Latest news with #UmaNair
Time of India
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Phaneendra Nath's Odyssey of Metaphors
Critic and Curator Uma Nair has been writing for the past 34 years on art and culture She has written as critic for Times of India and Economic Times. She believes that art is a progressive sojourn. She learnt by looking at the best shows in Washington D.C. and New York. As author her most important books are Reverie with Raza and Meditations on Trees by Ompal Sansanwal. LESS ... MORE At Bikaner House in Delhi you have to walk up to the first floor of the Centre for Contemporary Art and savour a panoramic work of Phaneendra Nath Chaturvedi's butterflies in a small room to know the power and passion of this brilliant artist who trained at College of Art Lucknow. Looking at his work with his professor Jai Krishna Agarwal on Saturday became a moment of deep revelations and reflections between Guru and shishya. As the butterflies flutter over the surface of the canvas, it reminds me of the world's finest artist Yayoi Kusama's mosaic-like shards in their spread wings, each revealing exquisite patterns of orange, red, white and blue spots. For Phaneendra, the butterfly is more than a symbol of fragility and beauty; it is a symbol of service, of selfless spiritual significance, and a metaphor for man and nature. Nestled and sprinkled on pedestals in this room are his butterfly sculptures shining in modern steel and sculpted in the realms of technological finesse. The details and precision of the creatures' wings in many ways fuse with Phaneendra's own mesmeric style. Comprising an iridescent assortment of colours and hues, the sculptures bear a similarly diaphanous and lustred quality that enchants us. We gaze at the painting and the sculptures too and think of intricately tessellated backgrounds—a flattened plane of biomorphic swarms —sprawling and propagating into infinite space like cells under a microscope. Repetition is Phaneendra's elixir; he creates his own corollary with an 'all-over' method, the shapes evoking the enduring legacy of an infinite carnival of butterflies celebrating the ecological spectrum. Then in the largest room on the top floor is the man with flat wings, reminding us of an aeroplane. Whatever he paints or draws or creates with pencil and pastel, each work comes alive with unique perceptual effects. In his archetypal grim grim-looking, intimate figurative imagery, each work presents the artist Phaneendra's spectacular, pulsating vision. Phaneendra's fascination with the winged man is inextricable from his experience and appreciation of the world. ' On earth, man is only one dot among millions of others,' he says. ' We must not forget ourselves with the desires of our burning ambition. I feel that in our everyday struggles, we lose ourselves in the ever-advancing stream of eternity.' Take the lift and look at his winged man sculpture on the ground floor. Here he calls it Totem and you see a fiberglass sculpture of a man with an owl's wings. Precision and perfection tell us that this modern man in a pair of impeccable trousers is a testimony to time. The artist's pleasure in nature and its abundant variety of forms is palpable. Each individual wing, whether in a drawing on the two walls or in a single sculpture, is painstakingly rendered in both graphite as well as fiberglass. The open wings unfurl into swathes of space, exuberant in expanse. The series he has created as clusters over the last few years are delicately articulated. We must note that the artist's work became smoother, more orderly, figurative, and above all, more pensive. There is indeed a lightness as well as a gravitas to these subsequent paintings. The Good Wisher At the centre of the long corridor stands a monochromatic suited man created in mixed media on archival paper from the year 2016 titled The Good Wisher. Unpretentious and filled with a host of hidden emotions, the bouquet of flowers and caparisoned little bird on the shoulder become organic objects likely to speak to Phaneendra's own experiences as well as memories of formative fascination for both botanical as well as zoological species. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
New Indian Express
26-04-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Processing the Pahalgam nightmare
Uma Nair, Art critic, Delhi What did they gain? At the end of the day, what's the difference between a Hindu and a Muslim? Can someone be blamed for being born into a faith? It is also good to remember that a terrorist, at the end of the day, is an unemployed youth. Tourism was a way to get them to join the mainstream, get them back to being earners. I feel Pakistan does not like the proximity that India shares with other countries. The economic factor is at play somewhere. Sheuli Misra, PhD scholar, JNU, Delhi I strongly condemn the attack on Indian citizens. It points to a serious security lapse. However, this incident has nothing to do with the residents of Kashmir. As a frequent visitor to Kashmir, I've always been treated with warmth and respect by locals. My behaviour towards them won't change—in fact, my respect has only grown seeing how they have supported victims' families and helped stranded tourists. Their humanity in this moment is truly admirable. Aditya Arya, founding director, Museo Camera, Delhi NCR When I first heard the news, all my memories of Pahalgam came rushing back. I know that place like the back of my hand because I used to go trekking there. However, I believe there is always space for solidarity between nations. I've always wanted to visit Pakistan because my maternal family belonged to Sialkot and Lahore. I still have hundreds of documents and belongings from my mother's side—original diaries, accounts of how they lived in Sialkot, migrated to Lahore, and then eventually to India. But healing from what has happened will take time… I hope our government takes action to first capture these people. Syed Bashaar, Comedian, Hyderabad Honestly, none of us sitting in comfort can even remotely process the horrors of those victims. The fear and rage we felt can only be but a fraction of what's deserving of