Wheeling culture

Museum on Wheels at different locations in pre-pandemic times

The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) celebrated an important milestone a few days ago. The Citi-CSMVS’s Museum on Wheels (MOW) completed six years of successfully spreading its mission. Launched in 2015 with the help of a grant from the Ministry of Culture of India, its aim was to bring museum exhibits to rural parts of the country, and not limit it to the museum in Mumbai. “Not everyone has access to the big city. Coming to Mumbai can be an expensive affair, and what tends to happen is, by the time they go to college, they will not have experienced what a museum is or what it offers. The idea was to create something mobile and take it to the rural audiences so they understand the role of historic objects in learning history,” said Joyoti Roy, head of strategy and marketing, CSMVS. For the next few days, the museum will also conduct a series of events that look back at the journey over six years, and how modes of outreach have changed with the project. “We’ve focused a lot on digital outreach. We have two buses now, and schools have started to reopen. We’re hoping to resume with the visits soon,” she added.