Ramaniyam 2015 drew to a close at Hill Fort Palace, Adarsh Nagar, over the weekend. The three-week long event organised as a tribute to art patron and Shrishti art gallery owner Remani Nambiar saw a steady inflow of visitors, partly owing to the long-forgotten venue of historical significance.
Art and culture have, occasionally, moved beyond confines of galleries and auditoriums. The venues of historical importance explored so far include the Taramati Baradari, Chowmohalla Palace, Falaknuma Palace, Golconda Fort and Qutb Shahi tombs. The heritage wing of Hyderabad Public School threw its doors open to installation art and open forums at Hyderabad Literature Festival (HLF) in January 2015. HLF 2016 will also take place at the Hyderabad Public School, Begumpet. The HLF had tried different venues, including Taramati Baradari, before settling for the centrally located HPS. One of the largest literary fests in the country, hosted each January in Jaipur, takes place in the historical Diggi Palace.
Looking back at the warm response to Ramaniyam, Lakshmi Nambiar says, “I also considered the Nampally Sarai and DBR Mills. But I wanted a venue with enough closed space because sculptures can’t be left in the open. I was also particular about a centrally located venue. We hosted the first edition of Ramaniyam, featuring masters of modern art, at Salar Jung Museum and a number of people told me it wasn’t easy to commute from some parts of the city.”
ADVERTISEMENT
She was shocked, she admits, when she first stepped into the Hill Fort Palace. Not only because it had to be cleaned up, that’s another story. “I hadn’t heard of this place despite having lived in Hyderabad for 20 years. I spoke to my friends and realised an entire generation had forgotten this palace,” she says.
Lakshmi and other gallery owners agree that some times, art has to step out of galleries to attract a newer audience. A heritage space adds value to the event by narrating its own story.
Avani Rao Gandra of Iconart who has extensively photographed the Golconda Fort for a project says she dreams of hosting an art event at the Fort. “Formal galleries can get cold and plastic. Hyderabad has beautiful rock formations as well. We can’t just say there are rocks and people should go see it. There has to be something more to make people step out of their homes on a Sunday. Collaborations between different art forms will help,” she says.
ADVERTISEMENT
During the course of Ramaniyam, the Hill Fort Palace witnessed two concerts and a pottery workshop. “Similarly, heritage walks have always been there. But when Hyderabad Trails group combined music and poetry with it, it became more attractive. You restrict the audience when you talk only of art, music or heritage,” explains Avani.
Prshant Lahoti of Kalakriti, who has explored Taramati Baradari, Qutb Shahi Tombs and Necklace Road for art and cultural events as part of the annual Krishnakriti fest, feels the government can step in to help with partnerships. “For large events, sponsorships become inevitable. Venues of historical importance not only add an element of mystery to the event but this synergy also helps in its preservation in the long run.”
‘No dearth of historical spaces ’
Anuradha Reddy, Co-convenor of INTACH Hyderabad, says, “The city has 33 state protected archaeological monuments and many other little known areas. Within Public Gardens, the quadrangular area where the gazebo and pond are still intact. Near the State Archaeological Museum, a small area has beautiful thorans and this space doesn’t need any additional decoration,” she says. The dargahs, like the Dargah Yousufain and Dargah of Hazrat Shah Mohammed Hasan Saheb Qibla, Abul Ulai, she feels, can be explored. “One has to be sensitive to the environs of the dargah and perhaps look at Sufi or related events, if they are willing,” she suggests.
Ramaniyam at Hill Fort Palace brought back memories for Anuradha. “I visited the place with my mother, who used to organise cultural events in her younger years, and was devastated to see the condition today. A number of performing artists we knew, including Vilayat Khan, sisters Padmini and Ragini, used to stay at Ritz.”