BANGALORE: They are all there, Miss Muffet and Ajanta Express, jostling
for space and showcasing the history of the Indian Railways.
Travel back in time with photographs that narrate a thousand tales. Over 500 rare frames of the several milestones track the story and its metamorphosis over 160 years. Miss Muffet is an engine waiting for the driver at a railway station, and Ajanta Express is the first express train to roll out in India on April 1, 1967 -- several milestones in the history of Indian Railways are on show.
Each photograph carries a detailed description, and opens up a panorama of little-known India, sights and scenes that have captured the pulse of a nation on the move over the years. The exhibition, at Venkatappa Art Gallery, is on till July 1.
Some are classic frames: A pedestal fan at a refreshment room in a railway station, cycle rickshaw pullers waiting for the train to arrive, a dining car attached to a train, view of a postal counter at Howrah railway station -- each click is a story in itself.
The photographs take you back to an era when elephants were used to push heavy wagons. It was in 1860 when a bullock train first rolled out. A photograph of a train on the first narrow-gauge line from Dabhoi station to Miyagam appeared on May 23, 1861, in a London journal. The photo shows two bullocks walking on either side of the track and pulling the heavily loaded compartment.
Moments to reckon with
The pictures also take you through platforms and stations which were part of the freedom movement; places where prominent people have left their footprints. While one photo has Bhagat Singh at a railway police station speaking to a gentleman, another reflects the mood of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose with his supporters. Then there is this shot of Gandhiji's supporters spinning the charkha at a station.
Tagore, Nehru on board
A journey by train has often inspired many a creative mind to give words to their thoughts. In fact, Rabindranath Tagore penned six of his poems in 'Gitanjali' while travelling on trains. A photo of a young Tagore gazing out of the train is also a part of the collection.
The first prime minister of Independent India was one of the first to travel on a children's train in Bal Bhavan, New Delhi, in 1958. A photographer aptly captures Chacha Nehru's excitement on the joy ride with children.
Travel back in time with photographs that narrate a thousand tales. Over 500 rare frames of the several milestones track the story and its metamorphosis over 160 years. Miss Muffet is an engine waiting for the driver at a railway station, and Ajanta Express is the first express train to roll out in India on April 1, 1967 -- several milestones in the history of Indian Railways are on show.
Each photograph carries a detailed description, and opens up a panorama of little-known India, sights and scenes that have captured the pulse of a nation on the move over the years. The exhibition, at Venkatappa Art Gallery, is on till July 1.
Some are classic frames: A pedestal fan at a refreshment room in a railway station, cycle rickshaw pullers waiting for the train to arrive, a dining car attached to a train, view of a postal counter at Howrah railway station -- each click is a story in itself.
The photographs take you back to an era when elephants were used to push heavy wagons. It was in 1860 when a bullock train first rolled out. A photograph of a train on the first narrow-gauge line from Dabhoi station to Miyagam appeared on May 23, 1861, in a London journal. The photo shows two bullocks walking on either side of the track and pulling the heavily loaded compartment.
Moments to reckon with
The pictures also take you through platforms and stations which were part of the freedom movement; places where prominent people have left their footprints. While one photo has Bhagat Singh at a railway police station speaking to a gentleman, another reflects the mood of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose with his supporters. Then there is this shot of Gandhiji's supporters spinning the charkha at a station.
Tagore, Nehru on board
A journey by train has often inspired many a creative mind to give words to their thoughts. In fact, Rabindranath Tagore penned six of his poems in 'Gitanjali' while travelling on trains. A photo of a young Tagore gazing out of the train is also a part of the collection.
The first prime minister of Independent India was one of the first to travel on a children's train in Bal Bhavan, New Delhi, in 1958. A photographer aptly captures Chacha Nehru's excitement on the joy ride with children.
