Sanskriti Express brings back the memories of Rabindranath Tagore

The train with five coaches is an exhibition on wheels, which features Tagore’s legacy in literature, music and painting.

The Indian railways had launched the exhibition in May at Howrah earlier this year.
The first coach, Jibon Smriti exhibits photographs of the Nobel-prize winner with his family members and his experiences at Shantiniketan. With Rabindrasangeet in the background, visitors can reminiscence maestro’s childhood through the photographs.

The second coach Gitanjali features his Nobel-prize winning work and other songs, verses and poems. Of particular interest is a display of the covers of Gitanjali published in various languages such as Dutch, Armenic, Pustu, and Turkish. The original citation by the Swedish Academy for the Nobel-prize can also been seen.

Coach Muktodhara features short stories, novels, dramas, prose and essays. Also on display are letters to Mahatma Gandhi, Romain Rolland and to Lord Chelmsford renouncing his knighthood following the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

A touching letter written by Tagore to his associate Amiya Chakravarthy was also on display. Tagore wrote, “A very close relative of mine on whom I was very dependent from childhood committed suicide. With her suicide it felt as though the earth had moved away from under my feet and the light had gone out from the sky. I realised gradually that life must be seen through the window of death as the inevitable way to truth”.

The Chitralekha coach displays paintings, portraits and sketches by Tagore, along with paintings by other artists such as Nandlal Bose, Sudhir Khastagir etc.

The last coach Sesh Katha features photographs of the last days of Tagore's life.
Theatre artist Arundhati Nag welcomed the exhibition at the Cantonment Railway Station. The exhibition is open to visitors till October 28 between 10 am and 7 pm