Why Pune's public buses will soon double up as art spaces

While hopping onto a public bus tomorrow, you'll be in for a pleasant surprise. Artwork, like photographs, paintings and poems will adorn its roof and windows. This weekend, the city’s

Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited

(PMPML) buses, that ferry thousands of common people daily, will play canvas to several artworks. This is part of an ongoing endeavour to democratise

art

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Out of the galleries, into public spaces
Art galleries tend to cater to an elite audience – of art and literary connoisseurs, feels city documentary photographer Abhijit Patil. He says, “Referencing, networking and gate-keeping go behind who gets to display art, and who gets to see it.” In response to this sort of ‘art bureaucracy’, Abhijit set up

Sadakchhap

in 2013, a public art movement, free from the constraints of whether one’s work will appeal to a particular gallery or class of people. Several artists have joined in to make it the collective it now is.

Having displayed artwork at Tulsibaug, Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre (Khadki) and the Garware Subway till now, Sadakchhap's fourth edition this weekend will see artists turning Pune’s public buses into canvases. “It will be special owing to the mere reach these buses have. Exhibitions in fixed spaces serve a limited audience, but these buses will travel across the city, bringing people not usually exposed to such art in touch with works by other common people,” says Abhijit. Over 40 visual artists across strata of society will be participating.

PMPML authorities welcomes the idea
Before approaching PMPML authorities for permission, Abhijit imagined the permission process to be fraught with red tapism; but he was surprised with the response his idea received. “Never had the city’s buses been looked at in such a way before. Satish Ghate, Pune Station bus depot manager, welcomed the idea and gave us permission to use his depot buses. He facilitated a meeting with managers of Pune’s 14 other depots to plan similar exhibitions,” says Abhijit. Of the 130 buses there, over 50 will be used as art spaces, one dedicated to each artist. Rajendra Shirsagar, senior mechanic at PMPML, adds, “Besides inspiring people to look at buses beyond being everyday vehicles, this project will encourage honest art appreciation. I look forward to seeing works by my own colleagues on the buses as well.”

Not your art or mine, but ours
There is no gate-keeping or screening committee for this exhibition. Everyone is invited to come forward with their art. The only criterion is that it should have some association with the public domain. Be it a photo stories or paintings, everything’s welcome. The fact that there are no barriers has seen varied people coming forward. For the last edition, a man working as a driver at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) came forward with his album full of pictures of him with film personalities and his shots in various student films. Abhijit recalls, “The man heard about the project at

FTII

and asked if he could participate. With a little curating, a beautiful story about his fascination with cinema came to light.” Many artists often show up on the day of the exhibition too. A farmer from Satara arrived on site last time, with pictures he had taken of life in his village. This absence of barriers hence encourages freedom to express. Artists are also encouraged to curate and showcase their art as they want, with a little help from the project team.

What to look forward to this time
While the focus is usually on 2D visual art, this is the first time textual forms, like poetry, are welcome. Law student Shrenik Mutha will be penning a Marathi poem. He shares, "Keeping in mind the various restrictions imposed by the government in the recent past, I'll be exploring the concept of rule-making and how 'freedom and restrictions' often originate from home." He adds that the idea of writing on the subject in Marathi for the lay audience is exciting in itself. Meanwhile, social development consultant Pradnya Shirode will be displaying a photo story of the drought-stricken Sangli district, taken as part of her research there. "Staying in the city, there's little sensitisation towards the rural area's struggle with drought. These images will tell stories through the struggles of the people there," says Pradnya. Abhijit's display on the other hand will be focused on the 'male gaze' and the role it plays in how women are perceived in India.

How you can be a part
The exhibition is on January 14 and 15. The artists will meet up tonight at Pune Station bus depot at 10.30 pm, to assemble their artworks ahead of the display. To take part, all you need to do is bring along masking tape, scissors and your art work (photo prints, paintings, poems, illustrations or anything you can get on paper. Photo stories would need a brief write-up translated in Marathi. Artists would be encouraged to ride on the buses showcasing their artwork, to interact with common passengers or gauge their reactions to the artwork.