World famous ancient cave murals in Maharashtra are staring at ruin due to controversial conservation and display techniques and unbridled tourism. How can we save these millennia-old artistic marvels?
Ajanta, Maharashtra,date of issue: April 17, 2023 , Updates: April 8, 2023 04:28 IST
Left: Raghu Rai’s photograph of the fast disappearing famous Padmapani mural in Cave 1 at the Ajanta site in Maharashtra. Right: Colour-corrected recreation of Rai, what it might have looked like in the past, based on the colors of other, better-preserved murals
“A man enjoys himself in heaven as long as his memory is green in the world. One (therefore) should set up a monument on the mountains which will last as long as the moon and the sun” , monk buddhabhadra , Inscription at Cave 26, Ajanta, circa 478 CE