Madam Laila inaugurates “The Silent Ocean” art exhibition

An exhibition of paintings, aptly titled “ The Silent Ocean”, was inaugurated by Madam Laila Ali, First Lady , Republic of Maldives at the Indian Cultural Centre at Vavathi, Male’ on 16^th October 2011.

The exhibition of paintings by Mrs. Shashi Thakur, presents the beauty of the Maldives in a novel and refreshingly new perspective. Mrs. Thakur, who is an Indian artist residing in the Maldives for almost four years, has articulated her concerns about the damage being caused to the seas by mankind in an unique and distinctive style.  She had also exhibited her works in the past at the National Art Gallery in July 2010. The exhibition will remain open from 17.10.2011 to 21.10.2011 from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

Speaking on the occasion, the High Commissioner of India, Mr. D M Mulay praised the initiative of the Indian Cultural Centre and expressed his confidence that the Centre would play an important role in increasing cultural interaction between the Maldives and India and thus further strengthen the bonds of friendship between the two countries. He also lauded the efforts of Mrs. Thakur in having been the architect of the first ever International Artists Camp in the Maldives. As a result of the Camp, four senior artists from the Maldives had recently attended a Camp in at Himachal Pradesh India as a reciprocal gesture from the Indian artists who had attended the Camp at Addu City.

The Minister for Tourism, Arts & Culture Dr Mariyam Zulfa appreciated the works and stated that Mrs. Thakur should serve as a role model for female artist in Maldives. She said that Ms. Thakur has inspired the potential women artists of Maldives to become professional artists just like her. She thanked her for sharing her experience with the people of Maldives.

Dr. Zulfa also expressed her gratitude to First Lady Laila Ali for inaugurating the art exhibition, inspiring all the modern young women of our generation and the generations to come. She also reiterated the High Commissioner of India’s observation that Maldivians were not well known for visual arts but are well known for their rich traditions including singing, poetry and expressing their selves through ‘Raivaru’. She said that the reason why art was only confined to singing and poetry because Maldivians were politically restricted to express their thoughts freely up until recently. She expressed her gratitude to President Mohamed Nasheed for bringing the freedom of expression for the people of Maldives.

The Director of the Indian Cultural Centre, Dr A Mishra, informed that the Centre had already commenced free classes, which are open for all, for Yoga, Tabla and Kathak dance. Qualified instructors are holding regular classes and had received an enthusiastic response from the public. Persons interested in these courses can register with the Centre on any working day. The Centre proposes to further enhance the scope of its activities in future to facilitate increased cultural exchanges between the two countries.