Mumbai, 2 July: As a portrayal of forgotten real-life observations into expressive art, the GVK-led Mumbai International Airport Limited’s (MIAL) Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj List of events at Jaya He’s Carnival, ‘Paaoolkhuna’.
• Human Library
• Traditional Cuisine
• Folk Dance and Music
• Story Telling
• Selfie Points
• Art and Craft Activities
• Exhibition Panels
• Yoga Sessions
• Traditional Draping
International Airport (CSMIA) is hosting a three-month-long carnival at the airport. The carnival commenced during the 2019 World Museum Day where the carnival set – ‘Paaoolkhuna, Imprints of Maharashtra’ is in line with the theme of International Council of Museums (ICOM): ‘Museums as Cultural Hubs: The future of Traditions’.
The carnival celebrates the food, art, culture and heritage of Maharashtra showcasing the grandeur of the state which was formed on May 1, 1960. The festival is planned for over 12 weeks and is divided into various segments for passengers travelling via T2 until July 2019.
The Jaya He Museum at Mumbai International Airport acts as harbingers of change - to become a cultural hub where passengers get a chance to converge and enhance their knowledge on the State of Maharashtra.
Through the carnival, the museum showcases the strength of the state and invites travellers to sample the food, art, dress, culture and heritage and widen their experiences.
Involving and invoking the passengers in their travel journey through numerous activities, and art installations, the carnival discovers the unexplored aspects of Maharashtra’s rich offerings.
The state of Maharashtra which is culturally bracketed in five parts – Konkan (the coastal belt), Khandesh, Desh, Vidarbha and Marathwada, each having its own distinct culture & traditions, history, food & cuisine, art & craft, heritage buildings, and textiles.
The commonalities being the language (Marathi), natural resources: the long clear stretches of the Konkan beaches, flora – the UNESCO Kaas Valley of Flowers (Satara), fauna (myriad wildlife sanctuaries), rivers, the millennia-old Sahyadri mountain range older than the Himalayas, Mughal and Maratha forts, Hindu, Buddhist and Jain caves, lakes, including the prehistoric Lonar Crater; deep history, vast literature, scintillating dance forms and age-old folk practices, including yoga. The carnival brings to life these lesser known traditions, culture, and heritage through the language of art.
The airport being a major transfer hub and a gateway to destinations, the passengers travelling via T2 are always on the go. CSMIA being a public space is transforming itself from being just a transit platform to a stage for artists to showcase, engage and educate the passengers from across the globe.
The carnival showcases various sections depicting these snippets and cultural values to the people.
Starting with the logo which is the depiction of the art of Warli Tribe who paint with rice paste in geometric shapes; the logo denotes a storyteller – the Sutradhaar, playing a form of a trumpet the Tutari, an instrument used to herald an auspicious arrival; leaving his footprints – the Paaoolkhuna, imprinting his mark on the global audience.
Through this depiction of a Cultural Museum, the story of Maharashtra is woven in where travellers will get to experience, explore, engage, educate and be entertained with the untold stories that unfold.
Keeping in mind GVK’s sustainable initiatives, the installations created by young artists for the carnival at CSMIA are made of upcycled and recycled materials to create unique masterpieces.
The artworks include India’s tallest 3D printed installation shaped like a Banyan Tree called 'Jhada', and a one-piece rock-cut monastery temple inspired by the Ajanta caves made from corrugated sheets inside the terminal.
Apart from these activities, the museum at CSMIA has curated a first-of-its-kind human library following a library analogy of allowing humans to narrate their stories instead of books, thereby creating a more intimate space for travellers’ engagement.
To further create excitement amongst the passengers, the carnival is also exhibiting cultural hubs - a one-stop exhibition amplifying the Maharashtrian traditions and culture.
Jaya He is an extension of GVK MIAL’s vision to preserve and portray art by building communities while creating value for the passengers in this digitalised world.
As a crusader in expressing traditional art in contemporary fashion, Jaya He Museum takes the opportunity to become the agent of change and a cultural hub where diverse communities converge at a single point.
The Jaya He Museum is strategically placed at Mumbai’s busy infrastructure project - T2, where over 48 million passengers travel annually.
The land is rich and while the passengers can’t physically go to all these areas, flyers travelling via Mumbai T2 can partake the abundance of the rich history and the heritage that is timeless while discovering the unity in diversity and the colours of passion that each region has to offer.
Annexure: About the regions in brief
Konkan division is one of the six administrative divisions of Maharashtra state in India. Its capital Mumbai is the hub and the financial capital of the country.
Konkan is the part that straddles the coast/Arabian Ocean and is abundant with oceans, beaches, forts, and forts in the sea (Murud Janjira), one of the oldest lighthouses in the world, religious centres, the Western Ghats/Sahyadri Mountain range, rivers, forests (where Ram, Sita & Laxman were exiled), lakes, mangoes, fruits, textiles, saris, Warli and other tribes, (from which the logo is inspired).
Desh is bound on the west by the Western Ghats or Sahyadri range and is abundant in rivers – Godavari and Krishna. Desh is the birthplace and core of the Maratha Empire, founded by Shivaji Maharaj.
It has the famous Kaas Plateau, UNESCO nominated area, the equivalent of the Himalayan Valley of Flowers. Pune, its capital is the Education City with numerous colleges and higher learning centres. Kohlapur is famous for its chappals and leather footwear.
Marathwada is another historic area, the capital - Aurangabad is known as the "Tourism Capital of Maharashtra.
The region is famous for the Ajanta and Ellora Caves, and Bibi-ka-Maqbara (the replica of the Taj Mahal of Agra).
Temples, caves, forts abound across the landscape while farming is the main occupation; it also has 4 medical colleges.
Khandesh is part of the flat Deccan Plateau and has deep rivers, the famous of which is the Tapi River which, unlike other rivers, flows East towards the Bay of Bengal. Literature and the arts flourished in this region. Singer Lata Mangeshkar was born in Khandesh.
Vidharbha has the orange city – Nagpur, it's capital, famous for its oranges, and the Dateline of the Country passes through the city.
Vidharbha also is famous for its Wildlife Reserves - Tadoba Andhari Tiger Project, Melghat Tiger Reserve, Bor Wildlife Sanctuary, Navegaon National Park (Bird Sanctuary) and Famous Tibetan Camp in Arjuni Morgaon, Nagzira Wildlife Sanctuary and Umred Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary.
Pench Tiger Reserve is one of the premier tiger reserves of India and the only one to straddle across two states: Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
Largely flat, part of the Deccan Plateau, the region is quite rich in ancient history. Natural prehistoric rock, ancient rivers, including the mighty Godavari, It also has the Lonar Crater formed when a meteorite hit the earth millions of years ago!
GVK Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) is a Public Private Partnership joint venture between a GVK-led consortium and the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
GVK MIAL was awarded the mandate for operating and modernising Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai (CSMIA).
Through this transformational initiative, GVK MIAL aims to make CSMIA one of the world’s best airports, which consistently delights customers besides being the pride of Mumbai.
The new integrated Terminal 2 at CSMIA enhances the airport’s capacity to service 40 million passengers and one million tons of cargo annually.
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