The 70ftx30ft gallery, which hosted exhibitions, seminars, conventions, lecture series, workshops et al till August 1995, is currently being used as a godown for students' termite-ridden dissertations and portfolios on the pretext that the response from the artists' fraternity is very disappointing. Murlidhar Nangre, Director of Art, Government of Maharashtra, says the gallery's location on the first floor deters bookings as artistes find it inconvenient to lug their works upstairs.

If the justification is less than convincing, a recent proposal by Nangre to the state government recommending a decrease in the gallery's rent to induce bookings gives little reason to cheer. The gallery -- situated on the first floor of the J J School of AppliedArt building near Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus - was opened in 1984 by noted painter Baburao Sadvelkar, who was the Director of Art with the state government from 1976 to 1985. Opened primarily for the benefit of students and artists who could not afford to exhibit their work at the premier art addresses in the city, the gallery was rented out for a modest Rs 500 per day. With a living room and studio attached, it was an ideal place for painters from outside Mumbai to both work and reside in.

``The gallery hosted at least 15 big exhibitions during my tenure besides group exhibitions put up by painters,'' Sadvelkar told Express Newsline. It has also been the venue of prestigious exhibitions like the British Council's `Exhibition of Colonial Art', an exhibition by the Lalit Kala Akademi and the Regional Art Centre. But the gallery, which Sadvelkar turned into a successful venture, was inexplicably viewed as a white elephant by his successor, Nangre. ``Sadvelkar had the time to bring exhibitions to thegallery. The work load has increased a lot now. Yet I try my best to do all I can,'' Nangre argues. He also claims to have invited the Bombay Art Society to hold exhibitions at the gallery on several occasions. ``But the society has not responded,'' he says. Ravi Mandlik, secretary of the society, however, told Express Newsline that he has ``no idea of any such invitations''.

Nangre adds: ``The gallery at JJ is situated on the first floor and the artists probably find it difficult to carry their paintings up there.'' Why then does the Y B Chavan Art Gallery attract artists despite its location on the fourth floor of the Y B Chavan Pratishthan? Nangre has no answer.

The Pragatipathavar Maharashtra was the last exhibition to be held at the gallery in August 1995; at least Nangre cannot remember if there were any others after that.

It was reported then that Nangre had shifted the exhibition's venue from the gallery to the institute's assembly hall despite vehement protests from students and theexhibition's organisers. Though Nangre refutes the charge, he admits that his department has failed to give the gallery the right kind of publicity. ``We have wasted a lot of time,'' he says. ``We use it to store equipment like panels required for exhibitions... the gallery is not being used for what it should be used,'' he admits.

About a month ago, Nangre submitted a proposal to the state government's Department of Higher and Technical Education, which he says should make the gallery a viable proposition for prospective clients. He has recommended that the rent be slashed from Rs 500 per day to Rs 100. ``It would take another month for the government to clear the proposal,'' says S B Chindarkar, Deputy Secretary, Art Education.

Only time will tell whether that is just another bureaucratic cliche or a legitimate time frame for the gallery's revival.