HYDERABAD: It’s that time of year in Hyderabad when every street is competing to become the next best Ganesha display after the famous Khairatabad Ganesh! As every home and street welcomes Ganesha with devotion this Ganesh Chaturthi, Hyderabad’s art galleries are joining in the celebration with some exciting exhibitions centred around Lord Ganesha.
At Chitramayee State Gallery of Art, located in Jubilee Hills, the atmosphere is filled with a divine aura as the gallery is adorned with beautiful depictions of Lord Ganesha. As part of the festivities, the gallery hosted a painting exhibition featuring 45 artists, along with 28 who participated in a spot painting competition. Using acrylic as their medium, the artists presented a total of 73 unique depictions of Lord Ganesha, which was on view until September 9.
Among the 28 participants took part in the competition, 22-year-old Inugurthi Sriram Prasad stole the show, winning the top position with his exceptional artwork depicting Ganesha with a drum.
Meanwhile, 58-year-old artist Sreedevi Sreemanthula, who is among the top three, shared, “The State Art Gallery regularly conducts exhibitions and competitions, and I often participate. I felt very happy to be part of this event especially because of Ganesh Chaturthi. Coming to my art work, I wanted to create something eco-friendly. So I used rough textures with texture white and painted over it in yellow using turmeric . For the borders, I chose sea green and blue, which are cool colours. I also wrote mantras on this painting to make unique.”
In another exhibition celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi, artist Ram Prathap Kalipatnapu presents ‘Sri Heramba — Lines of Universal Symphony’ at M Eshwraiah Art Gallery, featuring 108 unique interpretations of Lord Ganesha, all drawn with a Rotring pen on Canson 300gsm paper. Sharing his personal connection to the festival, Ram Prathap says, “I’ve loved Ganpati since my childhood, and Vinayaka Chaviti has always been a special occasion in our home. We’d decorate the Palavelli ourselves, and I’d wake up early to visit the Jagannadhaswamy temple in my village, Purapaka, to gather flowers, leaves, and mud from the pond. My father, a renowned nail artist, Krishna Rao, passed on his love for art to me. I was also greatly inspired by the figurines my grandfather, Perraju, created using handmade myrobalan ink.”
The exhibition is a visual treat for devotees, featuring 32 incarnations of Ganapati from the Vedas, presented in his unique style, along with other rare and distinct interpretations. Talking about the exhibition, Ram Prathap shares, “For over fifteen years, I’ve dreamed of creating 108 depictions of Ganesha. At one point, I showed some of my pen-drawn figures to my well-wishers, Chidambaran Garu and Sanjay, who encouraged me to hold a solo Ganesha show. They advised me to keep my own style while staying true to the devotional essence. With the grace of Heramba Ganapati and Tirumala Venkateswara Swamy, I managed to complete all 108 drawings in just six months.”
The show runs until September 16.