At Gandhi National museum, books on the Mahatma gather mass appeal
Express News Service
New Delhi: London-based hotelier Shankar Chacko didnât know it was the Mahatmaâs birthday, until a movie with a message on Gandhigiri brought him to the Gandhi National Museum at Rajghat on Monday.
Chacko says he had heard about the museum earlier but decided to visit it only after he watched Lage Raho Munnabhai.
 |
As he spent the next two hours scanning the relics at the museum, he knew he was not the only one enchanted with Gandhi.
Museum officials say, during the last month, the crowd has been âbubbling with enthusiasmââ, a fact which is also testified by sales at the book counter there.
Books on the Mahatma worth Rs 72,000 were sold last month and on Monday, the counter made a sale of Rs 5,000. This, when the books are generally very low-priced.
âA decade ago, it would have taken us a year to make such high sales,â says museum deputy director Dr Anil Dutt Mishra.
He says the enthusiasm and interest about Gandhi and his philosophy is evident, especially among youth.
They are now willing to understand the Mahatma, he adds.
The museum had as many as 790 visitors on Monday.
And by afternoon, the number had crossed a thousand, says Mishra.
âThe number might be 2,000 by closing time, 30 per cent more than last year,ââ says Mishra.
While busloads of children thronged the museum during the day, Mishra has just one complaint.
âItâs nice to receive so many visitors but very few come and spend some time at the museum,ââ he says.
âThey come, take a round and leave.â
URL:
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=203552