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Too close for comfort: Dr Prakash Sarang created Antarang, the sex museum. It was inaugurated by the BMC in 2002 following an upsurge of HIV/AIDS cases in the city. The museum presently lies shut. PIC/Rane Ashish |
"Since Goa is a tourist spot, it would attract people with different mindsets to our museum. We would be able to showcase our traditional forms," said Sarang, who is currently in Goa.
Sarang has grand plans for the new museum and wants it to be bigger and bolder. The museum, according to Sarang, will feature interpretive dance videos, which will tell the story of a man and his various emotions as he goes through the various stages of his
sexuality.
Sarang says, "I would have loved to start a new Antarang in Mumbai, Pune, Nashik or some other city in Maharashtra. However, my first experience with this project wasn't very good." Sarang, who recently retired from the BMC, is referring to the current state of India's only sex museum, which is in a state of limbo.
Antarang was inaugurated by the BMC in 2002 following a sudden upsurge of HIV/AIDS cases in the city. The museum presently lies shut on Belassis Road, Kamathipura in Grant Road. Devoted to sex education, the plot of land on which the museum stands was handed over to a private developer for redevelopment. "The exhibits were to be moved to the complex of the leprosy hospital in Wadala, but the approximate cost of shifting is still being calculated," said BMC Additional Commissioner Kishore Gajbhiye.
Sarang is completely upbeat about his new project, but faces a big hurdle in finding an appropriate place for the gallery. "I had seen one space, but it was too small. I want a bigger plot of land, as I want this new museum to be bigger and better than the previous one." He has approached his friends in Goa, who are looking for a place to set up the museum.
