Created to celebrate India’s 60th year of independence, this sculpture stands in a recently reclaimed public park in the central business district of Mumbai, a city where both public art and space for public relaxation are rare. Its designers researched a number of key Indian freedom fighters for potential inspiration. Mahatma Gandhi’s ‘charkha’ (spinning wheel) was chosen as a symbol of a modern India which is dynamic, self-reliant and dedicated to sustainability and non-violence, binding together the threads of a diverse society under a common philosophy. This sense of ‘unity in diversity’ is reinforced by the fact that no two components of the galvanised tubular steel sculpture are identical.

Source: Aga Khan Trust for Culture