In the distant suburb of Mira Road, an artists’ collective has been steadily crafting an annual showcase to add a dash of colour to the working-class neighbourhood
Between Seen and Unseen by Nibir Chandra Ghosh. Pics/Shadab Khan
The middle-class shaped Mumbai’s progressive art culture, and yet, the medium is viewed as the playground of the rich. “You say that today, imagine it in the early 2000s,” shares Maushmi Ganguly. The 48-year-old is a founding member of Team Potential Trust, a 20-year-old art collective that has been quietly cultivating art in suburban Mira Road. Currently, their workshop, Po10Pur Studio plays host to the fifth edition of Ikattha, a month-long exhibition by 10 Indian artists.
Breaking through
From the outside, the gates of Shanti Garden Society resemble any other residential complex. Approach the ground floor, and you will think again. Two flats, a 1BHK and a 2BHK, have been transformed into studio spaces marked with leftover prints, studio tables, and currently, an ongoing exhibition.
Jaydhar Boro’s Quite Ruptures on display at the exhibition
Fine Arts alumni of Banaras Hindu University and Santiniketan, Ganguly and her husband, Akhilesh Khumar, moved to the city in the early 2000s. Soon, they discovered that Mumbai’s art world is not easy to break into. Yet, they were not alone in this quandary.
“Many artists move to this city and struggle, but they find a common brotherhood,” the co-founder explains. In 2006, the collective was born out of seven such artists — Akhilesh Khumar, Maushmi Ganguly, Annaraya S Hangargi, Mallikarjun S Katke, Kuldip Karegaonkar, Shabari Smitha Guha, and Dhiraj Tiwari (administration) — coming together to create a support system. It took another six years before they named themselves, Po10tial. “We kept showing individually, and collectively across Mumbai. In 2021, we hosted our first annual edition,” Ganguly reveals. Quite apt, the title Ikattha is the Hindustani word for ‘collective’.
Changing sensibilities
It is one thing for artists to recognise an artist collective, and quite another for the neighbourhood kirana to speak of it. The latter might, in fact, get more word of mouth publicity, Ganguly laughs. “Let alone others, we were not sure of building an artistic practice here. But from the early years, we felt it was our responsibility to communicate our artistic ideas,” she says.
Awaken Your Higher Vibration by Shabari Smitha Guha
The process of building awareness began with simple outreach programmes that continue to be a part of the studio’s practice. From posting on society groups, inviting people over, to hosting students from schools and colleges in the neighbourhood for art and printmaking workshops, the collective slowly built up a community. Then, there were curious children in the building who would occasionally pop in to watch them set up.
(From left) Maushmi Ganguly; artist Sadhana Ganeshan; Akhilesh Kumar; Shabari Smitha Guha and Mallikarjun S Katke
This also required sacrifice from the practising artists in the founding group who would set aside their own works for a month to plan for the exhibition. The duration was also chosen because of the location of the studio. “People need time to commute, come and take in these works. Moreover, seven days feels too less for the work put in by the artists,” Ganguly shares.
Turn of the season
The studio spaces are housed in a residential apartment
In a city starved of space, such collectives are essential. “We have 30 artists under the banner. We wanted to offer young artists a platform that we did not have,” she concludes. True to their name, the annual edition showcases works by 10 artists.
A print workshop at the studio
This year, Nibir Chandra Ghosh’s work builds on the visual experience of the world through prismatic light. Others like Sadhana Ganesan, Suresh Kumar Singha, and Harshal Khatri are names for the future. Beyond the studio though, the neighbourhood carries on with business-like precision. Mumbai and its contradictions live on.
TILL February 10; 11.30 am to 6 pm
AT Po10pur Studio, Building 6, Shanti Garden Society, Mira Road East.
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