
National Gallery of Modern Art at Kala Ghoda is presently having a
multimedia exhibition titled ‘Eternal Gandhi’ dedicated to, well,
Mahatma Gandhi. Based on the life of ‘Bapu’, this exposition boasts of
being one-of-its-kind, complete with new-age art and technology.
The entire project has been conceptualised by Ranjit Makkuni in
association with the Sacred World Research Laboratory, New Delhi and is
supported by the Aditya Birla Group.
Spread over four floors, the life and work of Gandhi has been
beautifully portrayed through different measures. Like for instance, the
famous ‘Dandi March’ has been described with the help of an
installation, which enables you to pick up transparent stones in your
hand from the salt urn and as you release hundreds of tiny beads from
your hands, the different dimensions of the Dandi March come alive on a
screen.
Another clever mechanism is the ‘Raghupati Xylophone’, which has
transformed the
xylophone into a musical instrument that plays the devotional song,
‘Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram.’ Each note of the instrument can be
recognised digitally.
There is also an ‘In praise of Gandhi’, where leaders of the world have
expressed their views on Bapu. All one has to do is place a small statue
of a leader on a laser light and voila, you can see on the screen what
Jinnah, Mandela, Tagore, Mountbatten, Nehru, Einstein and others have
said about the Mahatma.
An ‘e-prison’ has also been created which enables one to recall the
scenes of Gandhi’s life in prison through three prison rods while the
pillar of castelessness requires people to hold hands to light up a
pillar, which symbolises the destruction of caste prejudice.
A striking replica of the Mahatma’s ideal ashram has also been
installed. It stands as an embodiment of truth. It was his concept of a
house without the boundaries of caste, creed or religion where everyone
lived together.
The ever-present ‘charka’ has also been colourfully displayed, where a
group of diamond shaped charkas is presented in an interconnecting
pattern, to explain the concept of togetherness.
 A
prominent ‘stambha’ also stands majestically in the centre of the room,
which represents Gandhi’s Pillar of Truth. Eleven rotatable discs spin
around the axis and the turning of the wheel triggers of a visual
representation of Gandhi’s 11 vows stipulated for the satyagrahi in
order for them to become a man of truth.
However the most striking piece of art would have to be a life size
replica of the great Mahatma himself. Made entirely of wax, it sits
statuesquely on a platform. The tiniest detail has been taken care of.
It is as if the Mahatma is sitting right in front of you!
There are various other mechanisms that will truly leave you amazed by
their sheer technological brilliance. With hundreds of talented artisans
behind this project, it is truly worth a visit. It is on till March 7,
go visit.
Courtsey:
Cybernoon
> BombayFirst,
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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2006 |
