Mumbai: Dr Dhondo Keshav Karve's former home is now a hub for art students

Students from the third year undergraduate class of visual arts during a figure painting class in a studio at SNDT Kanyashala PicsBIPINu00c2u0088KOKATEIn one of the bustling streets of Khetwadi Girgaon near Phadke Ganpati Mandir a heritage building that was once the house of reformist Dr Dhondo Keshav Karve has been serving as a hub for the Fine Arts department of Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey SNDT Womenrsquos Universityrsquos College of Arts Restored in 2015 and inaugurated as the SNDT University mdash Jindal Centre for the Arts the centre finished two years on August 12Built in 1916 the structure served as residence for Karve for a short while after which in 1924 it was turned into a kanyashala or a school for girls It was called the Damodar Thackersey Kanyashala and furthered Karversquos pioneering reforms in womenrsquos education It closed down in 2013 when the demographics of Girgaon changed and fewer girls sought admissionOnce restored and inaugurated in 2015 the centre has become a thriving oasis for the undergrad and postgrad visual arts programmes which come under SNDT College of Arts Meera Sawant the head of the undergrad programme says that infrastructurewise this has been a sea change from the crammed classrooms they occupied earlier at the Universityrsquos main campus in Churchgate Visual arts students need extended uninterrupted hours for their work especially in the studio unlike students from other streams We are able to afford that quiet and space here she saysThe building also known as SNDT Kanyashala was restored through the initiative of former SNDT University ViceChancellor Dr Vasudha Kamat the support of Sangita Jindal chairperson of JSW Foundation and the expertise of conservation architect Abha Narain Lambah and her team on the occasion of the universityrsquos 100th anniversaryThe structure before and after restoration PicsANLAssociatesA Grade III heritage structure it boasts of a ground floor exhibition space classrooms staffrooms and welllit studios We currently have both the postgraduate and undergraduate students about 120 in all using this centre In the past two years three workshops and a sizeable number of guest lectures have also been conducted here It is very important to have an artfriendly atmosphere for students says Sawant While it may seem that the students are cutoff from the vigorous campus life over at Churchgate Sawant says that they make ample use of the centre for farewells freshersrsquo parties and gettogethersLambah who worked on the project for a year says that the restoration continues the buildingrsquos strong history with womenrsquos educationSince it was formerly a kanyashala this restoration was part of the whole idea of freedom and empowerment The house had already been rethought to accommodate classrooms for the school she saysMeera SawantThe building which had weathered many monsoons had leakages to be addressed An original skylight through which natural light filters in has been left intact adding allure to the central staircase We tread gently on the project with as little intervention as possible We wished to keep the sense of the building alive she saysAfter two years Jindal is happy to note the flourishing of the arts centre here and also hopes that the community around the building will be roped in for future activitiesWe hope to hold evening classes for the midincome and lowerincome communities in the area and thus allow them to have more access to the arts she saysOverall Lambah says that the building is a testament to how heritage structures can be put to more functional use specially in Girgaon where the landscape has changed dramaticallyYou may also like Mumbai Crime Roundup 10 incidents that took place this week