When reading the novel Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani, we planned an excursion to the Partition Museum, which opened in May 2023 on the grounds of Ambedkar University. The novel describes the dramatic consequences of the Partition of India in 1947 from the perspective of a twelve-year-old girl, and the museum was supposed to offer us eyewitness accounts with personal stories of flight and displacement. But when we arrived, we found that the museum was closed due to renovation work.
We quickly agreed on a suitable alternative nearby, the National Gandhi Museum. The original name Gandhi Memorial Museum describes the exhibition even better, where personal objects, newspaper articles, pictures and more are presented in order to honour Mahatma Gandhi and spread his life principles, for example in a one-week vacation course for students.
We learned a lot about spinning wheels, as many different models can be seen there – symbols of resistance against the dependence on imported fabrics and for the autonomy of the poor rural population. And what else did we learn? Never rely on the information about opening hours on the internet, but always call before a visit ;-)
14.06.2024 Renate Kraus-Joachim
