KOCHI: The goat was everywhere - nibbling green leaves, looking forlorn, or being pampered like a baby. Vaikom Muhammad Basheer lives on through his works immortalised by many artists in Kerala.
Most of them brought alive the scenes from Basheer’s ‘Pathummayude Aadu.’ C N Karunakaran in his unique technique and style outlined Fatima and her goat. The colour of the goat, the spartan house, the earthen pitcher and her simplicity and innocence are in tune with Basheer’s words.
The autobiographical elements in the novel are rolled on in different hues in K V Krishna Kumar’s murallike frame. Another piece places him on a universal pedestal with the goat down to earth and his easy-chair resting far above. Layered with meaning, most of the works throw light on the greatness of Basheer and his place in Malayalam literature. C R Manmadan captures the character of the goat with the dark-framed spectacles against the backdrop of greenery even as a pen on a blank paper lay on a table.
V K Raja gives new tones to Basheer’s works with his awesome sculptures while Sherin Satheesh sculpts a profile of Basheer in fibre and Satheesh offers a visual representat i o n o f ‘Aanavariyum Ponkurisum’. The 32 drawings of Namboothiri take you on a journey with Basheer to the various places he visited donning different roles in life later creating different characters.
Though he was born in Vaikkom, the freedom struggle and his reverence for Gandhiji took him to Kozhikode and from there pilgrim-like he went on a long sojourn across India, Asia and Africa, taking up any job to keep hunger at bay.
He was a loom fitter, fortune teller, newspaper seller, fruit seller, sports goods agent, accountant, watchman, shepherd, cook, hotel manager and an ascetic with Hindu saints and Sufi mystics. They are rich experiences that gave him a view of the larger spectrum of life. There were times when he went without food and water.
But his thirst for writing was unquenchable.
M V Devan’s illustrations for Basheer’s works ‘Sthalathe Pradhana Divyan’, ‘Mucheettukalikkarante M a k a l ’ a n d ‘Aanava r i y u m Ponkurisum’ depict Basheer as a cook, as an ascetic with the beads in hand and the sandal paste on his forehead which would turn any head.
Another has him relaxing in his chair listening to ‘Soja Rajakumari.’ The gramophone and ghazals were dear to his heart. V Madhu takes one to his days in prison during the freedom struggle which led to his work ‘Mathilukal’.
Naushad’s Basheer on an elephant reminds you of his ‘Ntuppoppakkoranayundayirunnu’.
The photographs of Razak Kottakkal and Punalur Rajan in black and white show Basheer in various moods.
T Kaladharan’s installation made use of the properties used by Basheer including the reclining chair, the gramophone, and jars which many other artists too have highlighted.
The works of K K Rajappan, O Sundar, Surendran Karthyayan, Suresh Koothuparamba, Anil Dayanand, Madan, Satheesh Babu, A S Naushad, K A Francis, T N Subod Kumar, N S Abdul Saleem, Thomas Antony Sudhirnath, Sajeevan, Muhammedali Adam, Sudhi Anna, Ragesh Narayanan, D Ajoy Kumar, D Binuraj, R Venu, K M Narayanan, Satheesh Vellinezhi, V A Satyan, V Madhu, Praveen Mudadi, Jeevan Lal, V A Pradeep Kumar, Rajan M Thomas, Dominic, P Mohan, Shankaran Kutty, Paul Kallanod, Sharanya and Vivek gave different aspects of Basheer’s life, his humanism, his simplicity and how he felt at home with all the imperfections which he saw in a different light through his deep understanding of all facets of life.The exhibition will end on July 18 with the screening of M A Rahman’s documentary ‘Basheer the Man.’
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