Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Museum of Indian History

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Museum of Indian History
FACT logo
Prospective plan of the museum
Location within Maharashtra
Established January 14, 2012 (2012-01-14)
Location Wadgaon Shinde Rd, Gulabhari Vasti, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Maharashtra
Coordinates 18°36′58″N 73°56′31″E / 18.6161241°N 73.9418829°E / 18.6161241; 73.9418829
Type Historical Museum
Owner FACT
Nearest parking On site (no charge)
Website www.factmuseum.com

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Museum of Indian History (CSMMIH) is a private historical museum constructed by Francois Gautier since January 14, 2012 under the banner of his not-for-profit organization, Foundation For Advancement of Cultural Ties (FACT). The first phase the museum was inaugurated by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and endorsed by Mrs Ajit Pawar and Nitin Gadkari.[1] In addition to various exhibits the museum also has a digital library on their website that has hundreds of books on Indian history and culture that are easily accessible and available for everyone.

Sri Sri Ravishankar with Francois Gautier at the inauguration of Museum

Layout

The museum complex right now has nine buildings, each housing a unique exhibition. A few of them are on Aurangzeb, based on his own firmans, on Maharana Pratap, the only Rajput who actually fought the Mughals and won in Haldighati.[2] The museum complex also has a temple dedicated to Bhavani Bharat. It is one of the only two temples in India dedicated to Mother India.[1]

The museum houses a series of exhibitions, for example, a miniature painting exhibition on the life of Shivaji, a 17th-century Indian king; an exhibition on Hindu tolerance throughout the ages; and another exhibition that 'scientifically refutes the Aryan invasion theory'.[1]

In July, 2013, the 14th Dalai Lama inaugurated a Tibetan pavilion showcasing an exhibition of text and pictures on the travails of people from Tibet over the last 60 years. An open exhibition on Dara Shikoh, was also inaugurated by Uddhav Thackeray.[3]

People appreciating the exhibits at Shivaji Hall, CSMMIH Museum
People appreciating the exhibits at CSMMIH Museum

The museum is open daily with free entrance. It gets about 100 visitors a day.[1] The future museum is proposed to cost about 10 crore rupees spread across an area of 100,000 square feet and will house 70 exhibitions with state of the art research and archival facilities. It will be in the shape of Swastika, an auspicious symbol in many Indic religions. It is scheduled to open in 2018.

Exhibits and exhibitions

Sr. No Exhibition Year
Permanent Exhibitions at CSMMIH Museum
1 Kashmiri Pandit Pavilion January 2015
2 Bangladesh minorities exhibition February 2015
3 Portuguese Inquisition exhibition

The first of its kind in the world, showing how the Inquisition tortured and killed, not only Hindus, but also Muslims and Jews in Goa.

 September 2016
4 Tipu Sultan exhibition December 2016
Moving or Temporary exhibitions at various places
5 Sikhs: The defenders of Indian Dharma

Inaugurated by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar from 22nd Jan - 7th Feb 08 at Bangla Sahib Gurudwara, New Delhi.

Visitors: 65,000.[4]

 January 2008
6 Naxalism: Threat to Unified Nation of India

First shown in Oslo, Norway, then in Delhi’s Habitat Centre.[5]
7 Exhibition on persecution of Minorities in Bangladesh

A traveling exhibition, all over India, including interior villages of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa. A total of 250,000 visitors attended the exhibition.[6]
8 Aurangzeb: as he was according to the Moghul records

The exhibition gathered much controversy in Chennai and was locked up but was soon brought out and will be traveling to Mumbai and Ahmedabad soon after being screened in Delhi (in March 2007), Pune (October 2007) and Chennai (March 2008). Till date 56,000 people visited the exhibition and has received a record critical acclaim from critics and common visitors.[7]
9 A Hero for Modern India: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj

The exhibition was centered around Shivaji, a 17th-century Indian king who fought with Mughals. The Bangalore leg of the exhibition has had the Chief Minister of the state asking to exhibit it in various schools and colleges in Karnataka.[8]

 March 2008
10 Terror Unleashed, An Exhibition on Kashmir

A traveling exhibition to Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune, Poland, Germany, Israel, England, Holland, Scotland, Interior villages in Maharashtra and the US Congress. As on date, 300,000 visitors have appreciated the exhibition.[9]
11 Ahilyabai Holkar the warrior queen

An exhibition on Ahilyabai Holkar screened in January 2010 in Pune, Indore and later Mumbai. She's often regarded as the Warrior Queen who rebuilt the Indian spiritual centers across the country.[10]
12 Maharana Pratap the indomitable.

The only Rajput who fought the Mughals and actually beat Akbar’s army in Haldighat. Portrays his simple life with his soldiers and how he respected his enemies’ women and children, cared for his subjects and encouraged arts.
13 Dara Shukoh the Sufi

Shah Jahan’s eldest (and heir apparent), a true Muslim, a Sufi and scholar translated the Upanishads and studied other religions. Chronicles the beheading of him by Aurangzeb to usurp the Mughal throne.

 July 2013
14 The History of Tibet

The beautiful history of Tibet and the struggle of its people since they were invaded by the Chinese in 1959

 July 2013
15 The Aryan Invasion that never was

Exhibition for 'scientifically proving' that the Aryan invasion theory which is taken as the foundation of Indian history, never happened and as the exhibition claims is still used by politicians and missionaries.
Law enforcement officials standing in front of the Shivaji Hall

Videos and documentaries produced by the museum

The museum has produced the following videos and documentaries:[11]

Criticism

Sanjay Sonawani, a Marathi writer and activist wrote a piece in Lokmat criticizing FACT for building a "shrine and a museum" over alleged deification of Shivaji.[12] Gautier dismissed the allegation as misinterpretation of facts.[13][14]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Why a Frenchman built a Bhavani & Shivaji museum | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". dna. 2012-02-13. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
  2. ↑ Gautier, François (2013-12-05). "SHIVAJI MAHARAJ MUSEUM OF INDIAN HISTORY, PUNE". FRANCOIS GAUTIER. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
  3. ↑ "Every Indian must practise Ahimsa, says Dalai Lama - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
  4. ↑ FACT (2008-01-23). "Archived: Sri Sri inaugurates exhibition on Sikhism". Archived from the original on 2009-03-26. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
  5. ↑ FACT. "Naxalism: Threat to Unified Nation of India". Archived from the original on 2009-03-26. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
  6. ↑ FACT. "Exhibition on persecution of Minorities in Bangladesh". Archived from the original on 2009-03-26. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
  7. ↑ "Aurangzeb, as he was according to Mughal Records". aurangzeb.info. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
  8. ↑ FACT. "A Hero for Modern India : Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj". Archived from the original on 2009-05-06. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
  9. ↑ "Terror Unleashed, An Exhibition on Kashmir".
  10. ↑ "Ahilyabai Holkar the warrior queen".
  11. ↑ "FACT - India". YouTube. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
  12. ↑ "कोण करत आहे शिवाजी महाराजांचे अपहरण?". sanjaysonawani.blogspot.in. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
  13. ↑ Gautier, Francois 2011, p. Gautier argued that "Shivaji is above castes, gurus and even that it does not matter, as he was a vibhuti, someone sent by Lord Shiva to protect India from her enemies". Gautier argues that, when Shivaji was born, Shah Jahan and later Aurangzeb were the most powerful emperors of the world and when Shivaji died at the age of 52, the Mughal empire had begun to crumble and would never recover..
  14. ↑ "The hijacking of Shivaji Maharaj by vested interests | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". dna. 2011-11-23. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.