Shagun Verma and Shivani Srivastava
Lucknowites took a stroll through India’s cinematic, historical and patriotic memory with BIOSCOPE-2: Gumnam Hai Koi, an exhibition of rare film posters at Kala Srot Art Gallery, Aliganj. The collection featured posters of films such as Sohrab Modi’s Pukar (1939) and Ashok Kumar-starrer Kangan, alongside iconic film dialogues and lobby cards bearing handwritten censorship changes. Tiwari shared how 25-year-old filmmaker and screenwriter Khwaja Ahmad Abbas wrote to Mahatma Gandhi in 1939, urging him to give cinema a chance to change his perspective. ” He also recalled how Ram Rajya (1943) is believed to be the only film Gandhi ever watched.
“Many of us know the films and the stars, but there are extraordinary stories behind them which even committed film lovers may never have encountered,” shared Usmani during the session. Inaugurated in the presence of veteran actor and theatre personality Atul Tiwari and filmmaker and film historian Karan Bali, the exhibition offered a glimpse into a bygone era of Indian cinema, bringing forgotten stories and the magic of the silver screen back to life. Curated from the personal collection of Lucknowite Suboor Usmani, IRS, a collector, curator and film archivist, the exhibition brought together rare film posters tracing Indian cinema from the 1930s onwards. From black-and-white prints and hand-painted illustrations to maximalist colours, digital posters and meme posters, the gallery walls became a time machine for cinema buffs. Beyond hobnobbing with fellow cinema enthusiasts, visitors were also seen participating in trivia and quizzes that offered a window into lesser-known film anecdotes. The exhibition concluded with a session featuring Atul Tiwari, Karan Bali, Suboor Usmani and Kanak Rekha Chauhan on the panel, taking the audience back in time. He read an excerpt from the letter that read, “Give this little toy of cinema a little of your attention and bless it with a smile of tolerance.