this tragedy. But we will play right into their hands if we let our attitude towards civilians change. If they killed innocents and we kill more innocents in response, we become the henchmen of our enemies. It is upsetting to see people directing hate comments towards Muslim children, using swear words and saying they are 'time bombs'. I also feel that making Ghibli art out of the victims and editing Bollywood movie scenes for this context is just being tone deaf and downright insensitive. Charu Chellani, PR personnel, Delhi 'I was in Pahalgam just three days before the tragedy to celebrate my birthday with my parents. Throughout our trip, we felt safe and warmly welcomed. Tourism remains an important lifeline for Kashmir's local families, and this attack has not only struck at humanity and peace but also deeply impacted the region's beauty and fragile economy. While I refrain from speculating on external involvement, justice must be served for the victims. I firmly believe Kashmiris played no part in this violence. It will, however, be difficult for many to travel to Kashmir anytime soon. Avishek Chanda, 29, PhD scholar, Delhi 'The selective targeting of the tourists is deliberately provocative. This is a moment that demands national unity. Pakistan's military-jihadi complex undertakes such misadventures periodically for the fulfillment of its political agenda. There must be credible deterrence against such actions. However, this incident will not change my relationship with Kashmiris. I have friends from J&K, and the bond will remain intact. Unfortunately, there have been some instances of intimidation against Kashmiri students across a few states. But that is exactly what the terrorists want – to alienate Kashmir from the rest of India. We must not walk into their trap.' K V Madhusudhanan, former IG, CRPF, and head of SPG's Close Protection Team The dastardly attack is nothing short of a ruthless aggression on the collective soul of the nation. As an Indian, it is difficult to forget and forgive. Contrast the vulgarity of asking the religion and selectively killing people with the words of Aarti, who witnessed her father N Ramachandran being shot dead. Yet to come out of the trauma, she profusely praises the care she received from the two Kashmiri Muslims. This shows the ulterior motive of communal polarisation will not work. The recent statement of the Pak army chief sounded like that of fundamentalist, so unbecoming of a soldier. The ever-improving status of India in the international platform, including several Islamic countries, has been worrying Pakistan. So waging a low-cost war – ie sponsorship of terrorism – is seen as a better option by the deep state of Pakistan, including its army. Diplomatic, military and political management of the emerging situation is needed for a lasting solution. Joel Jolly Mathews, college student, Thiruvananthapuram Pakistan is a terror factory. For decades, they have played the same dirty game. Enough! It's time for an iron strategy with teeth, not diplomacy with dimples. Keep poking the lion, and restraint becomes resolve. There should be consequences — a retaliation that hurts. We will talk of cross-cultural ties once cross-border terror ends. Every inch of Kashmir should be under the Tricolour — I am willing to bleed for it. Lakshmi Sreekumar, HR consultant and social worker, Kochi The grief and anger are intense. We lost a brother (N Ramachandran) here in Kochi. It feels personal. If this was an October-7-Hamas-style attack, we want an Israel-type action. People trust the Modi government to give an unforgettable reply. The opposition should back the government, not play appeasement politics. Antony Davis, Founder of VHT Now, Bengaluru I've spent about 20-25 days in Kashmir and what I realised is that a majority of Kashmiris are the most amazing people in India. They have to go through the hardest life but the hospitality they show is something you'll remember even years later. Only a few people want to create a stir and are supported by bigger organisations; they want to damage tourism and livelihoods of people. [The terror attack] is really sad, disgusting and unfortunate but my genuine opinion is that people from India should still visit. I would definitely say that the Indian government restricting entry of Pakistanis makes sense. It's still risky to have people move across the border because you can't make out who's who and what their intentions are. Rishi Raja, Engineering graduate, Chennai I have been to Kashmir before – to Pahalgam, Baisaran Valley itself. In my point of view, the terrorists are trying to create a divide between Hindus and Muslims in India by targeting only the Hindus. What they have done is inhumane. It's not a religious act as no religion teaches terrorism. Madhu Sharma, travel influencer & marketing consultant, Bengaluru Kashmir was definitely on my bucket list and I was planning to visit in the near future because it is heaven on earth right in our own country. In the past few years, tourism has also boomed and you see so many videos online. I feel a lot of anger, mistrust and frustration. It needs a monster mind to do something to innocent people who are there on vacation with their families. Being a travel influencer, I know how excited my family is to see new places when travelling with me. Now, who knows when something like this will happen? I hope the government takes some strong action to make sure Kashmir is a safe place to travel without being worried or afraid of something happening. Naveen Kumar Pivhal, Screenplay writer, Hyderabad It breaks my heart and boils my blood. These weren't soldiers. These were innocent people touring their own country. The Pahalgam attack isn't just about Kashmir. It's about the soul of this country being attacked again and again. I'm done pretending that peace can come without accountability. I've always believed in cultural exchange, dialogue, and hope for peace — but attacks like this shake that belief. Right now, I feel we need to prioritise security over cross-border friendships. You can't keep extending a hand when the other side carries a knife. Peace can't come at the cost of lives.
