NEW DELHI: The Culture ministry has decked up Rajpath with 10 gigantic painted scrolls especially readied for Republic Day celebrations. Each measuring about 750 m long, the scrolls portray tales of valour of unsung heroes of India’s freedom movement and have been painted by master artists of different traditional art forms such as Phad, Pichwai, Pattachitra, Talapatra Chitra, Manjusha, Warli, and Madhubani, at workshops organised by National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA). This is the first time that the culture ministry was roped in for the R-Day celebrations at Rajpath.
After the culmination of the celebrations, the scrolls will be taken to different parts of the country and exhibited as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav — an initiative to celebrate and commemorate the 75th anniversary of Independence.
On Thursday, secretary culture Govind Mohan visited Rajpath to take stock of arrangements—installation of scrolls on either side of the iconic boulevard. “The varied art forms of these artists are reflected in the scrolls which have been brought together on a single platform in the true spirit of Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat,” Mohan said.
The artworks on the scroll have also drawn inspiration from the creative illustrations in the Constitution painted by Nandalal Bose—one of the pioneers of Modern Indian art— and his associates, which impart a distinctive appeal along with representations from India’s indigenous arts.