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Chief Minister’s helping hand to Awari family!
Painter Sureshchandra Awari is alone at home. He fasted the whole day as it is Sankashti Chaturthi. He has just met the members of the Senior Citizens Association. His wife has gone to her yoga classes. He feels hungry as he has fasted the whole day, so he goes into the kitchen to eat his favorite fruit – mangoes. He grabs a mango and a knife and comes into the living room. Just when he is about to cut the mango, it slips from his hands and rolls down on the floor.
His wife returns home after almost a couple of hours. The house is pitch dark. When she enters the house, she finds Awari lying on the floor. She finds a mango and a knife lying next to him and there is vomit all around. She screams.
The neighbors come running and immediately shift Suresh Awari to hospital. The diagnosis is brain hemorrhage. There is a possibility of survival only if surgery is done at the earliest. One of his two daughters lives in Bengaluru and another in the adjacent building. A written consent is taken from his daughter and Suresh is taken for surgery. After a four-hour long surgery, he is sent to hospital where stays for the next one month.
Wife, daughters, relatives, and doctors are waiting for him to regain consciousness and open his eyes. Even after a month, he does not open his eyes. By this time, the family has already spent 10-12 lakh rupees. The doctor finally advises the family to take the patient home. A room in the house is transformed into a hospital room. Two nurses take care of him every twelve hours.
On 17th June 2023, the unfortunate mishap completed a year. Painter Suresh Awari still lies unconscious. We published a special article on him on ‘Chinha’ website ‘https://chinha.in/‘ in our online newspaper ‘Chinha Art News’. This post was read on Facebook by 3441 people and on Instagram by 366 people.
Meanwhile, Dr Deepak Kannal sent me an audio message from Vadodara yesterday morning. He said, “I felt very sad reading this”. He informed that in Vadodara if any artists need such help, they take one painting from each artist there, sell all those paintings and the collection is used to help the needy family of such artists. “We charge fifty percent from very big painters. Because even if every painter wants to, it is impossible to extend financial support. So, we have started this kind of initiative.” He further said that you too can do such an activity. My heart said, “Sir, it seems you do not know much about the painters of Mumbai or Maharashtra.”
I had barely completed this sentence in my mind and there came a message from sculptor Madhukar Vanjari. He had written “I didn’t know about it at all. Good that you published detailed news about him. Thank you very much!” My batchmate Geeta Castelino from JJ also sent a message expressing her grief. Poor her, she too had an accident recently. Yet, she sent a brief message on WhatsApp. Those who know Geeta Castelino are aware of her own life-long battle with her disability and so her message was very important. Painter Shardul Kadam also sent a message. Painter Ashutosh Apte called late in the night asking “Oh, what exactly happened to Awari sir?” Painter Awari had taught Ashutosh’s class for a year at JJ. That’s all. Only four such reactions reached me from the artists fraternity. Of course, I didn’t feel too bad because I am used to it. But it surely left a bad taste in the mouth.
About six to seven thousand painters and people associated with the art field are sent messages through the WhatsApp group run by ‘Chinha’, daily. Apart from this, there are twenty broadcast groups of ‘Chinha’. About 5000 more painters and artists are regularly sent messages through it. Yet, we got only five responses to Suresh Awari’s story. It’s sad.
It is my honest opinion, art education tradition of Maharashtra, which was once the top-most in the country, has completely eroded in recent times due to the lack Maharashtra’s cultural influence on painting education in Maharashtra. I have been expressing this opinion openly for the past forty years, on every possible platform, and that too in a vocal manner. Many people don’t like and are resentful of my bluntness, but I have continued with speaking my mind. I have continued my work through ‘Chinha Diwali Issue’ then ‘Chinha Art Magazine’ and finally through ‘Chinha Art News’. Even though I have not achieved professional success in it, I am very proud of the work I do.
Last month, we launched the English edition of ‘Chinha Art News’. But that day too, I got only one response to the post on the artist WhatsApp group with 250 members. No one sent a simple emoji of greetings too. So, I did not think twice and left the artist group, making which I had spent the past five or six years.
I was not surprised by what happened with regards to Suresh Awari. It was due to this apathetic attitude, Directorate of Art, JJ School of Art, that the aided and unaided art colleges in Maharashtra have suffered. This is a fact. All these things often make me depressed. But God knows how, I stood up again with a renewed vigor to do something new.
Something amazing happened yesterday!
Around eight o’clock in the evening, my mobile phone rang. It was Deepali, Suresh Awari’s daughter. I wondered, why did she call at this hour? Picking up the phone, Deepali said, “Uncle, I received a call from the Chief Minister’s office a short while ago. Arvind Mandavkar spoke, who is probably his secretary. He was earnestly enquiring about the story. “Please let us know how we can help?” He asked me later.”
I was stunned. After sending links and messages to thousands of artists throughout the day, only five people responded to me. No artist felt the need to react, let alone help the family. While on the other hand, the office of the Chief Minister of Maharashtra Eknath Shinde, without any appeal from our side, extends a helping hand only after reading the article in ‘Chinha Art News’. I don’t know what to say about this unprecedented event. I am somewhat overwhelmed. I don’t know how to express my feelings in this regard. But I will surely write a detailed letter to the Chief Minister.
If you liked this article, please share with your friends and family, and do not forget to share your responses.
Satish Naik
Chief Editor
Chinha Art News
If you wish to read the earlier piece on painter Suresh Awari, please click on the link below.
https://chinha.in/features-english/destiny-of-an-artist-suresh-awari/
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