Draupadi, wearing a vivid green saree, prays to Krishna, his skin a beautiful blue, as Dushasana – whose attire sports tremendous detail – tries pulling at her clothes. This is just pieces of art that Mangalagiri station is now home too. With its makeover complete, it’s easy to mistake the station for an art gallery.
In a move to tap into the high inflow of tourists, the Mangalagiri station, located in Andhra’s new capital, Amaravati, received a facelift and is now home to beautiful art installations – from Kalamkari to clay Ashoka Pillars.
One wall sports the eye-catching Draupadi mural, vivid in its detail, while another has a serene Buddha, sitting in meditation amidst flowers. One wall across us has a fierce Narasimha slaying Hiranyakashipu as Prahlada watches on, while another highlights the state’s history.
The brainchild to install art inside the railway station’s premises was the Andhra Pradesh Tourism, Language and Culture Department. The CEO of AP Tourism Development Corporation sought requisite approvals from the Union Railways to promote tourism at railway stations.
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Shukla, along with regional railways authorities, visited the station multiple times to oversee the process and give the station a fitting makeover.
Guntur Divisional Railway Manager VG Bhooma said “We want to showcase the unique Kalamkari art form, which has a great visual appeal, in our railway station at Mangalagiri, a town growing in prominence as a tourist centre.”
Chairman of AP Tourism Jayarami Reddy stated that Mangalagiri was the birthplace of Kalamkari art and artists from this region had spread across the state. He added that four stations had been selected to be redecorated in the first phase of the project.
This initiative is drawing cheers across the board for beautifying the station. Reports also suggest that the Tourism Department plans to introduce helicopter joy rides in Amaravati to promote tourism.