Not only did we showcase some rare moments in history, we did it at a location that seems to have been frozen in time itself. ‘Portrait of A Nation, A Nation in Portraits’ was on view at Pundole’s, a gallery and auction house situated in one of the leafy, wide avenues of Mumbai’s Ballard Estate neighbourhood. Since we had so much history represented in the exhibition and at walking distance from it—Horniman Circle, Victoria Terminus, the Queen’s Necklace—it made sense to team up with folks who are as passionate about heritage as they are about this city and lead visitors on a tour that would give our collection a sense of place.
Dr Simin Patel of Bombaywalla curated two special walks that took in the 19th-century photography studios of the Fort area, including Lindley & Warren, Bourne & Shepherd, Raja Deen Dayal & Sons and Vernon & Co. Many of these photographers’ works are part of Sarmaya’s collection.
Alisha Sadikot and Nishita Zachariah of Art Walks Mumbai led their group on an exploration of the techniques and skills behind some iconic images.
Conservation architect Kruti Garg brought a more local perspective to the Sarmaya collection on her heritage walk as part of the schedule for Kala Ghoda Arts Festival 2018. The tour was capped with a proper photo shoot inside the Sarmaya Photo Booth!