Long Drawing Room (LDR), as the name suggests, is a long conference room of the Rashtrapati Bhavan where the President used to host the annual conferences of Governors/Lieutenant-Governors. This room is also used by the Hon’ble President to attend meetings with select groups and organizations. Situated near the Durbar Hall, the Long Drawing Room has two doors that open to the corridors of North Drawing Room and the South Drawing Room on either end.
Decorated in hues of turquoise green, the LDR is adorned with four huge mirrors that are hung on the sides of the two doors. Equipped with modern furnishings for the conferences and meetings, four LED Screens are also installed in this room.
Paintings are an integral part of the decorations of Rashtrapati Bhavan. Four paintings that were specially commissioned for Rashtrapati Bhavan during the time of its building included Fort St. George and the Madras Road, Fort William in Bengal, both by Oliver Hall, The Invention of Printing Press by Vivian Forbes and The Creation of Man. While the latter two are placed in the Rashtrapati Bhavan Library, the former oil on canvas paintings showcasing the Madras of 1754 and Hoogly River flowing with the background of Fort St. William, respectively, are displayed in the Long Drawing Room above the mantelpieces. In fact, it is noted in The Life of Sir Edwin Lutyens, that, “no two mantelpieces in the house are alike.”
