An art show inspired by Indian cinema Premium

The Art Magnum Gallery in Delhi hosted works of artists from across India, showcasing how cinema creates a lasting memory

It was an edgy, artsy and quirky art show launched at the Art Magnum Gallery this past weekend. The art works exhibited take the viewer down memory lane and offer a glimpse of Indian cinema through the decades, from Meena Kumari’s movies to the latest RRR, with the help of posters, sculptures, installations, famous dialogues and popular scenes.

An oil painting by Vishakha Hardikar filled with vibrant and happy colours depicts the storytelling skills of directors such as Ramesh Sippy, Kamal Haasan and Shekhar Kapoor, The playfulness of strokes also hide a disquiet of different eras when certain films worked and others did not.

On a plain silver blank frame, Pulkit Prajapati has drawn Mr.India. It can be viewed using 3D glasses and explains the popular movie in a glance. Another work by him titled Bollywood Galla showcases two sides of cinema: the limelight and the struggles to reach there

N Ramachandran’s multiple square windows in mixed media is all about what we see from inside and what is actually visible outside the window; the two are completely different because every individual has his/her perspective.  Manish Sharma’s puppets styled after Amitabh Bachchan in Shahenshah and Raj Kapoor in Mera Naam Joker flaunt a mixture of ancient storytelling with today’s cinematic storytelling. 

Cinema and its craze flows through every artwork on display. Santhana Krishnan’s work ushers in nostalgia with old posters that remind us how the posters used to be an essential part of our growing up years. Likewise dialogues from Sholay, Deewar or Don to rain scenes from different hit movies, they all come alive and conjure up memories of several old movies.

A rare portrait of Durgabai Kamat, the first woman actor in Indian Cinema, who played the role of Parvati, in Mohini Bhasmasur and her teenaged daughter Kamlabai Gokhale (nee Kamat), who was the first female child actor, reminds viewers of the remarkable mother-daughter duo; but the film is lost. “There is no trace of the film nor any visual record,” says Annapurna Madipadiga, the curator, who took two years to put the exhibition together.

“During lockdown I started researching as we all were watching lots of movies sitting at home during the pandemic. Entertainment sustained us during those days and I reaslied as Indians how connected we are to our cinema. The idea of a travel art show was thus born with an idea to protect and preserve our intangible heritage,” she says.