The Bihar Museum Biennale 2021 kicks off on March 22

Imagine being able to take a look at the most exciting artefacts from some of best known museums in India, without having to go from one city to another. The Bihar Museum Biennale 2021 makes that possible. Anjani Kumar Singh, the Nodal Officer of the Bihar Museum and Advisor to the Chief Minister of Bihar, who conceived the idea along with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, calls it the first-ever museum biennale in the world. “The idea was to involve all the Indian museums and get them to bring their artefacts, so people know the strength of our museums. The difference between this and any other biennale is, here the museums are participating, while in the others it is the artistes who participate,” says Singh. Singh feels that a lot of people do not know enough about India’s museums. Each has its own history, story and a stunning range of display. The biennale was planned for last March, but the pandemic made it impossible to go ahead with it. This year they decided to go ahead with it in a virtual avatar, she says. Though largely online, it will also have a physical version at the Bihar Museum in Patna. The hybrid biennale will take place between March 22 and 28.