The picture of a feast at AIR, taken by Parimal Goswami

Be it at its earlier office at 1 Garstin Place or at its present building in Eden Gardens, All India Radio has always played a very important role in Calcutta’s cultural life. Although today its programmes have degenerated considerably in quality, Mahisasuramardini on early Mahalaya morning is still enjoyed by thousands of people of all ages.

This fact was brought home at an exhibition of photographs by Parimal Goswami held recently at Gaganendra Pradarshashala.

It was a trip back to the early days of AIR when the greatest artistes of stage, cinema and classical Indian music used to be regulars at its old building. The portrait gallery of those who visited AIR included Rabindranath, Abanindranath, Radhakrishnan, Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray, Birendra Krishna Bhadra and Saratchandra Pandit or Dadathakur.

Great artistes like Kamal Jharia, Angurbala and Rabindrasangeet singers Kanika Bandopadhyay and Suchitra Mitra as a teenager in a frock are all there. So are legendary radio artistes like Bela De of Mahila Mahal fame, the redoubtable Nilima Sanyal in a stylish ensemble, and Nirad C. Chaudhuri.

Most revealing are the group photographs of Nazrul with students, Pankaj Kumar Mallik broadcasting his popular music lessons and a luncheon party for the artistes. Those associated with AIR were all part of a large family. These photographs are part of an archive created by litterateur Himanish Goswami, Parimal Goswami’s son.

Photographers don’t wait for the “decisive moment” any longer, but whatever be the medium, each has its own set of rules. Nikhil Bhandari’s recent exhibition of photographs at Akar Prakar are not photographs as we know them. The prints on archival paper are entirely Bhandari’s own creation. After taking regular photographs, he projects these on the body of a nude woman. The shoot follows.

Unfortunately, instead of creating a certain mood or even a strong graphic quality, the photographs look like a chaos of light and shadows, occasionally with a woman’s breasts showing up in the frame. They titillate but serve no other purpose.