Landing in a world of art: Mumbai's ambitious new T2 terminal 'museum' set to strike a chord with travelers

By Sara Taher

Long known as one of the busiest airports in the world, Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport recently inaugurated the city’s newest landmark, Terminal 2, to boost the financial capital’s status and global standing.

Built at an estimated cost of 55 billion rupees, or $887 million, the swanky new four-story terminal is set to captivate globe trotters with its sleek new design, inspired by a dancing peacock, India’s national bird. The ceiling is studded with lotus flower chandeliers and thousands of skylights with a colored lens in the center that will allow for natural light during the day and will cast an artificial colored light in the evenings to create reflections like peacock feathers on the floor.

“We did a 10-day tour around India, looking at dancers in front of monuments and walking through tombs and parks with historians, to create a building that is a manifestation of Indian culture,” said Roger Duffy, a partner with architecture firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP, who led the terminal’s design.

The most attractive feature of the swanky new terminal, however, is its new museum of artifacts featuring a cornucopia of contemporary and ancient Indian art, artifacts and paintings.

Under the guidance of award-winning curator Rajeev Sethi, the public arts program titled “Jaya He,” which means “Glory to Thee,” is comprised of two sections – “Layered Narratives” in the arrivals area and “Thresholds of India,” a 3.2 km long art walk (2 miles). The entire project will eventually display 7,000 Indian art pieces by 1,500 Indian artists between the 8th century and 19th century, arguably one of the largest art collections by any airport. About 2,000 objects are currently on view at the terminal.

The art wall itself is split into six themes – “India Elemental,” “India Greets,” “India Seamless,” “India Moves,” “India’s Silent Sentinels,” and “India Global.”

Although airport art walks are certainly not a novelty, this ambitious project is certainly trying to outshine its international sisters by sheer numbers and subject matter.

Peeking into a rich culture

Passengers landing in the new terminal will have the opportunity to view and enjoy thousands of artworks as they make their way to the baggage claim. Featuring media varying from artifacts and reliefs to contemporary Bollywood paintings and regional crafts, this art walk will showcase different aspects of Indian history and culture. The project will also feature iPads that will accompany the artworks so that viewers can see more detailed information through an app, which is currently being developed, that will also be available on smart phones. The app will also allow for people to learn more about the artists and facilitate purchases of the art by collectors or smaller replica pieces by visitors.

“Unless it reaches the doorstep of the artist, the art project would be just a project and not a program,” Sethi said.

One of the main drives behind this project is to allow visitors to glimpse the rich history and heritage that spans across India’s large territories in addition to making the traveling experience unique and more engaging for local and international visitors.

“Those who will compare Mumbai’s new airport to other airports simply in terms of its facilities and modern conveniences will be missing the point,” said Anand Mahindra, CMD of Mahindra Group, who visited the new terminal last month. “The builders intend to transform the experience of the traveler by recognizing that people, who are stuck in a place for hours, need not just physical comfort but intellectual stimulation. They recognize that with footfalls exceeding in the world’s largest museums, airports are the most under-exploited medium for injecting art into the bloodstream of a city.”

The art walk certainly goes beyond the norm of endless shopping outlets and will allow onlookers to engage with the past and potentially learn more about the host’s country.

Are airports the new museums?

The rich display and volume of works have effectively made Mumbai’s shiny new terminal more than just a redesign project, but a museum offering a kaleidoscope view of India’s rich artistic history and culture. However, unlike regular museums and art galleries, the only way to glance at the impressive Jaya He is to buy an airline ticket to Mumbai or plan your transit through there. In this sense, the endeavor is not as ‘public’ as it claims to be.

Nevertheless, despite the glaring restriction to this mammoth project, it is undeniable that its sheer existence will certainly win over onlookers as they gaze upon the rich layers that reflect Indian culture.

“Just think of the impact it will have,” said Sanjay Reddy, managing director of the joint venture that runs Mumbai’s international airport. “Frankly, it is not done for foreign nationals — it is done for Indians who I feel have learned to forget what the true beauty of India is…The concept of art in public space is a very serious issue because art cannot shrivel up and shrink into investment portfolios or disappear into godowns or galleries. It has to be in the public domain.”

Just in terms of footfall, the Jaya He museum has the potential to get more than 40 million visitors a year just in terms of the passenger capacity of the new terminal. In comparison, the world’s most visited museum, the Louvre in Paris, received 9.72 million visitors in 2012.

Aside from the odd souvenir shop, we don’t usually associate airports with a chance to learn about a new culture. However, multiple modern domestic and international airports around the world are starting to incorporate airport galleries and art installations to appeal to travelers in a more intellectual way.

London’s Heathrow Airport, for example, offers a “contemplative space” through its Terminal 5 Expo Fine Art Gallery while the Schipol International Airport in Amsterdam features a permanent exhibition by the Rijksmuseum that includes classic works by famous Dutch masters such as Rembrandt.

In terms of sheer size, diversity and potential, however, the new terminal in Mumbai is certainly breaking the mold.