1. 74NewWoman April 2015
he uses the canvas to display
images hidden in her mind.
She dons the camera to
trace the journey of Indian artists in
their most pensive moments. She talks
about perceptions and endless
possibilities through her
artwork and images. “I was
brought up in New Delhi and
did my schooling from Delhi
Public School (DPS), R.K.
Puram. At school, I was good
at academics and very much into sports,
but art was a passion. It was a blessing to
have artists as Art teachers at DPS and
fuelled by their encouragement, I went
on to complete my Master’s in Art from
Jamia Millia Islamia University in 1992.
At Jamia, I had the privilege of learning
from an incredible set of teachers —
A Ramachandran, Paramjeet Singh,
Jagdish Chander, Latika Katt, Rajiv
Lochan, Shukla Sawant and Roobina
Karode. To date, I continue to learn and
gain from them,” she says.
LESSONS FROM
THE MASTER
When she talks about her ‘Guru’ and
mentor—A Ramachandran—there is a
spark in her voice. “A major figure on
the contemporary Indian art scene, it was
under him that I received the National
Scholarship and Junior Fellowship
Trailblazers
S
AND
LIGHT
COLOUR
MANISHA GERA
BASWANI IS A VIBRANT
ARTIST, COLLECTOR AND
PHOTOGRAPHER, WHO,
WHEN SHE IS NOT
PAINTING, CAPTURES
UNCONVENTIONAL IMAGES
OF OTHER ARTISTS THROUGH
HER LENS. RITU GHAI CHATS
WITH HER ON HER LOVE FOR
ART, THE INTRICACIES OF
WORK-LIFE BALANCE AND
HER FORAY INTO THE WORLD
OF PHOTOGRAPHY

2. April 2015 NewWoman 75
from the Government
of India in 1991 and
1995. I strongly believe
that a teacher instructs
and a Guru inspires. A
Ramachandran continues
to surprise and enrich
me with his observations
on life and art. He has
helped me develop a
broader perspective that
has been instrumental in
my juggling the different
roles at work and home
with conviction and
satisfaction,” she reflects,
while talking about living
in Delhi being a distinct
advantage. “Living in
this city gave me the
opportunity to visit
galleries and shows easily
and attend other cultural
events. But, it is
internal passion that
ultimately counts.”
FAMILY MATTERS
While her husband, Rahul
Baswani, an executive
coach, stood by her as
she surged forward to
continue her pursuit
of art, her family too
encouraged her. “My
parents have been my
guiding force. My younger
brother, Varun and I
have not been brought
up with conventional
rules. In fact, as a child,
like all children, I loved
to paint on the walls.
To make sure that my
creativity is not curbed,
my mother pasted a long
scroll of paper along the
wall and let me paint.
They actually identified
my passion and helped
me realise my dream
of becoming an artist,”
emphasises Manisha,
who has also studied
French for seven years
from Alliance Francaise
de Delhi and received
a French Government
scholarship to study art
in Paris in 1992. She went
on to work for the Indira
Gandhi National Centre
for Arts (IGNCA) under
Dr Kapila Vatsyayan and
Dr Ranjit Makkuni on a
path-breaking multimedia
project on Gita Govinda,
the famous poet
Jayadeva’s 13th century
Sanskrit poem. She
mounted her last solo
show at Espace Gallery,
New Delhi in 2012.
TRAVEL
BROADENS
HORIZONS
Manisha’s travels fuelled
her creativity. Visits to
the majestic ruins of
Mandu and Jaisalmer
and to the distant lands
of Jerusalem and Egypt
shaped her bent towards
representing nature in her
works, almost like an all-
pervading narrative. On
the art being reflective,
she points out, “An
artist is always in angst.
There is a momentary
satisfaction upon
completing one’s work
immediately followed
by the question, ‘What
next?’ I would compare
the act of creativity to the
process of the sprouting
of a seed. The seed has
to be ripped open for
the plant to emerge.”
About facing criticism,
she says, “An artist needs
to be receptive. One’s
inner conviction has
to be strong enough to
take everything with a
filter and one can do that
when one is in sync with
oneself.”
THROUGH
THE LENS
“During my journey
as an artist, I started
interviewing and
photographing my
reclusive guru, A
Ramachandran by visiting
his house frequently,
taking images, writing
notes in the diary and
using a dictaphone. This
culminated in taking
candid shots of other
contemporary Indian
artists over the last 12
years as well. It has been a
journey of photographing
India’s exquisite art
talent at different
shows, their studios and
homes,” she speaks on,
while describing these
photographs as a pure
labour of love. “All
are instinctive shots,
photographed through a
non-linear perspective to
appear as a work of art.
