Uma Nair elaborates on Pradiptaa Chakraborty’s Mirza Sahiba and other artworks which are a part of the ongoing exhibition, Ae Mohabbat, at Alturaash Gallery

Alturaash Gallery opened the season in October with a show that plumbed the depths in metaphors and stories of historical romance with Ae Mohabbat — an exhibition of six stellar paintings by Pradiptaa Chakraborty.

The title has been taken from the couplet by the famous poet and lyricist Shakeel Badayuni. The paintings are Chakroborty’s attempt at bringing forward both miniature traditions as well as recreating the characters of romances such as Heer Ranjha, Mirza Sahiba, Parineeta and The Forgotten Princess.

With a catalogue that celebrates both history and narrative the most telling part of these six canvasses is the sense of detail in composition and the inherent drama that Chakroborty creates. The show was inaugurated by the brilliant essayist and economist, Amitabh Kant (CEO of NITI AAYOG) on October 10 at 6 pm in front of a select audience.

Chakroborty, an alumnus of Shantiniketan Kala Bhavan and student of the famed K G Subramanyan as well as Jogen Chowdhury, believes that the idea of contemporary is to create a corollary of characters.

Expanding on some of his artworks, his Mirza Sahiba is more about the inherent instinct to imagine the future and act in the present — a tragedy that leaves us heartbroken in this folk tale.

Chakroborty creates a masterpiece as he shows us the journey’s end when Mirza helps Sahiba off the horse. There is something quintessentially sub-continental about the tragic romance of Mirza Sahiba.

Along with the two lovers are angels with bows and arrows. The bows and arrows stand for a metaphor of life, a symbolism of Indian tales from myth and reality; the allegory of life and death that can be seen even in the great story of Dronacharya and Arjun. When you look closely you discern that Chakroborty has the technique of a muralist, his detailing looks like frescoes from another era. As a composition this work is a masterpiece of many metaphors and meanderings.

Amongst the six works that are on display, another magnificent work is We Are Mosaics. This is a panoramic canvas full of earthly delights and hybrid humans and characters that remind us of Panchatantra, Aesop’s Fables and other stories from the past. The title is taken from a famous poem by Anita Krizan. Most art lovers walk towards it first. For Asif Kamal, the young, dynamic director of Alturaash, this is an exhibition that will create ripples for its brilliance of conceptualisation and its design spatialities.

 The application of both colour and contour reaffirm the brilliance of this shishya of Subramanyan and Chowdhury. The show, Ae Mohabbat, at Alturaash Arts runs till December 9, 2021.