Padma Shri awardee cleans defaced mural at LB Nagar flyover
HYDERABAD: Disturbed by posters and gutka stains defacing a mural created in his honour, renowned folk musical artiste and Padma Shri awardee Darshanam Mogilaiah on Wednesday cleaned the artwork himself near the LB Nagar police station.
Mogilaiah said he was deeply hurt to see posters pasted over the artwork, leaving it unsightly. The Telangana government had recognised his contribution to folk music by featuring him in artworks on flyovers at LB Nagar, Begumpet and Secunderabad, he added.
“While travelling by bus from Turkayamjal to LB Nagar, I noticed that my mural had been defaced. It looked ugly, with gutka and pan stains. Without a second thought, I decided to clean it myself,” Mogilaiah said.
As the artiste began removing posters and scrubbing stains off the pillar, a large number of people gathered at the flyover. “I requested everyone not to damage the beauty of the artwork and to ensure it is kept clean,” he said.
A video of Mogilaiah cleaning the pillar went viral on social media on Wednesday, drawing widespread attention. Several users criticised the civic authorities for neglecting public artworks, which were undertaken and are maintained at a cost of crores of rupees.
Mogilaiah, also known as Kinnera Mogilaiah, is among a handful of folk artistes whose portraits have been installed on city flyovers as part of a government initiative to celebrate cultural icons.
