We are the World

An exhibition captures the bonhomie and grandeur of first Asian Relations Conference organised by Jawaharlal Nehru.

talk, exhibition, Jawaharlal Nehru, Asian Relations Conference, photo exhibition, Nehru Memorial Museum & Library, Indian Express

Sarojini Naidu and Jawaharlal Nehru with women volunteers at the conference. (Photos Courtesy: NMML Photo Archives )

On March 23, 1947, all roads in Delhi led to a grand shamiana at the Purana Qila. It was a special moment in history — the first ever Asian Relations Conference was being held, where Asians were meeting to discuss Asia. Most participating countries were still under colonial rule, but their respective freedom struggles had begun to gain strength. India was to become independent of British rule in a few months, and Asian revival seemed to be on the anvil.

Hosted by Jawaharlal Nehru, who headed the provisional government in India at that time, the conference was a means to promote shared cultural and social ideals among neighbours. An ongoing exhibition at the Nehru Memorial Museum & Library (NMML) in Delhi, called “Asian Relations Conference”, revisits the glory and significance of that moment in history, as part of the 125th birth anniversary commemoration of India’s first Prime Minister.

While one photograph shows Nehru delivering his inaugural speech, another has a large number of delegates standing outside the shamiana, from where they proceed to their seats in alphabetical order of their countries. There are also some rare photographs, including one where Nehru shares the stage with Mahatma Gandhi and Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan. Sarojini Naidu is seen spearheading the final leg of the conference that had a special section dedicated to women. There are delegates from the 28 participating countries, including Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cambodia, Ceylon, China, India, Iran, Mongolia and Vietnam, besides observers from eight institutional bodies, including the United Nations Organization in New York.

Besides photographs, the exhibition that concludes on May 31, comprises newspaper cuttings, reference notes and graphic content about the conference, and what people said. The text highlights developments that led to the conference, role played by the various national leaders and the eventual shape given to their ideas during the conference, apart from outcomes of the conference. As Nehru himself said, “The most important thing about the conference is that it was held.”

The exhibition is third in a series. The next exhibition will be based on the landmark Bandung Conference in Indonesia, which completed 60 years of being an independent nation last month.

Divya A

Divya A reports on travel, tourism, culture and social issues - not necessarily in that order - for The Indian Express. She's been a journalist for over a decade now, working with Khaleej Times and The Times of India, before settling down at Express. Besides writing/ editing news reports, she indulges her pen to write short stories. As Sanskriti Prabha Dutt Fellow for Excellence in Journalism, she is researching on the lives of the children of sex workers in India. ... Read More

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