India’s journey from colonial rule to Independence through heritage lens
As India marks 80 years of Independence, MOHAR (Museum of Heritage and Art at Ramgarh), an initiative of the Shruti Foundation, presented “Raj Se Swaraj Tak”, an exhibition that traces the country’s transformation through the havelis, objects and stories of Shekhawati.
The eight-day show at the Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, was curated by Shruti Nada Poddar and co-curated by Alka Pande.
Organised around 10 distinct journeys, the exhibition looks at India under the Raj in the 1800s and 1900s and at the eight decades of Swaraj that followed. The journeys cover art and design influences, belief systems, religious and folk narratives, British influence, political art, architecture, attire and lifestyle. They also examine the objects created or acquired by the Shekhawati Seths and what those objects reveal about their times.
Shekhawati is often called the “Open Air Art Gallery of Rajasthan” for its frescoed havelis. The exhibition argues that these walls hold more than art and architecture. They record the lives of the people who built them and the many influences that shaped their world.
The display drew on MOHAR’s museum collections and Poddar’s extensive personal holdings. These include art, manuscripts, telegrams, newspapers, letters, maps and oleographs, among them the Raja Ravi Varma Collection. Also on view are Manchester textile labels, coinage, currency, games, freedom-struggle photographs and other artefacts. Together, they show the blend of Indian and foreign influences that shaped the country, and the part played by Rajasthan’s merchants in the freedom movement and in building a new India. The launch on September 23 was graced by Tim Curtis, UNESCO’s Regional Head for South Asia; Raja Rama Varma, descendant of Raja Ravi Varma; Padmashri Guru Shovana Narayan, Chairperson of the Shruti Foundation; Padmashri Geeta Chandran; Ravindra Singh, Member Secretary of INTACH; and Tarun Thakral, Trustee of the Foundation and Founder of the Heritage Transport Museum. The occasion also saw the release of the “Handbook of Heritage Conservation: Special Focus: Havelis of Shekhawati”.
Union Minister of Tourism and Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat was Chief Guest, joined by Tourism. The evening featured a panel discussion titled “Shekhawati — From Historical Glory to New Horizons”, along with a viewing of the exhibition.
Speaking about the show, Poddar said Shekhawati has long been admired for its frescoes, but the stories around its havelis offer much more to discover. The exhibition, she said, shows how people in the region experienced a changing India and how that change entered their homes, walls and lives.