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 ARTS
Lines that express love of the hills
Detailed drawings that capture the heartbeat of Shimla are the hallmark of an artist whose affection for his subject is reflected in his work
Pratibha Chauhan
His
fingers can weave magic be it with an ink pen, pencil, paint brush, or
simply his incredibly beautiful calligraphic strokes.
B.S. Malhans, known
as Billy to all his friends and acquaintances is a familiar face of
the town. He is not just a multi-faceted personality but also a person
who despite the maddening urbanisation and Shimla turning into a
virtual concrete jungle remains alive to the small beauties of life
— a chirping bird, the spring iris in full bloom or the hillside
covered with wild daisies.
It is his love for
the hills, considering he spent his childhood at Sanawar School that
he finds himself at ease in the lap of nature. "With my father
being in the Army, as kids we were taught to observe nature, birds,
plants and all such things which we tend to ignore at that age,"
he says when asked about his sensitivity towards nature, architecture,
culture, tradition and all such priceless facets of life.
The Barnes Court. Sketches by B.S.
Malhans (below). Tribune photos by Amit Kanwar. |
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"The richness of
a place is evident from its culture and architecture and when we fail
to maintain it, the decline becomes inevitable," he opines.
Having reconciled to the fact that we are not just losing out the
architectural marvels of the British time in devastating fires or
simply neglect and insensitivity, he says it no longer hurts.
Having remained state
convener of the Indian National Trust For Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH)
and member of the State Heritage Advisory Committee in the past, he
was instrumental in getting the conservation project of the British
time Gaiety Theatre approved and completed.
"We must learn
from the British, who integrated hill architecture with their own so
that it suited the climatic requirements of the place and also gelled
well with the topography," he stresses.
One thing which he
misses the most about the town is its cultural vibrancy. "For me,
Shimla can never be the same as the class of people who loved the
place and took every bit of pain to preserve its distinct character
are gone," he laments.
He says, a few years
ago, Shimla was all about brilliant theatrical and musical
performances at the Gaiety, fete at Annandale and many more such
entertaining events. He relaxes listening to the Dhrupad music and is
an excellent photographer.
He abhors the multi-storeyed
concrete structures being raised by even sacrificing trees but admits
that change is inevitable and cannot be stopped to preserve the good
old times. "I enjoy nature as I gaze out of my window to see the
crows, greenery and the crystal blue sky and this is a separate
reality which gives me a high and keeps me going," he says
sitting in his spacious studio amid vast expanse of greenery.
The Railway Board Building |
Ellerslie Building (the Secretariat) |
He gives expression
to his inner feelings by painting, which are not up for sale. "I
love to paint but strictly for myself and as such one cannot attach a
commercial value to this inner expression of mine," he reasons.
Though lately, he has been painting much less because of health
problems.
He has undertaken
extensive research not just to document but also get an insight into
hill culture, their deities, religious practices and beliefs and above
all the architecture, especially of the temples built in different
styles. He has documented the temples of Kinnuar and Shimla district
in a book Representation of Hill Temples.
His latest engagement is
penning a book, of course, in calligraphic print on Shimla. "It
will be a book on Shimla, as seen through my eyes," he reveals.
Publishing any of his books has never been on his mind as he says that
he writes to give expression, not for commercial value.
Well that is Billy in
his own world, far away from materialism and urbanisation, enjoying
Shimla
the way he looks at it. Notwithstanding all its shortcomings and
ever-growing congestion, there is nothing that can change his desire
to live in Shimla.
MC Office |
Viceregal Lodge |
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The Gothic resonance in Gaiety
A major focus of social life during the days of the Raj, Gaiety Theatre remains an inseparable part of the culture and heritage of the Queen of Hills
Vandana Shukla
You
will come across polarised opinions about Gaiety Theatre. If you
are one of the fortunate ones, who enjoy access to the interiors
of this famed theatre, you won’t resist marvelling at its
intriguing architectural splendour. Intriguing, because you’d
never come across a fine maze like arterial passageways in any
other theatre, the kind that lead you to the backstage, and the
stage appears like a hidden jewel. A sudden blossoming of
arches, a surprise flight of stairs, and then, the lacquered
polished interior where the audience used to sit, in luxury! The
perfection of acoustics matches the luxuriant setting.
Unfortunately, most shows are held these days in what used to be
the ball room, and hence, many remain unimpressed by the glory
of the Gaiety.
Legendary artistes like K.L. Saigal, Prithvi Raj Kapoor, the Kendalls, Balraj Sahani, Pran, and Manohar Singh have performed at Gaiety Theatre |
To appreciate
Gaiety, you need to have nostalgic fervour, the kind needed to
appreciate a fading glamour star. And that requires a sense of
history. When the building was completed in 1889, some labelled
it as "bastard gothic" and the Viceroy’s wife, Lady
Dufferin described it as "something like a cathedral, but
which inside is a collection of places of amusement." The
fact is, the gora sahebs and their memsahibs needed a
theatre, library, a large hall for suppers, balls, exhibitions
and durbars and a police station and weapons for protection in
Simla; a home away from home.
In 1881, Henry
Irwin, who was appointed Superintendent of Works, Imperial
Circle, designed the old town hall to meet these requirements,
of which the Gaiety Theatre is a part. Since the building is
profusely endowed with pointed arches, ribbed vaults and flying
buttresses; the architectural vocabulary of the Gothic style,
revived in England in the mid-19th century and still evident in
several cathedrals, churches and universities in England, the
style found takers in the British colonies too.
In the original
building, the ground floor consisted of the Gaiety Theatre, a
masonic hall with a vaulted entrance, the municipal offices and
the police station. The first floor contained the gallery of the
theatre, the library, two reading rooms and a hall for holding
public meetings. The second floor consisted of a large ballroom
and two retiring rooms. This floor also had a drawing room, a
bar and a card room. The Kangra earthquake of 1905 raised safety
concerns and top three floors were demolished in 1911. The
flying buttresses were the first thing to go, as these were
found to be structurally unsafe. The arches and vaults can still
be seen in the present Gothic-revival reconstruction, protection
and restoration, which cost the state Rs 11.48 crore and six
long years, carried out by Ved Segan, a leading conservationist.
The theatre was
a major focus of social life in the hill station, the lives of
the young British army officers and their wives revolved around
it, away from the heat and dust of the plains. The young Rudyard
Kipling became very much a part of this scene on his visits to
Simla.
Legendary artistes like K.L.
Saigal, Prithvi Raj Kapoor, the Kendalls, Balraj Sahani, Pran,
Manohar Singh, Shashi Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah and Anupam Kher
have performed on this historical stage more than a century and
a half. For the local folks of Shimla, it is a landmark of the
Queen of Hills they can't do without. |
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