The bright murals outside the Mausam Bhawan, along Lodhi Road, will now be a sight to see for the passersby. To celebrate its 150 years of establishment, the Indian Meteorological Department has launched an ‘open art museum’ with 38 murals painted by Delhi Street Art (DSA).
Speaking at the inauguration of paintings at Mausam Bhawan, Minister of State for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Jitendra Singh said that the murals “are a precise representation of 3Cs—colourful, creative and constructive”. He admired the art mingled with information to raise awareness. According to him, the paintings depict India’s approach towards “improved” weather forecasting methods.
“The 15 radar stations in 2014 are now 40 in number; also, 700 automated weather stations have now increased to 1500,” he added.
The left side of the wall has a panel with a painting of Rabindranath Tagore and his wife sitting under a tree at IMD’s earliest-known site in Kolkata. Subsequent panels feature a depiction from Kalidasa’s Meghdoot (or The Cloud Messenger), a portrait of Chanakya and Tansen.
Other panels show Mawsynram (“the rainiest village”), farmers in Punjab on a sunny day, the cherry blossom festival of Shillong, the meteorological department and the Mausam app. Little doodles of clouds and maple leaves separate the panels.
“Around 20 artists worked together on this project for a month,” said Raj, one of the “senior artists” from DSA. Digital blueprints of each panel were first created. These were then traced onto walls outside the building.
“It is an important time to pay homage to our founder, Yogesh Saini, whose vision has always inspired us to transform different spaces,” said DSA director Mayuri Saini spoke, commemorating 12 years of the DSA.
Founded in 2013, Delhi Street Art is an initiative of the late artist and engineer Yogesh Saini who passed away in February last year, at the age of 64. The organisation—comprising a team of around 7 core members and other volunteers including students as well as adults—aims at bringing art to public spaces. Over the past 12 years, DSA has created wall art across the country, including on flyovers, in schools, and thousands of public spaces.
