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So there are pictures of Bachchan in
different moods, some in his most unguarded moments — applying make-up
mobbed by autograph hunters, playing tennis, sharing the frame with Dev
Anand in similar buttoned-up checked shirts, at the Miss World 1996 show
in Bangalore with socialite Parmeshwar Godrej, with tennis Leander Paes
and Mahesh Bhupathi...
What Chandra has done is
to juxtapose each photograph with a painting within the same frame,
thereby seeking to create an "added dimension" to the subject
beyond what the camera registers. In effect, the viewer is treated to
impressionistic interpretation to the persona, such as Biswas’s rather
comic depiction of Bachchan as a Shakespearean Macbeth.
Then there is Baiju
Parthan’s portrait of Bachchan done up with numerous pixilated images
of the man, digitally assembled. Almost in the same vein, is Jain Kamal’s
interpretation of the superstar’s popularity worldwide with "Amitabh
Bachchan" written in different languages and superimposed on a
giant multi-coloured mugshot.
It is a unique experiment
that has gone down well with Bachchan’s fans. As Prashant Jog, a
journalist pointed out: "The fact that the photographs have been
digitally printed on canvas makes them look like regular oil paintings.
And when you have a brushwork painting on the other half of the canvas,
the line between myth and reality gets blurred."
Then there are the
stand-alones like Arzan Khambatta’s sculpture of a long-legged hunched
Bachchan made in wrought iron. Bole came up with Bachchan’s famous
stylised gignaturo in white metal, placed strategically in front of a
large mirror. Yet another scenestealer in Arju Khanna’s design of sherwani
for Bachachan with fabric swatches pasted on his photograph, replete
with doodles and notes for tailoring.
On another level, there
are Nadny’s poetic compositions on two huge black and white canveses
of a pensive Bachachan in profile. Besides, there are several
photographs of the man in his private moments, attending to his ailing
father or simply standing all alone by the beach which need no
articulation, either visually or in words.
"It took me four
months flat to put together this exhibition," informed chandra.
"But the idea has been with me for several years. All I lacked were
inputs from different artists. Once they agreed to contribute, the show
was on. I processed the pictures from my collection and they did their
bit. As many as 16 artists have taken part in the show."
Bachchan himself has also
been an important component in the show. Initially reluctant, he ticked
off Chandra, saying that no one would be interested in an exhibition on
an old man like him. "That was nothing but his modesty
speaking," recalled Chandra. "When I told him that his
portrait I had done for another exhibition in May was much appreciated,
he relented. He also consented to open the show in Mumbai."
What makes Chandra
particularly ecstatic is Bachchan announcing that he would "buy
off" the entire exhibition. "That is the biggest reward I
could not dream of," said the photographer. "It is also the
greatest honour I have received in my entire career. When the man I hold
in such high esteem appreciates my work, what more can I ask for?" MF
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