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Tagore and his space
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Of photographs by Samit Das till July 27
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OF HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE A photograph on display
"I am fascinated by space," said Samit Das as he looked at his photographs that line the walls of the Apparao Infinity gallery, Taj Connemara. The exhibition titled "Looking back through looking forward" comprises colour and black and white photographs that explore and appreciate the world of Rabindranath Tagore. It is part of a project titled "Shantiniketan Architecture and Rabindranath Tagore" where "I've tried to trace a link between The Bengal Art Movement and the Shantiniketan architecture."
"For me, Shantiniketan holds a special significance ... I believe it is a gateway to understand the Bengal Art Movement better," says the young artist who studied BFA and MFA at the famed institution.
As Das' camera captures Shantiniketan and Jorashanko Thakurbari, the Tagore family home, one is let into a world where aestheticism meets functionality in a seamless manner.
World influences
"Tagore, for whom art, architecture and artefacts held great interest, was inspired as much by Japanese and Chinese architecture as he was by the Rajput style," explained Das, pointing to an oval wall hanging in one of the photographs, which clearly shows Japanese influence.
The shot of a cupboard with a mirror greets visitors to the gallery. At first glance, it looks like a photo of a verandah but look closer and you realise it's just a reflection of it. What breaks the illusion is a small green lock, looking quite incongruous.
"That's symbolic of the state of the place. It shows how today, most of us do not have a sense of history," was Das' comment.
Many an object used by Tagore and his family share space here. In fact, some were even made by members of his family. Ceramic tea pots and serving bowls, a compass box, a quill and ink stand, a Chinese fan, chairs glass perfume bottles, terracotta jars... every item photographed here smacks of taste and reveals yet another facet of the bearded bard from Bengal.
Doors hold a special meaning to Das. "Yes, they take you into another world. They lend depth and at the same time, they speak of space."
Tagore's room, complete with his portrait, another room where the picture of Raja Ram Mohan Roy dominates the wall and the Nobel Prize plaque (before it was stolen, of course)... each photograph is a reminder of the time when Bengal was at the peak of its glory and was in the throes of a revolution, both social and artistic.
The small black and white frames of Jorashanko in sharp contrast to the large format colour ones stand out. Shadows are created as light filters through the jaali style walls, and as Das puts it, "From darkness to light with some grey in between; isn't that the philosophy of life?"
Through this exhibition, Samit Das hopes to present to the world "the definitive style and distinct character of Shantiniketan and Tagore's passion for art and architecture."
The photo exhibition is on till July 27, 11.30 a.m. to 7.30 p.m.
SAVITHA GAUTAM
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