‘Calling of the Roots’ underway at Zainul Gallery

An artwork by Rafiqun Nabi. Photo: Sheikh Mehedi Morshed

The art forms that showcase Bangladesh and India’s shared legacy deserve celebration. Bearing that in mind, Prachi Protichi, an Indo-Bangla cultural organisation, has arranged the group art exhibition, Calling of the Roots, at Zainul Gallery, Faculty of Fine Art (FFA), University of Dhaka (DU), in collaboration with the Department of Drawing and Painting, FFA, DU. Eminent Bangladeshi artist Rafiqun Nabi inaugurated the exhibition as the chief guest on January 8. Renowned artist Professor Jamal Ahmed, the President of Bangladesh Charushilpi Sangsad, attended the occasion as the special guest. Tapos Mallick, convener of Prachi Protichi, talked about the activities of the organisation. Dulal Chandrow Gain, Assistant Professor, Department of Drawing and Painting, FFA, DU, delivered the welcome address at the programme.

Walking in noted painter Tarun Dey’s footsteps, Prachi Protichi started their journey in 1999, with the vision of fostering collaborations between painters of various schools as well as bringing prominent and promising artists together on a common platform. Eminent poet-litterateur Sunil Gangopadhyay and Bangladeshi artist Jamal Ahmed are notable supporters of the organisation. “In 2002, we organised our first International exhibition in Dhaka,” said Tapos Mallick, convener of Prachi Protichi. “So far, we have organised 43 art exhibitions, and over 30 art camps and workshops in India and beyond. We also set up the Prachi Protichi Gallery at Santiniketan last year. We plan to launch another gallery in Kolkata soon.”

Prachi Protichi has a publication, which has already published 8 literary books. The organisation has also honoured luminaries like Debes Roy, Sudhir Chakraborty, Mohan Singh Khangura, Santimoy Chakraborty, Bani Basu, Rafiqun Nabi, Jamal Ahmed, Hiran Mitra, Bulbul Mahalanbish and others with the annual ‘Santiniketan Sammanana’.

Photo: Sheikh Mehedi Morshed

Calling of the Roots features an array of artworks by 48 Bangladeshi and Indian artists. The participating Indian artists at the exhibition are M F Hussain, Paritosh Sen, Ganesh Pyne, Bijan Chowdhury, Buddhadev Guha, Somnath Hore, Ganesh Halui, Suhas Roy, Prakas Karmakar, Robin Mondal, Jogen Chowdhury, Bipin Goswami, Ramananda Bandopadhyay, Sanat Kar, Dhiraj Chowdhury and Washim Kapoor.  The featured Bangladeshi artists are Rafiqun Nabi, Shahabuddin Ahmed, Alokesh Ghosh and Dr Farida Zaman, alongside  Jamal Ahmed, Mostafizul Haque, Rokeya Sultana, Ahmed Shamsuddoha, Nisar Hossain, Sheikh Afzal Hossain, Mohammad Iqbal, Anisuzzaman, Harun-ar-Rashid, Dulal Chandrow Gain, Abdus Sattar and Bishwajit Goswami. The artworks on display reflect the ethos of Bangladesh and India’s shared heritage. The exhibition concludes on January 14.