Circa 1947: How Chetana painted Mumbai's art scape

Septuagenarian Chhaya Aryarsquos earliest memories of Chetana means awakening are of artist MF Hussain cartoonist RK Laxman author Mulk Raj Anand and poet Nissim Ezekiel engaged in a fervent discussion over innumerable cups of chai and snacks Founded by her father Sudhakar Dikshit who was a former editor for a daily newspaper in Patna Chetana opened its doors in 1946 when it began as a cultural cafeacute The Chetana Art Gallery was launched a year later The pyramidshaped ceiling is decorated with artworks Artful beginnings Under its earlier owners Chetana was known as the Peacock Restaurant and was a culture centre However it had to shut shop as it was a financial liability Thatrsquos when writer Raja Rao and Dikshit took over the establishment and theu00a0rest is history Chhaya Arya with her father Sudhakar Dikshit at Chetana in 1983 Pic Courtesy Awakening The newlyopened Chetana was spread over 2500 sq ft of floor area it boasted of a 17feethigh ceiling elaborate pillars chandeliers ceiling fans hanging from the ceiling and large windows looking out at Rampart Row While one part had a bookstore another corner was reserved as a chess corner and hosted tournaments The walls were adorned with art converting it into a makeshift gallery for upcoming artists The restaurantrsquos menu was limited to affordable vegetarian snacks coffee tea and a basic Thali priced at Rs 4 and the eatery became an open forum for cultural meetings musical soirees poetry readings discussions play rehearsals and even Bharatanatyam classes Arya outside the presentday Chetana pics Bipin Kokateu00a0 Over the years the structure of Chetana underwent a makeover with a clear demarcation between the eatery and the other sections Competition from the neighbouring Jehangir Art Gallery and Chemould eroded their profit margins forcing them to convert Chetana Art Gallery into the Chetana Craft Centre in 1989 where traditional crafts and textiles are showcased Today Chetana is better known for its Rajasthani Gujarati and Maharashtrian Thalis its eclectic bookstore and the craft centre Historic canvas Yet for Arya Chetana was all about creating a cultural awakening in the city ldquoIt was one of the first art galleries in Bombay It saw the rise of the Bombay Progressive Artistsrsquo Group featuring artists such as MF Hussain Francis Newton Souza and SH Razardquo she says Formed in 1947 the group of modern artists combined Indian themes with modern techniques Artworks by KH Ara SH Raza MF Hussain Akbar Padamsee and FN Souza were exhibited on the chattaiclad walls of the gallery Inauguration of Orissa handlooms by Asha Bhonsle she u00a0remains a loyal customer at Chetana Craft Centre Pic Courtesy Awakening ldquoI was a student at the Sir JJ School of Art and in those days I would go to college by tram Many artists some of them my classmates and teachers would have their artworks exhibited We charged 400 for the spacerdquo reminisces Arya In postIndependence Bombay the galleryrsquos aim was to revive Indian culture and make Indians feel proud of their roots ldquoChetana was the place where political reformer JP Narayan held meetings and cartoonist RK Laxmanrsquos firstever exhibition was held Damu Jhaveri freedom fighter and founder of Indian National Theatre INT used Chetana as a venue to sell tickets for his plays Freedom fighter Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay who was keenly interested in crafts would exhibit temple sarees from the ceilings and handicrafts on the premisesrdquo she adds Itrsquos a family thing Arya went on to marry photographer Jitendra Arya on the premises of Chetana and started travelling across the country specifically to the rural areas ldquoI was always fascinated by Indian culture I wanted to see how people lived what were the arts and crafts indigenous to each regionrdquo When her father passed away in 1995 Arya took over as the Chairperson and Managing Director CMD ldquoThe restaurant business is a tricky thing its not very easy to runrdquo admits Arya The remainder of its artistic past is seen within the present eatery whose entrance door is decorated with glass murals the pyramidshaped ceiling is adorned with abstract artworks and the walls are also dotted with artworks New dawn ldquoWe are planning to revive the spirit of the Art Gallery by allowing upcoming artists to exhibit their artworks for a fortnight on the walls of the restaurant Art for me is sadhana practice while I donrsquot paint as much as I used to earlier the aesthetic element has been transferred onto the craft section which I personally supervise Within the eatery as well there is a Madhubani painting in the corner and the disposable tablemats have artworks on themrdquo observes Arya In a way things have come full circle quotIn the past people would come for the food as well as the conversation Even then my father saw to it that every element at Chetana was related to culture and would make people think about it For instance the tablemats had Sanskrit shlokas on them about food Our clientele may have changed but the spirit remains the samerdquo she concludes Did you know gtgt The Governor of Maharashtra Shri Maharaj Singh played chess at Chetana gtgtu00a0The Chetana magazine was a periodical published by Sudhakar Dikshit for 17 years gtgtu00a0The coffee table book Awakening was published in 2006 to commemorate 60 years of Chetana In the book journalist MV Kamath mentions how he agreed to sub articles for a prestigious journal in exchange of a free meal an evening coffee and dosa at Chetana gtgtu00a0Artist MF Hussain terms the Progressive Artists Group as the ldquoChetana Grouprdquo in honour of the place where they used to assemble and exchange ideas ldquoChetana was the first art gallery in Bombay There was just Chetana and then Kekoo Gandhirsquos frame shop on Princess Street Dikshitji Sudhakar Dikshit played a major role in supporting art and culture in Bombayrdquo wrote MF Hussain in Awakening gtgtu00a0Artist Akbar Padamsee termed Chetana as ldquoMumbairsquos first affordable art galleryrdquo His first exhibition of paintings was held at Chetana in 19491950 gtgtu00a0Freedom fighter Kisan Mehta got married at Chetana and hosted an exhibition on the Indian freedom struggle at the culture hubu00a0