reimagine II

 

The second edition of Sarmaya’s reimagine series takes us on a journey into the studios and minds of seven contemporary artists working in different genres and mediums, who have interpreted and re-imagined objects from our collection to tell us stories in their unique and expressive styles.

reimagine is Sarmaya’s visual adda where we welcome parallel conversations, interpretations and ideas. It’s always exciting to bring together new perspectives and voices as a part of the larger conversation around history and popular culture. The reason we call it an ‘adda’ or a space for experimentation and dialogue is because this time around the objects from the collection have travelled to artist studios in different parts of the world, carrying their stories and history with them.

With these artists, we are going to travel from Doha to Kabul, from Arabic patterns to a rare indigenous embroidery technique, from the sun-kissed coast of Goa to the Bombay monsoons and from France to the Minakshi Sundareshvara Temple in Madurai.

 

Richa Kashelkar

 

“𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐈 𝐬𝐚𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐨, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐲 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐰𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐜𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐣𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜 (𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲). 𝐈 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐨, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐡𝐨𝐰; 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜.” – Richa Kashelkar

As a part of the second edition of ‘re-imagine’ series, artist Richa Kashelkar adds a celebratory touch to the sombre backdrop of this Gobindram and Oodeyram gem.

‘Music Wajuntri’ is a photograph of a group of 6 musicians where the musician in the centre is carrying a drum set while the rest are playing flutes. Gobindram Oodeyram was the pre-eminent studio of Jaipur for over a century. Begun in the 1880s and operational till the 1970s, this studio and postcard publishing company photographed people from all walks of life, from maharajas to musicians to the common people.

Surprisingly, the names ‘Gobind Ram’ and ‘Oodey Ram’ hardly ever appear in any of the published histories or exhibition catalogues of the time. This is probably because the photographers’ main interest was the city of Jaipur and its nearby ancient habitations like Amer and Galta. The studio also excelled in portraiture, and they took extensive studio photographs of the dancers, actresses and musicians of Jaisalmer.

Object re-imagined:
‘Music Wajuntri’, Gobindram & Oodeyram, c. 1880-1890 © Sarmaya Arts Foundation

Abdul Kareem

 

“𝐀𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐬𝐲𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲, 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐮𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐫. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐥𝐲𝐩𝐡𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐩 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐲. 𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 ‘𝐧𝐮𝐬𝐫𝐚𝐭’ 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐫𝐞-𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐮𝐦𝐩𝐡𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐑𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐚 𝐒𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐡𝐢 𝐒𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞.” – Abdul Kareem

Calligraphy Artist, Abdul Kareem pays homage to the zeal of Razia Sultan through his interpretation of this rare coin for the second edition of re-imagine series. Razia Sultan was the daughter of Iltutmish of the Mamluk dynasty, and the first woman monarch of this land.

Minted in 1236, the year she was crowned monarch, this coin is struck in the name of Iltutmish. It is distinguished by the coins of her father because it features the word ‘nusrat’, meaning ‘assistance’. This indicates that the Sultan was far from secure in her reign in those early days.

Object re-imagined:
Razia Sultan, Silver Tanka (obverse), double die struck, c. 1236 CE © Sarmaya Arts Foundation

 

“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐚 𝐒𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐚 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 ‘𝐧𝐮𝐬𝐫𝐚𝐭’ 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 ‘𝐑𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐚-𝐮𝐝-𝐝𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐲𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧’ 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐲. 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐳𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐒𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧, 𝐚 𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐚.” – Abdul Kareem

Razia Sultan was far from secure in her reign during her early days as the monarch of Delhi Sultanate. Later, somewhere in mid-1237, she issued coins bearing her name, ‘Razia-ud-duniya waddin’, and these coins pledge allegiance to the Caliph. She did not wear a veil after being crowned and took the title of Sultan instead of Sultana.

Her coins are rare because her reign was short, but what differentiates this one is the fact that it reflects a period of transition. It is distinguished by the coins of her father because it features the word ‘nusrat’, meaning ‘assistance’.

Object re-imagined:
Razia Sultan, Silver Tanka (reverse), double die struck, c. 1236 CE

Neha Sahai

 

Ayesha Kapadia

 

Saim Ghani

“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐈 𝐬𝐚𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐣𝐞𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐰𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐩. 𝐈 𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐰𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐒𝐡𝐢𝐯𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐨𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐢 𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐯𝐚𝐫𝐚 𝐓𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐮𝐩! 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐯𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞, 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐦𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝!”- Saim Ghani

Saim Ghani’s interest in designing sets and virtual spaces is evident in the style he re-imagines architectural marvels in his work as a digital mix-media creator. In this quirky and luminous piece, he combines his interest in space design and fashion and interprets the temple jewels of the Minakshi Sundareshvara Temple. Dedicated to Lord Shiva known locally as Sundereshwar (the handsome god) and Minakshi or Parvati (the fish-eyed goddess), the temple at Madurai was built under the patronage of Tirumala (1623-60), one of the Nayaka rulers.

One of the early references to John P. Nicholas is that his pictures were displayed at the Madras Photography Society’s job exhibition in 1858 and the Calcutta International Exhibition much later in 1884. His Madras studio opened around 1861 and was still operational as late as 1905, although the photographer is believed to have left India sometime in the 1890s.

SWIPE RIGHT to see the entire piece re-imagined by Saim Ghani and the original photograph from the Sarmaya collection.

 

Arshi Ahmadzai

“𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐈 𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬, 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐛𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐊𝐚𝐛𝐮𝐥, 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞. 𝐌𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐢, 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐡 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐢𝐝 𝐚 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐛, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐟𝐠𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧, 𝐧𝐨𝐰. 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞, 𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐮𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞. 𝐒𝐨 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐧, 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐟𝐠𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐥𝐞.” – Arshi Ahmadzai

Visual artist Arshi Ahmadzai creates this intricate and cathartic piece Qissaha-e-Qutub Minar, using ink and bead embroidery on Manjarpat fabric. She described her work on it as providing a respite from the turbulent times she witnessed in her native city of Kabul as the Taliban returned to power in August of 2021.

Object re-imagined: Qutub Minar, Delhi (2-part panorama), albumen silver print from glass negatives, Felice Beato, 1858 © Sarmaya Art Foundation

 

Geoffrey M Planque

“𝐈𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞? 𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐡𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐲 𝐚 𝐛𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐢𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐚. 𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐢𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐢𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐚 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬, 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐬 𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐬, 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐧 𝐮𝐩𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐢𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐚, 𝐬𝐲𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞, 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐝𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞, 𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐬. 𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧? 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰? 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲, 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧?” – Geoffrey Planque

Nourished and inspired by the syncretic blend of Hindu and Muslim aesthetics, layered with western mythologies, Geoffrey M. Planque’s work is a mise-en-scène of cultures, concepts and choreography. As a mixed-media artist and a choreographer based in France and in India, the ancient Sanskrit treaties, Nātyaśāstra, has been an artistic study and pursuit for him, it informs his works philosophy.

Geoffrey re-imagines the photograph of a scene from a play, Popping the Question, staged by a few people at a Colonel Wallace’s residence in Bangalore in 1878. He calls this creation ‘Behind the Curtain’ and interprets it according to the metaphor and symbolism of stage and theatre. If not with movement, how does one bring a sense of dynamism and action to the scene? His interpretation tends to represent both the seen and the unseen worlds: the halo which adorns the actresses creates a mystical effect, as if their alter-ego was standing and shining right behind them.

SWIPE RIGHT to see the original photograph from Sarmaya.