The front lawn at the Alliance Française of Madras, in the heart of the city, had recently become the venue for an array of cultural performances. The traffic outside the gate, moving at a snail’s pace, made it known to the public that it was the 70th anniversary of the organisation. The building positively buzzed with activity, and there were flyers and boards mapping the multiple events being held. Films were screened, dances performed, photographs displayed, music played, stories told and workshops held; the atmosphere was electric.
In the centre of it all, behind closed doors with a sign that said “photography prohibited”, was a room cut off from all the chaos. In it, hung 70 sketches by acclaimed artist Thota Tharani. The collection titled Down the Memory Lane was sketched between 1976 and 1977 when the artist studied in Paris, France. The exhibition was inaugurated by the Ambassador Designate of France in India Thierry Mathou & the Mayor of Chennai Priya Rajan.
“I never had a camera, so I started working on these. I would just take a paper and scribble on it. These were all spot drawings that were done in five minutes. There were 1400 drawings, out of which only 69 to 70 have remained with me. They are all fading away, and it feels like losing someone dear,” he says as a camera flashed in his direction.
