The Mahatma Gandhi statue installed at the National Salt Satyagraha Memorial at Navsari near Dandi has been recently rendered all the more resplendent with 3D projection mapping. With a captivating narrative of the life of Mahatma, and his influence on India’s Freedom Struggle, the projection mapping is yet another exploit of visual infotainment connecting Indian vibes about Mahatma.
Two Ahmedabad-based AV firms – design consultancy major Rhino Engineers and systems integrator Aura Bright Light India – came together to enliven this prideful project inaugurated on 2nd October, commemorating Mahatma’s birth anniversary.
SI Asia brings this project install in its Video of The Month.
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FACTFILE:
Project Name: 3D Projection Mapping & Fountain Show at National Salt Satyagraha Memorial, Dandi
Project Location: Dandi, Navsari, Gujarat
Project Owner: Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Limited (TCGL)
Project Segment: Infotainment
Project Consultant: M/s. Rhino Engineers Private Limited
Project Integrator: M/s. Aura Bright Light India Private Limited
Project Cost: ₹ 2.31 Crore (with five-year O&M)
Project Commencement date: 25th July 2022
Project Commission date: 2nd October 2022
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Mahatma- the very term is an ever-inspiring phenomenon. A saintly combination of many a thing – simplicity, leadership, ethos, peace and principles of life – all at their unparalleled best. One among the many manifestations of Mahatma’s famous non-violent agitation against the British oppression was the Salt Satyagraha- famously referred to as the Dandi March.
For those uninitiated Indians of the current generation, the Salt Satyagraha March or the Dandi March of 1930 as it is popularly known, is a landmark event in the history of Indian Freedom Struggle. As a part of the Civil Disobedience Movement against the British rule, 80 Satyagrahis led by Mahatma Gandhi marched 241 miles from Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad to the coastal village of Dandi, and broke the Salt Law imposed by the British. As was the symbolic nature of the event, it inspired millions of Indians to join the Freedom Struggle and brought worldwide attention to the movement. The Dandi March demonstrated the effectiveness of non-violent civil disobedience as a form of protest.
Ministry of Culture, Government of India – back in 2017 – decided to create a Memorial at the culmination point of the movement, and initiated the project under High Level Dandi Memorial Committee (HLDMC). The Committee with design contribution from IIT Mumbai, oversaw the development of an 15-acre Memorial the centrestage of which came up a 40-meter, A-shape steel frame that is topped by a 2.5-ton glass cube, representing the salt crystal. Illuminated with lasers, the crystal gives an impression of a pyramid atop the A.
Under the canopy of the A-shaped steel frame is the 5-meter statue of Mahatma (sculpted by noted sculptor Sadashiv Sathe) postured as if he is leading the March.
It is this statue that has been imparted with 3D projection mapping with a view to furthering the visitor attention as well as promoting the life and contributions of Father of the Nation.
Rhino Engineers – a familiar name in government-initiated infotainment projects, particularly in Gujarat – having been taken on board with the design of AV for the 3D projection mapping, (apart from sound system and aqua AV), worked on the essential details pertaining to the technical specifications and requirements of this project.
Working in close association with the project promoter/owner Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Limited (TCGL), Rhino also had to play instrumental in assisting/coordinating with various teams involved, which was crucial, given the short span of two months for completion.
According to Team Rhino, the job task involved incorporation of multiple technologies & there by challenges too. With a view to evolving an immersive visual appeal, and theatrical experience, the content team went for a chroma shoot with performing artists, in addition to digital graphics.
The job task required projectors of extremely high quality and specifications to give the best possible projected image. Nothing less than a 4K image could do justice to the event. It was, therefore, recommended to rope in high-brightness laser projectors, and Rhino chose the Digital Projection (E-vision laser 15000 WU) pure laser projectors that come with 15,000 lumens of brightness, apart from its ‘all-in-one’ tag package.
“We had to achieve a projection coverage of over 10 feet wide and 24 metres height which exhibits a dark, dull surface statue, Project Designer/Consultants, Narendra Naidu CMD of Rhino Engineers says. “That required a fleet of high-brightness projectors with unparalleled image quality,” he explains. “Digital Projection fits the bill perfectly with 15,000 lumens and WUXGA resolution, providing us with vibrant and lifelike images.”
Claimed to be the smallest and lightest on the market in its brightness range, the projectors are mounted on two specially constructed projection towers, and the units are protected by weather-proof enclosures from Aura Bright Light India.
In addition, Rhino Engineers designed fountain using the single lily nozzle inside the lake periphery, and synchronized with Neon light border of the lake boundary.
Project Integration firm Aura Bright Light India, which already had quite a few big projects to its credit, brought in its combined expertise as OEM for lighting and fountain equipment, and integration competence to realize the client perspective.
The AV gear thus roped in comprised:
• Two units of 15000 ISO Lumens of Digital Projection laser projectors (E-Vision Laser 15000 WU)
• Bose Arena AMU208 sound system
• 120 units of 36-Watt Warm White, and 500 meters of Neon Light
• 30 units of Nozzle of Lily, and 30 units of Single Jet
The consultant, and the integrator worked hard in tandem with the experts from TCGL to make the install truly inviting and immersive.
“We are delighted to be able to offer our expertise to ensure that the theme and concept are perfectly aligned during the execution,” says a happy Naidu. “This is a landmark project in terms of scale.”
