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Journalism of Courage
There’s rarely a quiet moment on JM Road, especially during the day when traffic roars and pedestrians rush to reach their destination. On November 16, however, a small part of this busy and bustling road will become something more – colourful, celebratory and creative.
The pavement, between Balgandharva Police Chowki and Chhatrapati Sambhaji Garden, will turn into an art gallery from early morning to late in the evening as the first Street Art Festival 2025, organised by the Bharati Vidyapeeth College of Fine Arts and the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), takes place. The festival seeks to bring art closer to people, who otherwise do not find the time or opportunity to visit galleries.
“There will be a variety of art on display, from painting and sculpture to pottery and ceramics,” said Dr Girish Charwad, an Associate Professor at the Bharti Vidyapeeth College of Fine Arts. The participants will range from students and alumni of the college to freelancers. An application process was carried out on the PMC Care app between November 6 and 9. A committee will select the participating artists from the list of applicants. “Keeping the space in mind, we have decided to showcase 50 artists,” says Charwad.
It is symbolic that the festival is being held on the street and signifies the organisers’ intent to democratise art. The inspiration for the Pune Street Art Festival is the famous Chitra Santhe, which is organised annually by the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, in Bengaluru. Held on January 5 this year, the Chitra Santhe, which has been held for 22 years, had 1,500 participating artists and lakhs of visitors.
“PMC is celebrating its 75th anniversary while the Bharti Vidyapeeth College of Fine Arts has turned 25. We decided to hold a street art festival that would increase awareness of multiple genres, give visibility to artists, who have been badly affected by the Covid years, and ensure a good experience for everybody,” says Charwad. The festival will include sale of the works at zero commission, with all earnings kept by the artist. The price of the works is expected to start at Rs 500.
An important facet of the festival is to make space for dialogues between the artists and the visitors. Such conversations are, often, not possible even at well-known galleries. “You can speak to artists to understand how they spend decades on their practice. Their lives witness moments of triumph and tribulation but, despite it, they continue to make art. People, who are not associated with art, rarely appreciate the rigour that goes behind an artwork. We are looking forward to many such dialogues so that people can understand the journey of an artist,” says Charwad.
He adds that the festival hopes to reach children, who are obsessively scrolling, and parents, who are helpless in the digitalised world. “We feel that if a child is encouraged to spend that time in any kind of art, it would be beneficial for them. Adults under stress can also feel inspired to take up an art form. Meeting artists might inspire people to try their hands at creativity,” says Charwad. It is to this effect that the festival will include sessions of artists demonstrating their skill and making art before visitors. “Art is an essential part of everybody’s life. It contributes to society. The street art festival is a salute to all creative pursuits,” says Charwad.