I don’t pre-meditate upon
a work. My camera has
enriched me—both as a
painter and the person
within me. My camera
has accompanied me to
all art openings, soirees
and camps to capture
the ‘behind the scenes’
images of the art world.
Since I share a friendly
relationship with most
artists, it was easy to enter
their studios or other
creative spaces. I spent
hours in artists’ studios,
quietly capturing them in
their surroundings and
later enjoying wonderful
conversations with them,
over lunch and tea,”
she explains.
CROSSING
BOUNDARIES
In December, at the
Kochi-Muziris Biennale
2014, Fort Kochi
brimmed with activity
as the event, “Whorled
Explorations”, kick-
started. The event goes
on till March 29, 2015,
to showcase the talents
of artists from around
the world. It is here that
Manisha, through her
stellar project, ‘Artist
Through the Lens,’
displays people from

3. the art community
whom she has known
and interacted with,
for decades. There are
molten images that show
artist Ranbir Kaleka’s
signature head gear
appear like a rising sun
over the horizon, Nataraj
Sharma installing his
work at Kala Ghoda in
2009, prominent sculptor,
Sarbari Roy Choudhury
at Shantiniketan or
the renowned painter,
and writer and art critic
Gulam Mohammed
Sheikh at his Sunder
Nagar house in Delhi
with his grandchild
nestled in his lap.
“These images offer a
tremendous potential as
an invaluable archive of
the Indian art scene. It is
growing organically and
transgressing boundaries,”
she beams with joy as
she declares having a
significant collection of
over 5,000 images of
notable artists, curators
and gallerists taken over
the years.
THE ARTIST’S
WAYS
An entire gamut of
impressionistic themes
defines her artistic
sensibilities—from
pichwais to truck art to
havelis and courtyards to
using the ultimate music
icon, Elvis Presley to
the iconisation of James
Bond and the Star Wars
trilogy to her ‘Heritage
series’ inspired from
barren lands,
ancient forts
and structures
through Egypt,
Jaisalmer and
Mandu—a
place she
loves. Manisha
loves working
with oils and
watercolours.
Her works
evolve around
other media too
such as gouache,
pastels and
conte. “When
I am travelling, colour
pencils, pastels and pens
are my companions.
I have also worked with
brewed tea water,” she
reveals. “My works are
reflective of distinct
phases of my life. As
far as my inspiration
goes, I draw my artistic
expression from
anywhere. It could be a
feather that I picked up
during my morning walks
or a thought that rises
while sipping hot tea in
my balcony on a beautiful
rainy day. Painting is an
experience for me, a 360˚
exercise where I let my
heart, hand and mind
flow,” she adds. Not one
to restrict herself, she has
also drawn inspiration
from old Persian
landscape paintings,
ancient Christian
manuscripts as well as
Japanese landscapes.
About her works carrying
a message, says the
artist, “I don’t intend to
address issues through
my paintings. I am not an
activist. I paint because
I love painting.”
SONS, BIRDS,
LAUGHTER
As a woman playing
the role of an artist,
photographer, wife and
mother to her two sons,
Aamer and Angad, who
study at Sri Ram School,
Manisha considers
herself lucky to have a
supportive family. “We
also have pet birds that
roam freely in the house
and go to their cages in
the evening,” she speaks,
laughter punctuating her
sentence. Manisha rues
the terrible state of art
education in schools,
“There are few museum
visits by schools and Art
is not considered a serious
subject yet. But instead of
cribbing about this lacuna
in the system, I decided
to take the onus upon
myself and now I have
been regularly conducting
workshops and doing my
bit to spread art education
amongst students,”
she reveals.
WALKING
THE TALK
Manisha and her husband
share a love for art. She
moved with her family
to Gurgaon four years
ago and has, over the
years, conducted art
walks for the residents
of her condominium
to familiarise them with
contemporary art. Her
studio is an extension
of her home—compact
and spotless. And their
house is full of traditional
arts and curios besides
contemporary Indian art.
When quizzed about art
trends, she says, “I don’t
go by trends and live a
very simple existence.
I like spending time with
my family and close
friends and unwind
by watching television
or a movie.” With this,
Manisha goes on to
collate her thoughts on to
the canvas—that special
ray of sunshine still
upon her.
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76NewWoman April 2015