Kochi remembers the Piccasso of India

KOCHI: Walking barefoot, with his silver mane, he cut a saintly appearance even as his works sparkled with fame and controversies. The legend will live on through his immortal works. Unpredictable were the ways of the man who led a life on his own terms. Maqbool Fida Husain lived life to the lees enjoying his passion for colours and forms which kept him young even in his mid nineties. Just as the whole world remembers the genius and his universal idioms, Kochi too has treasured memories of the great artist. His sketches and paintings adorn the walls of a few hotels, homes and in the hands of art collectors. M F Husain was in Kochi in 2000 for Manaveeyam, the cultural programme organised by the then LDF government. Amitabh Kant took him on a sightseeing tour of Kerala. He feasted his eyes on all things beautiful.They inspired his brush to capture the essence of Kerala. The frames were made into a book, 'Kerala God's Own Country' with text by Shashi Tharoor. Most images capture the rustic charm and wilderness of the land. His paintings done during that time on kathakali and backwaters are with a few gallerists in the city. "I have  displayed an M F Husain for a show on masters," says Dilip Narayanan who runs Gallery OED. Anoop Skaria of Kashi Art Gallery who had bought two Husains at a charity show in Bangalore sold it when Husain was in demand. "Edgar Pinto of Old Harbour Hotel bought the screen prints from me," says Anoop.M F Husain soaked in the beauty of the serene backwaters lined by boats and Chinese fishing nets in Fort Kochi. The aroma of the biryani at Kayees Hotel beckoned him where he tickled his palate and palette and presented the joint with two works on the essence of Fort Kochi through which the memory of this Qatar citizen will live on.Recalls Ajayakumar, principal of Fine Arts College, Thiruvananthapuram, "I was in the jury which selected Husain for the Raja Ravi Varma Puraskaram." Though the Kerala Government honoured Husain with the award in 2007 when he was 92, it was mired in legal arguments and could not be received by the great soul.