Our readers write

A pipe dream

Your piece (MM, Jan. 1) on Chennai as a world-class city makes interesting reading.
There are two broad requirements for being called a  world-class city.
The first is infrastructure, such as good roads, adequate supply of water that can be drunk from the tap without ­distributing a plethora of pathogens, regular and systematic ­removal of garbage and its ­disposal, a sewage system that works, uninterrupted power supply, public transport that is reliable, affordable and extensive, easy availability at any time of the day or night of taxis and other transport that only go by the meter, large enough parks and greenery, public and private places that are not defaced by stickers, posters and political graffiti, affordable housing for the working classes, a variety of restaurants and other places of entertainment, and where the air quality is good. Second and more important is governance that is not sullied by political interference, in which there is people’s ­participation in decisions that affect the public, such as design of public buildings and monuments, statues and other public works such as flyovers, etc. ­governance that is ultimately accountable to people.

Third and as important as the above is civic pride where ordinary citizens feel proud of their city and the way it is governed. A city where people and civil society keep a watch on governance and hold it to account without being penalised. In the absence of the above, Chennai becoming a world-class city will remain a pipe dream.

Dr. Prem Chandran John
10, 32nd Cross Street
Besant Nagar
Chennai 600 090

A book for free

Thank you for the review of my book Pelathope Days by Venkatesh Krishnamoorthy (MM, January 1). I have some copies of the reprinted edition of the book that were very slightly damaged in transit. I will be happy to gift a copy free to any reader of Madras Musings. The only condition is that the copy will have to be collected in person from my house, Akshaya, at No.1, Sriramnagar South Street, Alwarpet (off T.T.K. Road, behind Park Sheraton Hotel). If I can be informed in advance over phone (No. 2466 0081 or Cell No. 96001 64504), I will ensure that there is someone at home to hand over the copy. I regret I will not be able to send copies by post or by courier.

G. Ram Mohan
visalam.rammohan@gmail.com

Stirring memories

The MM January 1st issue contains a lot of interesting old anecdotes. G. Ram Mohan’s remembrances of Pelathope brought to my mind memories of his illustrious brother Dr. G. Lakshmipathi, who is a leading cardiologist in Coimbatore. He is a much-sought-after speaker at functions and makes listeners roll with laughter reacting to his wit and humour. He is also a great conversationalist. His taste for the fine arts, including drama, endear him to all. I am happy to read about his family.

The reminiscences of the grand-niece of Dr. S.R. Ranga­nathan, brought out the truth that family responsibilities of the middle class made them choose any occupation which gave them a little more money. I wonder what a great mathematician Dr. SRR would have turned into had he pursued Mathematics instead of the dungeon that was the University Library. Anyhow the genius in him made him a father figure in the profession.

Dr. S.S. Rajagopalan
30, Kamarajar Street,
Chennai 600093

An unhappy visit to the Egmore Museum

I visited the Museum in Egmore in November and came away with a painful impression. I’m not usually this frank, particularly outside my own country, but the neglect of this place is ­disturbing.

The newer, renovated galleries exhibit virtually none of the ­educational or design innovations of museology over the last ­quarter century.

The Hindu Sculpture Gallery with its shiny stone floor probably improves the experience of viewing over the hard-to-see and strangely-ordered entrance gallery, but the themes or sequencing is simply impenetrable to the uninitiated viewer. The labelling is erratic.

The Amaravati Gallery, with poor examples seemingly randomly mixed with good ones, some of the crudest mounts I have ever seen, and no sustained storyline, seems devoid of any professionalism.

Although several of the historic galleries, some interesting to the history of museums generally, have been maintained since I ­published an article on the place years ago (“Post-Colonial ­Museums: Dead or Alive?”, Public Culture, 1989), the days of these archaic exhibitions are numbered because of drastic physical deterioration if nothing else. It is time to close the natural history exhibits and discard many of the specimens… they are long past their expiry dates and now seem almost a varnished mockery of what these creatures once looked like. The science behind the mammals, fishes, birds, and insects has also moved on and the entire text regime of these exhibitions almost seems ­preserved in formaldehyde, like the lizards and scorpions. The heat and humidity has been especially unkind to the exhibits of large fur-bearing animals, many of which appear to have been barely believable when originally done.

My most disappointing moments, however, were felt in the ­Anthropology Galleries, they of the immense staircase and ­fabulous but crumbing ceiling. Urn Burial, Prehistory and ­Archeology need to be reworked and updated. Musical instruments need sound. Why is it that everyone can play music on their phone but that the Museum can’t let us hear these unusual and unfamiliar instruments?

And Ethnology… when I visited the Museum about ten years ago, many of these rooms were boarded up, as if someone had decided that the time had come to stop showing people from tribal communities as if they were lower forms of life, something that the whole of anthropology was once implicated in. But no, the original exhibits are back with their 19th Century-style photos and models, their disembodied jewellery and tools and their hackneyed distinguishing characteristics. I shudder to think of children looking at these exhibits and what they must make of them.

The one break from this comes in the Bronze Gallery, where the genius of the bronze casters is so overwhelming as to draw attention away from the mediocre installation and the already deteriorating infrastructure of the “new” building. This collection is one of the greatest treasures of Indian art and history and deserves to be better known at home and abroad. If for no other reason than this superb and nationally outstanding collection in Chennai, ­governments should put significant resources into assisting to save what can be saved of the original buildings, modernising the ­exhibitions, and putting the museum back on the map.

The Museum can’t be tinkered with any more. It needs to be completely redone.

Stephen Inglis
singlis@creeculture.ca

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