At sometime in life everyone tends to doodle with a pen. For most, it is a passing fancy and nothing more. But for this sexagenarian, it is a pleasant passion. Give him a pen and a piece of paper and see eye-catching sketches taking shape in no time.
For the last four decades Mir Azmath Ali Khan is doing just that – producing a wealth of drawings of every monument you can think of. What drives him is not commercial motive, but his love for the heritage. Through his sketches he tries to create awareness about the heritage structures so that they can be protected.
Royal lineage
Wonder who this committed artist is? Well, his lineage goes back to Nawab Mir Akbar Ali Khan Sikandar Jah Bahadur, popularly known as Nizam III. Moved by the pitiable condition of monuments in Hyderabad, Mr. Khan has been sketching furiously in public places to attract public attention. He started off his ‘Save heritage’ mission with the historic Mecca Masjid and then moved to the bustling Charminar and other spots. Passersby pause to look at his work and then realise the importance of the heritage structures they take for granted. Mr. Khan plans to set up a permanent museum in the city to display his drawings done over the years.
His ancestral property at Baghe Zulfekharu-Dowla in Santoshnagar will be the home for the museum which is likely to be opened by October end. “All my drawings sketched in the last 38 years will be exhibited here,” says Mr. Khan.
A professor at the J.B.R College of Architecture, Banjara Hills, Mr. Khan uses the low cost medium of pen and ink to portray. With deft strokes he brings out tones and shadows in his sketches. Even the thickness and thinness of lines he produces with the pen lend a photo realism to his works.
Books published
Rightly called as ‘artitect’ by European critics, Mr. Khan has published four books on World Architectural Heritage, Mosque Architecture, Rendering in pen and ink and Rendering in pen and pencil.
Some of his drawings are: Al Hamra Palace, Spain, New Makkah gateway, Jamial Azhar, Cairo, Taj Mahal. He has also drawn important temples like the Thousand Pillar temple, Hanamkonda, Nasik temple, Alampur Brahma temple complex in Mahabubnagar to name a few.
Now he plans to take the silk route and sketch the Great Wall of China.
