FOR non-Indians living in Egypt and dreaming of seeing the monuments of India, they now have the chance to do so in downtown Cairo, without having to travel thousands of miles. The Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture, located in central Cairo, is currently holding an exhibition 25 watercolours by Indian painter Kashi Nath Das, entitled ‘Monuments of India'. These watercolours portray some of India's most famous monuments. "Monuments are the most visible of all civilisational legacies. Standing here in the land of the Pyramids, one realises the validity of the statement," said Ambassador of India to Egypt R. Swaminathan. "Most people in Egypt and around the mworld associate India with the Taj Mahal, the marble ode to love built by Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beautiful queen Mumtaz Mahal in the 17th century,” he added at the opening ceremony of the exhibition. “The Taj Mahal, which we see here from the angle of the Agra Fort, which is where Shah Jahan lay in his last days, represents the zenith of Moghul architecture in India and is rightly considered as one of the Seven Wonders of the World." This collection, the Ambassador continued, included many other structures which had been classified as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. These include the Ellora Caves, the epitome of rock-cut architecture in India and dating back as early as the fifth century AD; the awe-inspiring temple complex of Khajuraho (10th century AD); the Lingaraj temple (11th century); the Sun temple at Konark in Orissa (13th century); and Humayun's tomb, the first garden tomb in South Asia, considered the forerunner of the Taj Mahal. Kashi Nath Das, born in Calcutta in 1973, is one of India's prominent young painters. After spending his early years in Calcutta and winning recognition at the state level for hisartistic works, Das moved to Delhi for his bachelor's degree in Fine Arts from the College of Arts, University of Delhi (2004), where he won medals and awards for his mpaintings at the all-India level. His works grace several institutional collections, including those of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, the College of Arts, New Delhi, and leading Indian hotels. He has participated in several national and international exhibitions. "These paintings show the richness and diversity of Indian culture," said Hossam Nassar, the head of the Foreign Cultural Relations Sector at Egypt's Ministry of Culture. The ‘Monuments of India' exhibition runs until August 31 and is open daily from 10am to 6pm, exceptfor Fridays and Saturdays.
