Bharat Kala Bhavan is a university museum located in

Banaras Hindu University Banaras Hindu University (BHU) IAST: kāśī hindū viśvavidyālaya IPA: /kaːʃiː hɪnd̪uː ʋɪʃwəʋid̪jaːləj/), is a collegiate, central, and research university located in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India, and founded in 1916 ...

Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...

, India. It has been instrumental in the dissemination of knowledge on Indian art and culture. It is one of the important touristic attractions in the

and in the city of

History

The concept for Bharat Kala Bhavan came to fruition with establishment of ''Bharatiya Lalit Kala Parishad'' on 1 January 1920 in a wing in Godowlia,

. Between 1920 and 1962, the museum's collection was shifted to several locations within

before

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

laid foundation of the existing museum building in 1950 and the museum was, then shifted to its existing location in the

in 1962.

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

visited Bharat Kala Bhavan thrice and in his final trip he inscribed "संग्रह बहुत अच्छा है" ("the collection is very good").

Milestones

*1920: Bharatiya Lalit Kala Parishad established. *1926: ''Bharatiya Lalit Kala Parishad'' shifted from Godowlia to

Central Hindu Boys School Central Hindu Boys School aka C.H.S is a boys secondary school (day school with hostel facility) in Kamachha, Bhelupur, Varanasi. It was established in 1898 by Annie Besant. It is associated with Banaras Hindu University. History Asia's firs ...

at Kamachha. *1929:

Rabindra Nath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resha ...

(first chairman) decided to focus on art and crafts. *1929: Transfer of ''Bharatiya Lalit Kala Parishad'' to ''Kashi Nagari Pracharini Sabha'' under nomenclature of Bharat Kala Bhavan (Indian Art Museum). *1930: Formal opening of Bharat Kala Bhavan in ''Kashi Nagari Pracharini Sabha'' by Prof. Ordhendra Coomar Gangoly *1945: Silver Jubilee. *1947: Lending of exhibits in the exhibitions in London. *1950: Transfer of collection from ''Nagari Prachrini Sabha'' to Malaviya Bhavan in

. *1950: Foundation of present building laid by

. *1962: Inauguration of new building by

. *1970: Golden Jubilee. *1977: Foundation of Western Wing of building laid by

Pratap Chandra Chunder Pratap Chandra Chunder (1 September 1919 – 1 January 2008) was a union minister of India, educationist and author. He served in the Morarji Desai Ministry from 1977 to 1980 as a cabinet minister with education and social welfare portfoli ...

. *1980: Passing away of

Padma Vibhushan The Padma Vibhushan ("Lotus Decoration") is the second-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "exceptional and distinguished service". All persons without ...

Rai Krishnadasa *1990: Inauguration of

Alice Boner Alice Boner (22 July 1889 – 13 April 1981) was a Swiss painter and sculptor, art historian, and an Indologist. In her drawings she used pencil, charcoal, sepia, red chalk, ink, and sometimes pastel. Her early works focused on drawings, sculp ...

gallery. *1995: Platinum Jubilee. *2011: On 150th birth anniversary of Mahamana Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, museum produced a documentary film & published a book on him.

Collection

Bharat Kala Bhavan has a collection of artefacts,

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

sculptures, pictures,

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in ...

s, Mughal miniatures, paintings, brocade textiles, contemporary art form and bronze statues from 1st–15th century. Pottery, metal craft, ivory goods, jewellery, terracotta beads & rare collection of Gujarati, Rajasthani & Pahari miniature paintings are also on display in the museum. Total holdings of Bharat Kala Bhawan are . Yakshi on elephant

Items on display

*Archival materials * Archaeological materials *Decorative art *Indian philately *

Literary Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

*Paintings *Personalia collections *Textiles &

costumes Costume is the distinctive style of dress or cosmetic of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, profession, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch. In short costume is a cultural visual of the people. The term also was tradition ...

Holdings

References