A new museum in Mumbai is a mix of the quirky and curious, where the illusionary exhibits can teach us a life lesson or two
Pics/Atul Kamble
The dictionary defines paradox as a logically self-contradictory statement. One example the dictionary cites is: ‘Being cruel to be kind’. We can think of our own: ‘Be hot to be cool’. Hot it was, as one entered the new Paradox Museum, that opened to the public in Mumbai yesterday (Friday). Never mind Mumbai’s merciless October mercury, which unfortunately is no illusion, this SoBo venue is a cool new addition to the city’s experiential entertainment landscape.
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The Paradox Museum is located at Fort, a stone’s throw away from Alexandra Girls High School and the Bombay Gymkhana Club, in Shreeniwas House building. The Museum houses illusionary installations and rooms. There is a QR code next to each illusory exhibit and outside the Fun Rooms, so that the visitor fully comprehends the technique and rationale behind different illusory installations. While science, art and psychology mix, it has a philosophical message overall: Just like in life, in this museum too, things may never be what they seem.
Open Monday to Sunday, 11am to 8pm onwards AT Shreeniwas House, 27, H Somani Marg, behind Bombay Gymkhana, Azad Maidan. Time Children (3 to 12 years old), Rs 550 + GST; adults (12 years old and above), Rs 590 + GST; senior citizens (60 years and above), Rs 550 + GST; foreigners, Rs 890 + GST tickets paradoxmusueummumbai.com and other leading ticket booking platforms log on to @mumbai_paradoxmuseum (For more information on visiting hours, tickets, events and special offers)
What’s for lunch?
That’s a table for two or one in this case, or as the signboard said: Lunch has been served. The table was hungry as it gobbled up the body of Chief Operating Officer (COO) Paradox Museums, Nadia Roditi, leaving only the head on the plate. Speaking about the Head on a Platter, “The operative word here is curiosity. Visitors will be curious to know how this happened.”
No slouch couch
Here, you merge with the sofa design by literally burrowing into the sofa. The point is to defy the limits of space and shape. Two volunteers showed that one’s upper body seemed to be sticking out of that sofa, while the other’s legs were visible with the other half nowhere to be seen. This gave couch potatoes a new definition altogether. This was near the starting point of the 55 paradox-themed exhibits on display.
Your move, please
Chess is the buzzword, with India winning the Chess Olympiad in the Open and Women’s section at the recent Olympiad in Budapest (Hungary). Here, the clone table in the Museum gave the illusion that at least four persons were playing, the reality is that it was one person. While chess is as cerebral as they come, the illusion proves the chessboard of life can be tricky, and unlike the game, things are not always black and white.
Real, unreal
The Reversed Room, which is one of 15 immersive rooms, is best viewed by reversing your mobile phone. The explanation is fairly straightforward: “This is a play on the perception of reality,” said the museum representative. It may also translate into a life lesson: the reality is the same, it is how you look at it that makes the difference. Sometimes, philosophy can be fun and because we are in the Reversed Room, let’s reverse that and say: fun can be philosophical too.
Well, that’s swell
All’s well that ends well at this Infinity Well, which seems to be impossibly deep. This though was just 20 cm deep and there were mirrors used to create an effect of great depth. Harris Douros, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Paradox Museums, stated this, “…is to challenge your understanding and provide fresh perspectives on reality.”
Fact file
The Paradox Museum is located in several major cities like Paris, Miami, Stockholm, and has had recent openings in London, Shanghai, and Berlin, with the London space having opened in July 2024.
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