The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is in a hurry to finish pending works and beautify the city by October 1 when the bio-diversity conference begins. But several works are unlikely to be completed. However, the one that will be more visible than the rest, that of artistic works on flyovers, will be done on time.
“More than 70 percent of the work is done. I don’t think the remaining work will need more than two days,” said Sridhar Kulkarni, an artist from Karnataka who is decorating six of the pillars of the Greendlands flyover with stone pebble work. He appeared confident of giving a wonderful look to the pillars, that which will please the eyes of not only foreign delegates but also common citizens.
The mural works on the Masab tank flyover are also likely to be completed in a couple of days. “It should be over soon. We have more than 15 artists working on the mosaic murals on six pillars,” said Akalt Mukim, the artist overlooking the process. The designs are not just for looks but they also have a meaning. “I decided to go with the pre-historic designs at one end, and with designs of dinosaurs at the other end. Since this is a pebble-based design, I have to carve out the designs myself, to which the workers stick the stones on a stainless steel mesh. The entire thing is then pasted on the fly-over,” explained Sridhar.
Akalt on the other hand decided to go with showcasing the biodiversity of Hyderabad, and Andhra Pradesh on his mosaics. “We have chosen a lot of designs. We are trying to incorporate the biodiversity of not just the city and the state, but also of India. All my team members are artists who have been working very hard since day one. Hence the work will finish on time,” he said. Sridhar too noted that he had to use a workforce of 10-15 workers for the project. “If need be, I may even hire more people in the next two days,” he added.
Akalt is paid Rs 500 per sq.ft by the GHMC for the works, while Sridhar is paid Rs 350 per sq. ft for his efforts. Both however said that it was not the money that attracted them to the project. “I’m not looking at money, but at the fact that my designs will be on display for everyone to see. As an artist I could not have hoped to get a better display in public,” said Sridhar.
Akalt too said that Rs 500 per sq ft is very less compared to the rs 1000 his work fetches in the market. “This gives us an opportunity to showcase our talent, and we are making this city look better. The mosaics are also permanent, and it solidifies our work,” he said.
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