Rest not. Life is sweeping by; go and dare before you die. Something mighty and sublime, leave behind to conquer time.” These words of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, the popular German writer provide an insight into the life of living legend Satish Gujral, the artist who shuttles effortlessly between diverse art genres.
Some may know him as an exotic painter, others as a supreme sculptor, a fine architect, a muralist or an excellent writer, but Gujral is fundamentally a kind human being with a
creative heart.
With the spotlight of fame on him, the artist’s search for new expressions continues and this has probably been his driving force. Says the restless creator: “It is the creative urge, the urge to find newer idioms.” This is what drives him even at the ripe age of 84, and has made him a colossus who has ruled the country’s art scene for decades.
Yet, his quest to infuse new materials and unprecedented elements into his art continues. “I feel I have a lot to discover yet,” he says. “Not repeating what I have already discovered and the love for the new, the different and the undiscovered has helped me keep young at heart,” says the Padma Vibhushan recipient.
His work is the best testimony to his brilliance. The Belgian embassy in the Capital, which Gujral designed, was named one of the thousand best buildings made in the 20th century by the International Union of Architects. The summer palace he built in Saudi Arabia for the late Saudi King Faisal, the Ram Goolam Memorial in Mauritius and closer home, the Ambedkar Memorial in Lucknow are similarly appreciated.
Gujral’s autobiography, A Brush with Life describes the travails of a man, who overcame his deafness and his humble beginnings to evolve into an accomplished artist. He has described this beautifully on the second page of his book using a quote from Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s poetry — Wohi chashma-e-baqa tha, Jisey sab sarab samjhey, Wohi khawaab mothir they, Jo khayaal tak na ponhchey (What everyone took to be a mirage, turned out to be a perennial spring. The very dreams we thought were idle fantasies, turned out to be life’s realities).
Looking back at a life well lived, the Order of the Aztec Eagle (the highest Mexican award) winner and the Doctor Of Literature, (Rabindra Bharti University) awardee says: “I consider it an opportunity, the longer a life span one has the more is one blessed. Neither its ups nor its downs make a difference to me.”
If his advancing age has restricted his globe-trotting ways for the last five years, it has helped him indulge in his favourite hobbies: “Reading and watching art cinema.”
Gujral’s fitness mantra is to “eat as little as possible”. And yes he has some useful advice for our young generation: “Never imitate the attraction of what you come across.”
Vast reservoirs of grit, determination and a sensitive temperament have got Gujral to the zenith of his fame. But he learnt the lessons of life early. The Persian saying that his father used to repeat is used at the end of his book:
“Kashf-o-kamal kun keh aziz-e-jahan shud.” (Achieve excellence in your vocation for that is the way to win the world!)