Among the most popular museums in the country is Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS). Built in 1922, the institute — which showcases miniatures, sculptors and various other kinds of artefacts -- also houses the city’s first children’s museum. Conceptualised in 2014, this section is curated for and by children. The newly-built structure is located amidst a picturesque thicket of trees and merges seamlessly with the surroundings.
Called the Children’s Heritage Museum, it hosts film screenings, storytelling sessions, poetry clubs, panel discussions and dance and theatre performances to educate those below 18 about Indian art and culture. It also holds exhibitions curated by children from varied socio-economic backgrounds. Designed by architect Rahul Mehrotra, the museum’s interior shares space with mango and palm trees, their top branches rising through the ceiling. The interiors are also flooded with sunlight. The CSMVS has created an open and experimental platform with exhibits that seek to draw children’s attention to art and architecture — by taking them out of the classroom and away from textbooks.
Paul Noronha