Check in at Mumbai airport, check out the artefacts

With 5,500 pieces, the art museum at Mumbai's T2 is one of Asia's largest public art projects. Ahead of World Heritage Day, a walk through its mural-filled corridors

- RANJITA GANESAN

Unless they miss a flight or two, many of the 50 million that pass through Mumbai International Airport each year are not likely to take in the 80,000-sq-ft of art contained within Terminal 2.

Though it is among Asia's largest-scale public art projects, the 5,500 installations are laid quietly over the terminal's walls, luggage belts, and check-in counters.

It takes a 17-member team to look after the murals, spread out across 3.2 kilometers. The caretakers, equipped with special instructions on how to handle materials as diverse as gold leaf, terracotta and papier-mâché, have had to protect pieces from many threats in the last 10 years, especially dust, pigeons, and free-willed toddlers.

Requiring round-the-clock surveillance are a few Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)-protected figurines, some dating back to the 11th century, embedded in a cave-like display.