UK’S EMINENT ARTIST, SCULPTOR AND POET B MOHAN NEGI IS NO MORE

Uttarakhand’s extremely popular, highly reverred and adored painter, artist, sculptor and an eminent Garhwali poet B. Mohan Negi left for his heavenly abode leaving a great vaccum in the world of art, painting and garhwali poetries of Uttarakhand. Having reddish colured shining beard with a Himachali cap over his head affable, sober and jolly in nature B. Mohan Negi was born in 1952 in a remote village of Garhwal, called Punderi at Manyarsiun in Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand.

Hailing from a modest family back ground he took his education in village school and later on shifted to Pauri township after being employed in post and Telegraph department. He was a born artist and have drawn highly colourful thousands of events alongwith the poeteries in the regional and national newspapers of the country, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. When a prominent journalist of Garhwal, Uttarakhand was murdered by the then liquor mafia of Uttarakhand during the eighties B. Mohan Negi’s powerful posters with poems published in Jansatta and Amarujaala played a pivotal role in mobilising myriad number of people to fight against the then administration to demand the penalisation of the hardened criminals who were finally brought to justice.

An iconic poetic and artistic personality of Uttarakhand B. Mohan Negi was more recognised nationally as a famous artist of fascinating posters and Garhwali poetries than in Uttarakhand. According to the eminent literature historian Bhishma Kukreti B. Mohan Negi created many small poems (Chhitga) in Garhwali. Most of his Garhwali poems are sharp satire in nature. His phrases are common and easily understandable. He ridiculed and criticized hypocrisy in politics, administration and society in majority of his poems and posters.

In the sad demise of B. Mohan Negi Uttarakhand and the country has lost a self made artist of an outstanding callibre and regional poet of extraordinary intellectuality who was a great asset to the society and inspirational force for the present and incoming generation, at large. Uttarakhand Journalists Forum expresses its sincere and heartfelt tributes to this great personality and urges upon the government and the chief minister of Uttarakhand Trivendra Singh Rawat to name an Art College of the state in his name and introduce a library of his entire works for the benefit of students and budding regional poets and artists to follw suit in future.

SUNIL NEGI