The Academy of Fine Arts, an iconic cultural institute of Kolkata, ran into a colour problem yet again on Wednesday after a portion of it was repainted in saffron in presence of BJP MLA Rudranil Ghosh, a day after being whitewashed by theatre workers.
After the BJP came to power in Bengal, the wall of the Academy's ticket counter had been changed to saffron, much to the chagrin of eminent theatre activists who had written to BJP state president Samik Bhattacharya, urging him to spare the institute from a fight for political symbolism.
In response, the state BJP chief had condemned the act of painting and stated that "changing colours of buildings did not fall in the party's agenda".
The back-and-forth over a coat of paint has since evolved into a symbolic clash over political identity, with the BJP distancing itself from what it earlier termed "colour-changing politics", while theatre personalities and political opponents questioned the assertion of saffron in a cultural space long associated with West Bengal's Left-leaning artistic tradition.
A portrait of 'Bharat Mata', depicting a goddess on a lion and holding a saffron flag was placed beside the room which stands next to the main entrance of the premises.
Actor-turned-politician Rudranil Ghosh, who was present on the spot on Wednesday, displayed an old photograph of the structure to justify the latest coat of saffron on the edifice walls.
"The colour of this ticket counter was clearly saffron and chocolate. The original colour will remain. Just a month ago, the Academy premises were covered in red flags. The working committee is harassing the Board of Trustees of the Academy. Corruption is rampant here, but the Left has no problem with that," Ghosh said, alleging that those who painted the walls white on Tuesday were "active workers of the CPI(M)".
He also targeted CPI(M) leader Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya who was present among the artists, theatre workers and culture enthusiasts who repainted the walls in white barely 24 hours ago.
The CPI leader hit back, calling the BJP communal.
"The BJP is a communal party. Upon coming into power, they believe they can force everyone to adopt their communal mindset. To them, the colour saffron symbolises communalism - yet they fail to grasp the true significance of saffron. Had they understood its real meaning, they would not have acted in such an ignorant manner," he said.
Minister of State Sukanta Majumdar played down the row, saying saffron is part of the national flag.
"There is no issue with saffronisation. Saffron is part of the national flag. If something becomes saffron, what problem could anyone possibly have with it," he said.
"Academy of fine arts is a cultural centre of Kolkata. While Trinamool was in power we did not ever attempt to colour it in blue and white. It has an identity. Colouring it in saffron was not needed at all," Trinamool MLA Kunal Ghosh said.
The Academy of Fine Arts, one of the oldest fine arts societies in India and a heritage edifice forming part of Kolkata's cultural epicentre, was established in 1933 by Lady Ranu Mukherjee, a patron of arts who was associated with Rabindranath Tagore.
The building houses a sprawling gallery, a theatre auditorium, a conference centre and a rich collection of paintings.
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