Colours of change

 

JANHAVI ACHAREKAR

An exhibition of paintings in Mumbai by artists from Hyderabad tries to capture the evolving textures of a fast-changing city.

Having experimented in the past with cityscapes and human figures, Fawad Tamkanat’s new series, “Street Observations”, is a more contemporary, sophisticated representation of Hyderabad.

Vignettes of life in a metro: Untitled by K. Srinivas Chari.

For a city that’s been in the news for all the wrong reasons lately, the exhibition of figurative art, “High on Hyderabad”, at Jamaat Art Gallery in Mumbai, was a pleasant surprise. A city that has suffered much violence in recent t imes, Hyderabad is portrayed in a new light. And even as it is besieged by the IT industry, attracting talent from around the country and the globe, earning the dubious monicker “Cyberabad”, we are made privy to the everyday realities of the less celebrated rural migrants to the city.

Striking ambience

As you enter Jamaat, what strikes you most is the peace and communal harmony that the city once famously stood for. Fawad Tamkanat’s Muslim figures in traditional caps and burkhas are strategically placed opposite Ramesh Gorjala’s “Hanuman” and “Krishna”.

Bairu Raghuram’s work is inspired by the tranquillity of rural Telangana and Sachin Jaltare’s dreamlike figures add a touch of the spiritual and the divine. Meanwhile, Laxman Aelay’s city scenes of rural workers and Srinivas Reddy’s sculpted busts are telling social statements just as K. Srinivasa Chari’s figures in egg tempera hark back to the elegance of Nawabi Hyderabad.

Charmed by the city during a recent visit, this group show of emerging and established artists from Hyderabad has been curated by the gallery owner Pravina Mecklai (who is quick to point out that while Fawad is a practising Muslim and Gorjala a devout Hindu, they remain the best of friends).

Fawad Tamkanat surprises us with his new works, painted in the photorealistic style. Having experimented in the past with cityscapes and human figures, his new series, called “Street Observations”, is a more contemporary, sophisticated representation of a fast-changing Hyderabad as it is transformed from a sleepy town into a suave, modern city. This talented artist paints his immediate surroundings and scenes observed from his studio. (more…)


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