Mumbai: This exhibition showcases regional arts from Kota and Vrindavan

Today Kota in Rajasthan might be famous or infamous for its many ambitious and aspiring engineering students solving complex calculus But once upon a time it housed artists and weavers who created visuals of splendour Starting tomorrow visual artist and researcher Dr Madan Meena will be part of a twoweek exhibition cohosted by the Datri Foundation that brings together the art of Kota miniatures and Kota Doria alongside Sanjhi creations from VrindavanA traditional weaver works on a Kota Doria pit loomWoven with historyBorn in Kota Meenarsquos artistic journey began with textiles This introduced him to the traditional weaving art of Kota Doria ldquoIt is a fine light and airy textile made of silk and cottonrdquo he says ldquoIn the 17th century Rao Kishore Singh Ji of Kota invited several Ansari weavers from Mysore to the kingdom This was the reason for the clothrsquos original name Kota Masuriardquo he reveals Weaving fine cloth requires humidity that prevents threads from breaking on the loom So the weavers settled in a town close to a river ldquoThese were pit looms mdash placed a few centimetres above the ground The coolness of the ground and moisture in the air enables them to create such fine clothrdquo Meena points outA Kota Doria cloth with motifs inspired from miniaturesOver the years this industry is slowly fading The artist points to the decline of a similar tradition mdash Kota miniature art ldquoKota Bundi is a tradition that traces back to the Jain miniatures of the 7th century With the arrival of the Mughals and influences from Persia a new Rajput painting tradition emergedrdquo he remarks The Kota Bundi style is defined by its inclusion of wildlife flora and fauna Today Meena adds the art is only used to create copies of or to restore ancient creationsDexterity in colourFor Katyayani Agrawal foundertrustee of Datri Foundation her interest in the traditional Sanjhi art of Vrindavan follows a similar theme Sanjhi art is practised as a religious and traditional art form ldquoThe Vedhi Sanjhi is practised by temple priests It is a complex Rangoli made of dry powder to create images of Radhardquo she saysA Vedhi Sanjhi right Ashutosh Verma cuts out a Sanjhi stencilThe other form is the water Sanjhi where artists create layers on a water surface using stencils ldquoIt is a timeconsuming art and requires extreme dexterityrdquo Agrawal reveals The stencils used to create these artworks are made by artisans known as Sanjhi khakha ldquoThey are handcrafted to the requirements of the artists and are an art form by themselves Sadly only two families in the region practise the techniquerdquo she sharesMadan Meena and Katyayani AgrawalFading with timeBoth art forms are at a critical juncture The need to offer them a new expression led Meena to use Kota miniatures in his practice ldquoIt is important to develop new expressions aligned to a modern generation If you keep creating a Maharaja ki sawari a younger generation would not be interested or find context in itrdquo he says In his miniatures the nayika finds a modern expression through a selfie or bike rides through the forest This is not without challenges Agrawal shares how the Sanjhi artists were initially dismayed at changes to their traditional motifs during her early interactions eight years ago ldquoFor them these were sacrosanct It took us years of coaxing to help them understand the need to changerdquo she sharesA water Sanjhi artworkUnited in artThe exhibition this week will bring together these diverse forms Apart from an artwork that blends Meenarsquos Kota miniatures and Sanjhi creations there will also be over 30 textiles woven with motifs of Kota miniatures created by Meena in collaboration with master weaver Rameezuddin 14 canvases 20 Sanjhi khakha stencils and four Vedhi Sanjhi creations transferred to the canvas as well ldquoMadanji also plans to collaborate further with the Sanjhi artists in the future and we hope disseminating the knowledge about these art forms their history and intricacy will ensure their survival in a new agerdquo Agrawal remarksFrom August 24 to September 6 11 am to 7 pmAt F11 first floor Laxmi Mills Estate Shakti Mills Lane MahalaxmiCall 9920801512Also ReadA new research project aims to compile oral histories of Bhendi Bazaar