WHAT: Jantar Mantar
WHERE: Art Musings, 1 Admiralty Building, Colaba Cross Lane
WHEN: Until August 14, 10.30 am to 7 pm. Closed on Sunday
CALL: 2216-33319
ENTRY IS FREE
In a narrow lane of perhaps Indore, Jodhpur or Delhi, a man in a Nehru jacket with neatly partitioned and oiled hair, fans a variety of mithais. A prominent sign on the wall behind him, next to a framed photo of his parents, reads, ‘If you have nothing to do. Please do not do it here.’
In Mumbai, the Capitol cinema stands in all its glory, announcing a Marilyn Monroe movie, River of No Return. In the foreground, a man eyes two young girls carrying flowers as two Parsi women look on, intrigued.
These colourful paintings in a humorous tone are part of artist Nilofer Suleman’s new exhibition, Jantar Mantar. They celebrate roadside dentists, mithaiwalas, old theatres and cafes, with a hint of nostalgia.
“These works might make you laugh at our double standards or weird ways, but I am not being sarcastic. This is just how we are,” says Suleman.
{{/usCountry}}“These works might make you laugh at our double standards or weird ways, but I am not being sarcastic. This is just how we are,” says Suleman.
{{/usCountry}}The nine detailed works show life in India, particularly street culture, as captured in Suleman’s photographs and observations over the years.
“I am saddened that the hand-painted signs and these quirky sign boards are being replaced by printed flexes. The former is a part of us of who we are and of the Indian reality,” she says.