London:
Amid grand setting and striking ambience, Mother Teresa's birth centenary celebrations were launched in London. With a 20-20 exhibition of paintings on the Nobel peace laureate by Maqbool Fida Husain and Sunita Kumar, the evening moved on at the Victoria & Albert Museum.
For those visiting the Victoria and Albert, it was a very special evening. An evening to remember Mother Teresa.
Adorned with 40 paintings, the hall appeared magnificent. The idea was to celebrate Mother Teresa's work and pay her a tribute for the unconditional service she performed till her last breath.
The array of paintings had work from country's most renowned artists. 20 of them were by M F Hussain another 20, by Sunita Kumar who was also a friend, official biographer, and spokesperson for Mother Teresa in Calcutta for more than 30 years.
"I always planned to do a show for Mother's centenary. Just so happened that out of the blue Hussain called me why don't we have a 20-20. I said what's this cricket? He said no it'll be 20 of your works and 20 of mine," said Sunita Kumar.
"I wanted to paint her from my heart. I have done some paintings that she had wanted me to do at that time. She wanted me to do Kalighat, Nirmal Hriday... She never criticised, she commented on them, in the beginning she said where my eyes are. I told her mother I want to paint you simply," she added
For M F Hussain it was an evenng filled with nostalgia. His series on Mother Teresa is regarded as one of his most important work. This collection is of 18 silk prints and two paintings, displayed at the Victoria& Albert museum.
"I first met her in 79. I was so moved by her hard work. The way I like to express the great work metaphor. I didn't want to make her portrait. Through the folds of her sari I depicted her love for the destitute and sick ," said Hussain.
Through her lifetime, Mother has lived for just one cause. Her work cannot be bundled in just a few paintings. Agreeing to this, Hussain said, " She has done so in her lifetime, it will not be forgotten for centuries. Even if I spend two lives, I will not be able to justify her contribution to mankind."
Though the celebration was just an opportunity to remember Mother Teresa, perhaps even more important is that the nuns who carry on mother Teresa's invaluable work, through this, were able to see and feel the essence of Mother's life.
After the daylong exhibition, the paintings would now travel to Singapore, Hong Kong, and finally to Kolkata.