Changing colours: Academy security room turns saffron, sparks debate

Kolkata: Protests have erupted in the city over changing the colour of the Academy of Fine Arts security room from ash to saffron. However, actor and BJP MLA Rudranil Ghosh has challenged this selective outrage, noting the same critics remained silent when paintings vanished from the premises yet are hyperactive now.Established in 1933 by Lady Ranu Mukherjee, the Academy of Fine Arts in Kolkata stands as one of India’s oldest fine arts societies. This iconic institution features an expansive 6,300-square-foot gallery space, an auditorium, and a conference centre, while housing a priceless collection of historic paintings, textiles, and other cultural treasures.Painter Pradosh Paul told TOI he was shocked by the unauthorized change in the security room’s colour.

“The academy has a strong contribution to the cultural heritage of Bengal. We want to keep it free from any political colours,” he said. He clarified his protest concerns the building’s aesthetic integrity rather than the saffron colour, adding, “I would have reacted similarly had I found that the colour had been changed to blue and white or even blood red.

We are all meeting on Friday evening to sign two petitions; while one will be sent to the chief minister with a copy to state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya, the other will be given to the academy’s trustee board.”

Kallol Bose, secretary of the executive committee of the academy, told TOI that he was unaware of the repainting. “For day-to-day functioning, we are supposed to give the permission. But nothing was sought from us officially. At the entrance of the academy, there are two rooms. One is used for a ticket counter. The other is for the security personnel. We had no idea that the security room would be repainted. This is alarming,” Bose said.

When asked about the room’s maintenance history, Bose added, “I have been here for 30 year.

Originally, it was ash in colour. I think it must have been 50 years since the building got a coat of paint.”Reacting to this, Ghosh said that that his connection to the academy runs deep, including performances on its stage. “It is standard practice for workers to determine the aesthetics of their own workspace. Previous unions occupied the area with placards and photographs of even small-time political leaders from Bhowanipore, which drew no criticism.

The sudden outrage over the workers’ choice of saffron for the security room suggests a different motive.

Are the protestors anxious because this new vigilance threatens to expose their own long-standing negligence and misconduct?”Ghosh made it clear that the intention is to let the academy thrive under the stewardship of genuine well-wishers. “I have heard that the Left and ultra-Left are politicizing the repainting of a security room.

These are the same voices that remained silent while the building fell into disrepair, valuable paintings vanished, and the premises became overgrown with weeds. The current trustee, effectively defunct, has allowed the proliferation of illegal stalls without objection in front of the academy.

Not a word of protest came then,” Ghosh said.Meanwhile, Gautam Mohan Chakrabarti, chairperson of the academy’s trustee board, told TOI, “No permission was sought from the trustee board. I had no idea about this. I am asking my administrative officer to get in touch with the executive committee and give me an update.”