A puzzling Charminar

As part of the ongoing Krishnakriti Art and Culture Festival, eminent artist Orijit Sen exhibited a magnificent interactive artwork, celebrating Hyderabad in its quintessential form, that engaged viewers profusely.

The work, titled Go Playces (Hyderabad), on view at the State Art Gallery, consists of 48 three-dimensional wooden blocks, like a jigsaw puzzle, to be fitted together by the viewers. Each block has been intricately painted, and, when fitted together, depicts the larger-than-life scene of the Muharram procession around the Charminar. The visual allegory by the artist is from multiple perspectives and grants the work a novel stance and charm. Crowded streets, traffic and architectural structures get exemplified in an original, stylistically rich manner.

A well-known graphic artist and designer, Orijit works from Delhi and Goa, but is presently in Hyderabad to celebrate the “Hyderabadi” he believes he is to the core. He fondly recalls, “Back in the 70s, I went to high school here and a relationship with the city got initiated, which has become an indispensible part and parcel of my being. It is here that I took the decision of becoming an artist and went to Ahmadabad to study graphic design at the National Institute of Design. So you see, this place inspired me to take the most important route in my life.”

Elaborating on his Charminar puzzle further, Orijit says, “For me, the old city is the true essence of Hyderabad. The work is a tribute to my beloved city. The interactive aspect of the piece is not only to engage the viewers but also to initiate a connection when they are putting the pieces together. The collaborative exercise is to initiate a friendship between the co-inhabitants of a city which is and has forever been multicultural. Everyone here is united by the unique Hyderabadi, Dakhani language.” Notably, the 3D artwork also comprises a beautifully designed model of the Charminar, executed in collaboration with a renowned German artist, Guidowolfram. The minar is also surrounded by a revolving ring which contains a trail of toy cars and the structure becomes iridescently illuminated when all the pieces of the puzzle are kept in the right places.