A fervent lover of Gulzar’s poetry, Bengaluru-based artist Minjal Mukhija has attempted to express the various shades of his poetry in her paintings.
It is an attempt to create a visual story from the words written by the great poet in the form of a painting. After reading “Raat Pashmine Ki”, one of Gulzar’s greatest collections, Minjal was completely engulfed in the brilliance of its lyrics.
“I gradually began to read all of his published books and began to look forward to his next releases. One book followed another and I surrendered myself unconditionally to each book by reading the poems over and over, and this is how a wonderful journey with his poetry began,” Minjal said.
‘Submerged’, a collection of poetry, on the theme, is currently on display at the Cymroza Art Gallery at Breach Candy.
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“Reading his poems, my imagination became so strong that I was transported to a place where images floated around me, creating a visual story of its own. It was quite an inclusive and beautiful process where imagery followed from it. another forming a sequence where I was experimenting with seeing all the poetry in visuals. There was a growing urge to put it on the canvas and that’s how his poetry started to imprint itself on the canvas,” a- she declared.
“The show is a celebration of all the nuances of Gulzar’s poetry, which was so alive. A journey through life that I explored through his poems,” she said. In 2015, Minjal met Gulzar with the request for approval of his paintings based on the legendary poet’s literary work. “Gulzar Sahab wanted me to work on my paintings for another year,” she said.
The artist went into a self-exploring mode with earnest determination to bring out the best in her work. She decided to step out of her comfort zone and do everything possible to evolve towards Gulzar Sahab’s expectations.
Minjal says she will forever cherish the memories of the special moment when Gulzar Sahab was granted permission to work on her poems, after a year. “These oil and watercolor paintings are just an expression of the depth of my experience.”
“Gulzar Sahab’s work is so vast that I cannot grasp it all and so my journey continues. This art exhibition has meant more to me than I can describe for so many, many reasons, I am especially indebted to Gulzar Sahab for showering me with his grace and for being a constant guiding star to me,” she said.
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