IHM
*Indian History Museum
A museum for Indians
Throughout their history, India has faced onslaughts,
right from thefirst invasion by Alexander the
Great, continuing with Muslim onslaughts, probably
the greatest genocide humanity has known, till
the European invasions, which were less ferocious,
but probably even more damaging to the Hindu psyche.
The FACT museum would unveil the rich heritage
from Vedic ages to the current day and India Tomorrow.
Also for the first time atrocities committed in
India against Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims and Christians
would be presented.
Time To Act
No nation can progress unless it faces squarely
its own history. However, Indian history has been
NEGATED in a thousand ways: gross, clever, outrageous,
subtle, so that in the end, the minds of Indians
are so confused and muddled, that nobody knows
anymore where the truth is. IT IS TIME THAT WE
LOOK FRANKLY AT INDIAN HISTORY AND IT IS FOR THIS
PURPOSE THAT THE iNDIA MEMORY MUSEUM WILL BE BUILT
A prestigious board
Prof A.K Dass, Director Lal
Bahadur Shastri Museum
Mr. Chowdury, Director National
Museum
Anupa Pande, Director Institute,
National Museum
Dr OP Kejariwal, Director Nehru
National Memorial
Dr Gurpreet Maini, Historian
Punjab Library Centre
Dr Kireet Joshi, Chairman Indian
Council of Philosophical Research
SP Gupta, Chairman, Indian Archaeological
Society
Dr VS Bhatnagar, Fellow, Indian
Institute of Advanced Study
Five Projects are underway
- An exhibit on the plight of the Kashmiri Pandits,
which has travelled all over the world and has
been shown in Capitol Hill, Washington, resulting
in a resolution passed by the US Congress on
the Human Rights plight of the Kashmiri Pandits?
- Hindu Holocaust under Aurangzeb by Professor
Bhatnagar
- Foreigners who made India their own, by Professor
Kejariwal (First 2 projects: Annie Besant and
Sister Nivedita)
- Persecutions in Bangladesh of the Christian,
Buddhist and Hindu minorities.
- The great saga of Shivaji, by Professor Bhatnagar
The Concept
Each project comprises of one main historian
and one researcher. They both have one year to
complete the project and come-up with a physical
exhibition, which will travel in India and around
the world, then will be housed in a History museum
in Pune.
The Budget
We are searching for one sponsor per project.
- Each historian is paid 20.000 Rs month
- the researcher, 10.000 Rs
- Monthly expenses 6500 Rs
- 5 lakhs are allotted per project for buying/reproducing
physical exhibits. Coordinator for all the projects
(Prof. Dass): 20.000 Rs monthly.
- TOTAL COST OF ONE PROJECT = APPR. 12 LAKHS.
We are looking at 50 projects over 5 years
The Museum
- Why Pune ? Because it is the birthplace of
Shivaji; because it is in Central India and
accessible to all Indians; because it is city
where people are proud to be Indians. There
should be an international competition for its
conception and the best design will be selected.
It should be a monument of beauty, with gardens
and fountains, so that parents can bring their
children, to look at their own history – and
feel good about it. It will give India a new
pride, a new sense of well being, an impetus
for the future.
- TOTAL COST OF THE PROJECT = 200 CRORES
IHM was started in 2003 by François Gautier,
a French journalist and writer who has been covering
India and South Asia as a political correspondent
for 3 decades. He noticed over the years that
Indian history has never been told properly, nor
India’s achievements. Hence when Francois Gautier
got a journalism prize (Natchiketa award of excellence
in journalism) by the Prime Minister of India,
he used the prize money to start FACT, Foundation
Against Continuing Terrorism, whose ultimate goal
is an Indian History Museum.
Defining the research
goals of the Vedic Tolerance Museum:
A path breaking museum, which will for the fist
time research Indian history in a frank and forthright
manner. It will start by defining the idea of
Dharma and depict in a virtual manner all that
was great in Vedic history (and has been depreciated
and post-dated by Western and Indian historians).
It will conduct researches on how this Great Dharmic
tradition survived all the successive onslaughts
and even assimilated some of the invaders. We
will finish by researching some of the problems
which India faces today (Ayodhya, Pakistan, Afghanistan
etc) and by projecting India as a great spiritual,
cultural and industrial power .
- The museum shall project the very spirit of Dharma with all its integrity to the common people.
- There shall be emphasis on the research of philosophy and practice of tolerance.
- It will not cast aspersions on other organized or non-organized belief systemin any manner.
- It will interpret Dharma as a timeless cultural manifestation and encourage further exploration of its roots and ramifications.
- There shall be no compromise in presenting trials and travails of the Indian civlization in its long journey in time.
- Museum’s research shall depend upon the textual tradition supplemented by oral tradition and recorded history.
- Museum shall present authentic research materials and shall adhere to the historically correct position without going into controversy.
- For all purposes its researches will be within the parameters of the Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads, epics and other texts. The scope of the museum collection, presentation, research and education shall be around Hinduism as the unique cultural tradition, historical position and a great civilization.
- The research activities of the museum shall take into consideration tangible and intangible heritage.
- The concept of the museum shall be within the scope of the growth, development and ramification of Dharma and its struggle.
- The research concept should invariably focus on the parameter of tolerance as a philosophy and practice from ancient time as a part of the Indian civilization.
- The spirit of tolerance should be juxtaposed against the intolerance and violence as experienced and witnessed over the period of time in India.
- The concept of the museum must lead to a message to the work.
François Gautier
|