Gandhi’s Call for Self-Reliance is Infused With Meaning at Calligraphy Exhibit

THE HINDU
By Vangmayi Parakala

Myriad art forms: A visitor taking a look at one of the exhibits | Photo Credit: Vangmayi Parakala

It is this message of sustainable solutions that the Gandhi Virasat – Kagaz Kala exhibit at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) gives as soon as you enter its space. The entry has sheets of handmade paper, hung loosely on a large wooden frame. About a score of them, in various colours, are there for you to touch and feel their different textures. It's a subtle way of advocating for handmade paper as a green, multi-solution-driven supplement to mass-produced paper. Infusing this canvas with more meaning, is the work of 11 calligraphy, type, and calligram artists.“Calligraphy isn't simply an art form. It honours the beauty of script and language. We have 22 official languages and 13 scripts. Why haven't we ever promoted calligraphy?” Jaitly asks, explaining that the art of lettering has existed with both Persian and Hindu artists. [More]