G20 Summit: Civilisational heritage meets cutting-edge technology at 'Mother of Democracy' exhibition

The story of the democratic ethos of India has been showcased at the G20 Summit venue through elements drawn from its rich civilisational heritage and cutting-edge digital technology. Titled 'Bharat: Mother of Democracy', the exhibition displays texts and images from ancient scriptures while portraying them on digital panels. It has been set up at Hall No. 14 of the Bharat Mandapam complex, where the G20 Summit got underway on Saturday.

Delegates offices have also been set up in the same hall, and many of them got an opportunity to see the tech-driven exhibition on ancient heritage of India.

Visitors are greeted by an artificial intelligence-generated 'avatar', depicting a woman wearing a traditional Indian dress.


"She gestures with a folded hand, and a visitor can then select one of the 16 global languages in which they want the avatar to greet them verbally," a source told PTI.

These languages include English, French Mandarin, Italian, Korean and Japanese, he added.

The exhibition showcases India's democratic traditions from the "Vedic period to the modern era", they said.

The textual content, along with its audio is presented in the "16 global languages". The history of the democratic ethos of India has been "summed up and retold through 26 interactive screens" arranged in multiple kiosks.

A huge digital screen has mounted which displays the title of the exhibition in multiple foreign languages.

The display also shows some of the iconic heritage landmarks of India, including Hawa Mahal of Jaipur, Taj Mahal of Agra, India Gate of New Delhi, Gateway of India of Mumbai, Sanchi Stupa of Madhya Pradesh , Meenakshi Temple of Tamil Nadu and Statue of Unity of Gujarat.

Images and texts drawn from ancient texts and canons of Hinduism such as Vedas, Buddhism and democratic values embedded in legacy of rules of ancient kings have been depicted thorough digital artworks.

The exhibition also celebrates the wisdom embedded in epic Ramayana and Mahabharata.

A replica sculpture of the Harappan girl, placed on a rotating elevated podium stands in the centre of the hall in the exhibition area.

The actual height of the object is 10.5 cm but the replica was created 5 feet in height and 120 kg in weight in bronze by noted sculptor Ram Sutar.

The election traditions of India has also been showcased right to the modern era when after Independence, the first general elections were held in 1951-52 down to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.