When artist and curator Sayyad Shaiek started taking art classes since September last for inmates of Chanchalguda prison, it used to be taken with a police person by his side. Cut to February and his students now start their work an hour in advance, and compete amongst themselves to show their work to himAnd Sayyad’s classes with the Chanchalguda prison inmates have truly paid-off. Not only did those behind bars have their first-of-its-kind exhibition, but out of the 70 works on display, 10 were sold on the inaugural day itself! “Their artistic sense is different, as each one has a different vision. And their suffering is also depicted in their works of art,” said Sayyad.
V. K. Singh, Director General, Telangana State Prisons, said that the response to the exhibition was overwhelming. “We were really surprised that they had sold out, as there were apprehensions about whether people would purchase them,” he stated. The money made from the paintings will be given to the artists, after deducting the cost of the raw materials they were provided with, added Mr. Singh. The art classes for the inmates are the result of a collaboration between the Telangana State Prisons department and the Krishnakriti Foundation, to help them ‘refine’ their personalities. “We wanted to usher in a mindset change that would have a lasting effect on them. The idea is also to provide them with a means of livelihood once they leave,” explained Mr. Singh, who initiated the programme.
Explaining about his experience in teaching the inmates, Sayyad, a fine arts student from the University of Hyderabad (UoH), said that the prisoners used to initially draw a lot of landscapes and would incorporate their own surroundings into them. “As they matured as artists, they would start drawing things like villages, conceptual art, and even mythology and women,” he recalled.
Beginning with about 30 inmates in the first batch, Sayyad is now attached to his students. “When I started, I was afraid, and hence had a security personnel with me. But I later realised that they are also very creative, and that their minds are very different,” he opined. As the prisoners started liking their new activity, the classes also began stretching. “I used to teach for an hour when I began in September, but now I teach for 30 minutes more,” laughed Sayyad. The art classes are not something taught to the inmates as a prison activity, as once they are free they will be trained further by the State Art Gallery. “They will learn further, and their works will also be displayed at there, and they will be charged 10 per cent from the sale of their works. My idea is that whoever comes to prison should leave, and not return,” said Mr. Singh.
The four-day exhibition, which was inaugurated on February 12, is being held at the State Art Gallery at Madhapur in Hyderabad.
