A gallery of rail art

The City Railway Station is one of the busiest junctions in the State and a number of trains arrive and depart from what is better known as Bangalore City Railway station.

The railway station has seen a lot of changes and development since its construction several decades ago. However, some of the changes are yet to register with the travelers and people who frequent the railway station.

One such change is the unique rail gallery which has been put in place by the South Western Railways. Though the gallery is situated on Platform No. 1, it has few visitors and even among them only a handful are travelers who have either alighted or about to board a train.

The art gallery can be easily recognised and it has murals and art works. Apart from paintings depicting the hurried life at the railway station.

The art gallery has so enthused the Railways that they plan a similar one at the Cantonment Railway Station, one pf the oldest railway stations in Bangalore.  
The gallery is part of a small movement to promote art and bring it to railway stations. It is called Support and Appreciation for Art and Railways — SAFAR- and it was launched by the South Western Railways, Bangalore division.

The division conducted two art camps, one in March and another in July, where it commissioned artists to paint at railway stations. Fifteen artists from Karnataka attended these camps and their paintings have been put up at the railway station.

Another camp saw the participation of noted artists such as S G Vasudev, G N S Mani and M S Murthy and the theme was  “Railways and the People”.

Apart from SAFAR camps, the division also commissioned two murals by students of Chitrakala Parishat. While one portrays the panoramic view of the Railway Station, the second depicts the Chittara folk art that is intrinsic to Karnataka.

The Rail gallery here includes models of iconic stations, steam engines, calling bells, block instrument, the scenic beauty of hill railways and the photographs of inauguration of some of the milestones events in the history of Railways.

The purpose of ensuing art on the walls of the railway station is to create a platform between artists and passers-by, vendors and railway employees.

There is another art gallery in the City Railway Station and this is on Platform No. 5. Here, we can see 15 paintings by artists like P S Kumar, Santosh Andani, U G Andani, SG Vasudev and others.
The art works are about a train journey and life in the railway station. Unfortunately, this gallery too is less well known and hardly ten people visit it in a month.”
The gallery is also called cartoon gallery as it has several humorous sketches and many paintings bring a smile on the face or even laughter. Unfortunately, it is not open at all times and there is no visitors’ book or any caretaker nearby to answer any queries or let people in.

The railways also plan to open a new rail gallery at Cantonment station.
As far as the cartoon gallery is concerned, it has not even been opened. If you are willing to visit the cartoon gallery, you have to look around for officials who have the key to this place.
So the next time you go to receive or send off your friends and relatives, make sure to give them a visual treat in the form of a visit to these galleries. Let me tell you, they are worth a visit and they will leave you with a smile on your face and a song in your heart.