Guardian Media & Entertainment, a leading company that creates innovative attractions and theme parks, has announced the completion of an immersive new museum in Maharashtra, India, which explores the country’s military history.
This first-of-its-kind museum is situated on a Military School campus in the town of Chandrapur. The project was completed for the Maharashtra state government and was the brainchild of state minister Sudhir Mungantiwar. Guardian Media & Entertainment, a leading museum and theme park designer and creator in India, was brought in to design and create the museum.
Land, sea and air
There are five main zones in the Military Might museum, with a dedicated gallery for each of India’s military services. Firstly, the army section has several different exhibits and experiences, including a battle tank simulator in which two visitors can take on the role of driver and gunner.
Meanwhile, in the air force gallery, guests can see working aircraft models. These are displayed with real wartime objects such as rocket launchers and a MiG aircraft cone, donated by the Indian Air Force.
In the navy gallery, there is a realistic submarine simulator. This experience recreates a scenario where the commodore has to take a deep dive crash into the sea for protection from enemy aircraft.
In addition, the new museum also includes the highly immersive Kargil Experience. This walkthrough brings to life four of the bloodiest battles fought, recreated with details from the 1999 conflicts. Here, working and firing models of the Bofors and other guns are created, with projection mapping of simulated blasts on various mountain peaks.
The scenes have been designed to make visitors feel as if they themselves are in the war zone. Exhibition galleries have been designed for maximum impact with a mix of theming, authentic artefacts and projection mapping technology.
The new museum also features many interactive games for children, designed to provide information about the Indian armed forces in an age-appropriate way.
Paying tribute
Finally, visitors will discover the ‘Meeting with Dr Abdul Kalam’ gallery. Dr Kalam was a popular president of India, serving from 2002 to 2007. In a twelve-minute show, two large screens display a short biography and then, using cutting-edge robotic technology, a full-motion humanoid of Dr Kalam has been created to give an inspirational speech for three minutes. This show is the first of its kind in India.
Guardian Media & Entertainment provides design and creation services, including architectural services, theming, technology design and integration, and media for a variety of attraction types. It also manufactures a complete range of show control equipment for all its attractions.
Sanjay Dabke, the director of Guardian Media & Entertainment and his team of about 100 designers and engineers worked for 18 months to create this armed forces museum, which is one of the first immersive museum experiences in the country.
Dabke’s team has worked on more than eighty projects, ranging from world heritage sites to theme parks, like Ramoji Film City and Essel world in India.
The Military Might museum will open its doors for visitors soon.