As part of ongoing makeover efforts, the Western Railway has paid a colourful tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, by putting up a gigantic mural, depicting the father of the nation alighting from a train at a railway station in the 1940s, at the iconic Churchgate station building in south Mumbai here.
The permanent mural, sponsored by Asian Paints ltd as part of its CSR activities, has been painted by renowned Brazilian street artist Eduardo Kobra and his team of 52 associates and technicians over 18 days. The work was completed on Friday last.
The mural an adaptation of a photograph titled ‘Mahatma Gandhi at the Railway station, early 1940s’ by Kulwant Roy, which is owned by Aditya Arya Archive and India Photo Archive. It aims to use the power of public art to create a dialogue and join people under a positive message of peace.
The mural of a height of 81ft x 54ft is expected to help to generate an outstanding impact nationally and internationally, giving to the railways another positive value and primate.
“This direction has been chosen for the connection to the railways and for the historical value which marks the beginning of the Freedom movement and the train stations taken as his stage to spread the word of the movement itself,” Western Railway’s chief spokesperson Ravinder Bhakar said.
According to Bakar, the train network has always been an integral part of the country’s history, especially during the independence movement where they were a valuable resource.
“Hence this mural weaves together one of the most iconic characters of India’s freedom movement, on the facade of one of the Mumbai’s oldest train stations. The commuters get a glimpse of marvelous creations of quirky, colourful murals and graffiti. The artwork will make one stand and pay attention to the painting on the wall,” the WR spokesperson said.
St+art Mumbai, India’s international street art festival had roped in Brazilian Eduardo Kobra --- known for his remarkable photorealistic portraits rich in colour and geometric kaleidoscopic shapes – to paint a mural of Mahatma Gandhi at the Churchgate station.
Having been recognized as a master in creating landmarks thanks to his impeccable technique and the power of his images, Kobra has been traveling the world since more than 10 years now.
Some of Eduardo Kobra’s most celebrated pieces include the portraits of Oscar Niemeyer in Sao Paolo, Albert Einstein and Mother Teresa in los Angeles, ‘Kiss’ in Times Square, New York. Along with his team, Kobra created the Guinness world record for the largest spray painted mural “Etnias”, for the Rio 2016 Olympics.