Jaya He GVK New Museum

In 2009, Mr. Sanjay Reddy, Vice-Chairman of GVK Power & Infrastructure Limited, articulated his vision for Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai (GVK CSIA): an airport that can compete with any global equivalent but retains a distinct sense of place and identity, an airport that celebrates India. ‘Jaya He, GVK New Museum’ at Terminal 2 (T2) was born of this vision.

GVK CSIA T2 inaugurated in January 2014, is India’s first and most advanced vertical passenger terminal that integrates world class design, architecture, infrastructure and operational efficiency, with a rich infusion of Indian heritage & cultural character. The T2 is home to India’s largest public art programme, titled ‘Jaya He’. In the form of a multi-story Art Wall, illuminated by skylights, that has over 7000 pieces of artwork & artefacts from every region & corner of India, Jaya He has emerged as a landmark corporate initiative to safeguard an immense cultural resource from being lost for posterity.

The name ‘Jaya He’ is part of the National anthem and encapsulates the Glory of the Nation, a distinctive narrative of a country of incredible diversity, living in multiple centuries simultaneously. The Jaya He GVK New Museum at T2 is an unprecedented design-led art program attempting to reposition the Arts and Crafts of India in the public domain. It consists of ritual artefacts, architectural features, paintings, sculptures, textiles etc. of varied antiquity and provenance integrated into more than a hundred art installations as part of its permanent exhibit. Jaya He is a beautiful amalgamation showcasing together the contemporary fine arts and the traditional skills of art and artisans from across the country. It defied conventional notions of art- craft or traditional-modern as binaries where designers, artists, artisans, architects, art historians, anthropologists and conservators all worked together on curatorial concepts, put forth by Mr. Rajeev Sethi (one of the leading curators and scenographers of South Asia), that distil and interpret India.

Jaya He provides the passengers with a unique opportunity for experiencing the diversity of Indian arts and crafts under one roof. The installations are planned in a way that all passengers can have a glimpse of it while arriving or departing through T2. The whole idea of the museum revolves around the projection of the country’s rich culture and practices in many different ways. The central curvilinear wall of T2 spanning about 3.2 km reflects country’s arts and crafts through 6 thematic compositions spread across different levels viz. India Greets, India Global, India Elemental, India Silent Sentinels, India Moves and India Seamless. Each of the themes has a unique story to tell.

While walking through the art program at T2 Departures level, one is exposed to a variety of different objects ranging from doorways, façades, antique boats, bullock carts, porches, temple chariots, lotuses, angels, ancestral figures, and celestial guardian figures to name a few; the Arrivals corridor is a home to a series of commissioned artworks by folk, tribal and contemporary artists that maps the Mumbai city.  Baggage carousels are flanked by installations that celebrate the textile traditions of India conceived by well known designers, including Manish Arora and Ritu Kumar.

In nutshell, Jaya He captures the essence of the country to present a story of the past, present and future of arts and crafts of India. The museum’s attempt to amaze the passengers doesn’t end here. It stretches beyond the installations in the form of Jaya He Stores and Exhibition Space that offers the passengers the take home element of the Art Program.

About GVK: GVK is a leading Indian conglomerate with diversified interests across various sectors of economic significance such as Infrastructure, Hospitality, Energy, Transportation and Airports. Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai (GVK CSIA) is the 2^nd largest airport in India and handled 41.67 Million passengers in 2015-16.