Show on Mumbai port trust staff fighting British

MUMBAI: Sixteen paintings depicting the struggle of Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) workers and freedom activists against the exploitative and oppressive trade practices of the British Raj are on display at the iconic Gateway of India till Friday. Inaugurated by Union minister for ports Sarbananda Sonowal on May 15, the paintings, by Sonali Iyengar, are part of an exhibition to celebrate Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (75 years of India’s Independence).
“My paintings are part of tribute to the workers of MbPT who fought the British and faced their repression. Many leaders of the freedom movement like Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Mahatma Gandhi and B R Ambedkar visited the MbPT to enthuse and lend support to the port workers who had become freedom activists,” said Iyengar. Apart from Iyengar’s 116 paintings, 61 photographs capturing the myriad moods of the port area are part of the exhibition.