Murals by Prof. M.C. Saxena

The Mall in Shimla is not just about swanky joints and carefree tourists. A stroll down the mall road and one can get educated about the Himachali ways, only if one knows where to look.

No, do not even try out one of those shops that sell the ethnic stuff for they do not have the time to enlighten you about the Himachali lifestyle or its cultural scenario during the peak tourist season. Look at the walls of the Mall instead, and you will find two huge murals speaking eloquently about the life of Himachal.

One huge (almost 20 feet by 15 feet) mural on tea plucking and another one of similar size on apple plucking tells you not just the art of plucking but also the dignity of labour and the sense of duty which is part of each Himachali’s upbringing. If you need a little help with your analysis, you can always contact the creator of these two, Prof. M.C. Saxena who has along with his name added his contact number too.

“If you have looked carefully, you will see the peaceful aura of the women folk who despite working hard both in fields and home, manage to maintain their serenity,” says Prof Saxena, who came to Shimla from Lucknow in the early sixties and made it his home.

“They believe in dignity, duty and labour,” he adds. And for this artist, writer and trained psychologist, this is the quality of Himachal that drew him like a magnet.

Sentiment aside, these bronze-finished stone murals teaches the technology part of the plucking business. “I am trying to depict the rare technology which the Himachalis use to pluck apples, swirl it around the stem at a particular point, and while tea plucking in Himachal is so different from that of Assam and it is only the tribes of Kangra and Palampur know how to do it. Both murals were commissioned in the early ‘80s.

For someone, whose very style is based on the East-West synthesis as far as his art is concerned, Saxena has done his best to give his murals an authentic touch. “Though my style varies, the basic fiber of my art is based on mixing up the traditional elements of our art with that of Western.” So Saxena prefers the composition style of the West while for physiology, symbology and emotion it is the East he looks towards. “The trick is to blend these two styles at the right proportion and make it feel Indian,” he says.

Once you are familiar with his style, you can easily spot his creations elsewhere in Shimla, Lady with a Pitcher or Himbala near the Ridge. The earlier one has Rajasthani touch to it but it marvels in technology. “I made it so that if anyone approaches the fountain, water starts pouring,” he says. There is one composition at one of the government offices titled Duty with Devotion based on the theme of Indo-Pak Summit in 1972.

After retiring from the Government College for Women in 1992 as a Professor of Para Psychology, Saxena’s time now is mostly devoted to promoting art.

“At present I am making a five-figure composition on the theme of War and Peace,” he is excited about this new one. “Through this I am trying to portray a young man’s plea for peace,” he adds.

And we leave him to get along with his mission we desperately hope that his plea for peace falls into the right ears.