ARCHNA MATHARUfinds out what people say on the issue

Prof Prem Singh, Former Principal, Arts College
Freedom is an integral part of art. It is basic to any artist. Art is a creative expression and hence it should not be intervened into. An artist should be given enough freedom so that he can decide upon what he wishes to present through his paintings. As far as obscenity is concerned, erotic paintings are not a new phenomenon as testified by the Khajuraho temples. As long as the expression of the artist doesn’t hurt anyone, his work should not be checked.

Neelam Mansingh, Theatre Artiste
We live in a democracy and everybody has the right to freedom. Similarly every artist has the right to creative freedom and he should be allowed to exercise it. If you don’t like a piece of art, just don’t see it. People can always comment upon it but they cannot decide what is to be done. They cannot take extreme measures like lodging FIRs or burning paintings. That is totally against the norms of civil society.

Dr Amrit Bolaria, MC Councillor
Freedom is always given in the gamut of responsibility. If the responsibility is exploited or misused, then people have the right to question it. But people normally jump into conclusions without having complete knowledge. The same happened in the controversy involving M F Hussain. Some people indulge in it just for the sake of generating publicity.

Diwan Manna, Photographer
In every profession there is a code of conduct which demands a certain amount of responsibility. Every person should be careful of that while doing his job. The people should exercise some kind of tolerance. If they do not like something, they can express their views. But they should not resort to measures like filing cases.

Shiv Singh, Painter
If we look at our heritage, erotic paintings have always been a part of it. It is a part of nature and that is where an artist draws his inspiration from. If people have issues, they should not bother. Why is the artist being questioned on his freedom to paint what he feels? If we don’t like a house, that doesn’t mean we will destroy it. Every artist deserves the freedom of expression.