World Environment Day Special: Time to save Mumbai’s mangroves

Team L&M

The mangroves of Mumbai are indispensable to the city – with the inevitable rise in sea levels, and the recent Cyclone Tauktae that fagged the west coast of the country, it is only more evident that mangroves form natural barriers against such extreme weather events.To create conversation around Mumbai’s rich biodiversity, a campaign – #MakeArtforMumbaisMangroves by Biodiversity by the Bay – took off on April 22 (Earth Day). Over the course of one-and-a-half months, it has reached over four million viewers, engaged over 240,000 audiences, and received over 80-plus submissions. A zine featuring select 50 artists is also in the works with the aim to be presented to Mumbai’s Environment Ministry and drive citizen action in favour of the city’s wetlands.

On World Environment Day today, the campaign has launched a virtual gallery to showcase the diverse artworks the movement has received from young creatives in support of Mumbai’s unique green ecosystems. The artistic intervention to raise awareness of Mumbai’s unique ecosystems began with the support of six leading artists including Nayan Shrimali and Vaishali Chudasama, Svabhu Kohli, Anjali Mehta, Mira Malhotra, Afrah Shafq and Michelle Poonawalla.

 

 

 

 

The participating artists have used various mediums and artistic expressions – from Koshy Brahmatmaj’s embroidery work and Aditi Mali’s comic strip art to Samya Ghosh’s use of playing with negative space and typography – the artworks highlight the important role mangroves play in maintaining the ecological balance of the city.

While some artists like Nitasha Nambiar and Mrinmayi Dalvi focus on how mangroves act as natural buffers against coastal erosion and fooding, others like Tanya Timble and Khyati Patkar paint a picture of them as the thriving home to countless species of fora and fauna.

The aspect of sustaining the livelihoods of Mumbai’s Koli communities, who are dependent on the mangroves for their survival, has been vividly captured by artists like Gary Curzai and Niyosha Bhagat. A need for better urban planning to tackle the inevitable rise in sea levels is dramatically displayed by illustrators like Harmeet Rahal and Sid G. The campaign is supported by well-known artists like Rohan Dahotre and Parag Kamal Kashinath Tandel.

For more, visit MMM’s virtual art gallery: https://ministryofmumbaismagic.com/