PROTEST AGAINST M.F. HUSAIN
dr yogesh g patel
----- Original Message -----From: Kata...@aol.comTo:dryoges...@gmail.com ;Sent: Monday, March 17, 2008 2:01 AMSubject: HINDU RIGHTS GROUP TO PROTEST AGAINST M.F. HUSAIN IN NEW YORK
NEW YORK: A group working to advance the cultural heritage of Indians in the US along with a Hindu organisation has threatened to hold a demonstration unless the Christie's Art Gallery here stops the scheduled auction of several paintings of noted artiste M F Husain on March 20.
In a letter to Christie's, the Indian American Intellectual Forum which has joined hands with Hindu Janjagruti Samiti against Husain said the painter has gained "ignominy and notoriety" in India by painting several Hindu gods and goddesses in "derogatory" forms.
Therefore, it is a matter of "great regret and shame" that auction by Christie's Art Gallery, as part of the Indian and South Asian sale on March 20, is featuring several of his paintings. The letter by Forum President Narain Kataria was released by the organisation yesterday.
Christie's expects some of Hussian's paintings to fetch between $ 120,000 and $ 180,000 and several between $ 20,000 and $40,000
Kataria also sent a power point presentation to Christie's which, he says, "lists Husain's deliberate distortion and degradation of Hindu culture."
"Seven cases have been registered against him. 6 courts have issued arrest warrants against him. More than 28,000 people have signed a petition condemning Mr Husain for his malicious attempts to vilify Hindu people. 1250 police complaints have been filed against him," Kataria claimed.
In this background, he said it is "unbecoming on the part of Christie's, a reputable Art Gallery, "to associate with a person of criminal background and promote his paintings."
Asserting that Christie's association with Husain would "jeopardise" its business in the long run, he urged it to "refrain" from auctioning Husain's paintings.
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HINDU RIGHTS GROUP TO PROTEST AGAINST M.F. HUSAIN IN NEW YORK
The Indian Star News Service
Posted: Sunday, March 16, 2008
New York: Two Hindu rights groups have announced to protest against the auctioning of paintings of M F Husain by the Christie's Art Gallery in New York on March 20.
A number of paintings of Husain, the celebrated Indian painter, would be put to hammer along with those of other India painters by Christie's that day.
Hindu rights groups allege that Husain paintings have hurt the feeling of the Hindu community world over, the US in particular, and so the Christie's should not auction or display his paintings.
"We would hold a peaceful protest outside the Christie's building," said Narain Kataria, president of Indian American Intellectual Forum, which is jointly organizing the protest along with Hindu Janjagruti Samiti.
Kataria said agitated members of the Hindu community in the US have also written a number of letters to the Christie's urging them not to auction or exhibit Husain's paintings.
"Husain has been condemned by the Indian Parliament for painting Mother India in nude," Kataria wrote in his letter to the Christie's.
There was no immediate comment from the Christie's. However, it is understood that Christie's would go ahead with its scheduled auction of paintings including that of Husain.
"Six courts have issued arrest warrants against him. More than 28,000 people have signed a petition condemning Husain for his malicious attempts to vilify Hindu people. 1,250 police complaints have been filed against him," Kataria said.
Arish Sahani alleged that Husain has been drawing such paintings to deliberately distort and denigrate Hindu culture. "He has severely hurt the sentiments of more than one billion Hindus all over the globe," he said.
Another Hindu rights activists, Ajay Mittal in a letter urged Christie's to issue a memo to Husain asking him to explain why he made nude figures of a majority religion.
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