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| monsterdotcom (an installation by Saaz Aggarwal) |
The project began in December when Gauri Gandhi, who also teaches at Flame, called to ask if I would be part of an art initiative to integrate with public spaces in our city and show work with a group of other artists. The place she chose was Mandai, a market built in what would then have been the centre of Pune's 'native town' during the British administration. It is a beautiful place and very well organized for vendors to sit on platforms with their wares and storage cells under them.
I have lived in Pune for twenty-three years and I love it for its pace
of life (more leisurely than Bombay where I used to live); its beautiful trees
that transform the skies with brilliant colours in summer; its fresh fruit and
vegetables; its warm, smart and cultured people … and various other reasons!
However, in the past several years, it has become terribly congested, the
municipality and other administrative systems have been unable to cope, and the
traffic is just terrible. There is also a huge and continuing influx of
migrants from other parts of the country which has changed the fabric of the
city and made it more interesting.
We went to explore the mandai, a word which means market in Marathi, and were absolutely charmed. I had planned to exhibit my paintings
at the event but after spending time at Mandai, decided to create
installations which would blend with the character of the place. I bought
small baskets and planned to paint little roadside stones for
display and sale, a process which might fall under the category of 'Found Art’. In the end, when I picked up each stone and looked at it, brush in the other hand, I could see faces looking back at me and they somehow came to life.
I felt that this was a fabulous initiative to integrate people from different walks of life and give us a more meaningful connection with our hometown, and was just delighted that she had considered inviting me to be part of it.
I have lived in Pune for twenty-three years and I love it for its pace
of life (more leisurely than Bombay where I used to live); its beautiful trees
that transform the skies with brilliant colours in summer; its fresh fruit and
vegetables; its warm, smart and cultured people … and various other reasons!
However, in the past several years, it has become terribly congested, the
municipality and other administrative systems have been unable to cope, and the
traffic is just terrible. There is also a huge and continuing influx of
migrants from other parts of the country which has changed the fabric of the
city and made it more interesting. 
We went to explore the mandai, a word which means market in Marathi, and were absolutely charmed. I had planned to exhibit my paintings
at the event but after spending time at Mandai, decided to create
installations which would blend with the character of the place. I bought
small baskets and planned to paint little roadside stones for
display and sale, a process which might fall under the category of 'Found Art’. In the end, when I picked up each stone and looked at it, brush in the other hand, I could see faces looking back at me and they somehow came to life.
Ajay and I sold stones for Rs500 and Rs1000 each, having dressed the part of traditional vendor couple and which probably attracted visitors to the event as much as the faces themselves. 
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