Artists who work around the theme of partition

An exhibit of contemporary Indian art in Helsinki, entitled ‘Concurrent India’ coincidentally includes artists who work around the theme of partitions and the conflicts between India-Pakistan.

Like millions of those uprooted from their homes post-Partition, Hema Upadhyay’s family had to leave Pakistan in 1947. She associates the experience with the fear of losing one’s home and its demolition that’s also constantly present in the slums. It’s this insecurity that she contemplates in her installation ‘Where the Bees Suck There Suck I’. As her source material, Chitra Ganesh uses popular Amar Chitra Katha comics based on history and Hindu mythology. She replaces the text in the speech bubbles and adds her own drawings to the pictures. The results are often comical, yet they also contain repulsive or violent elements.

‘Light Leaks Winds Meet Where the Waters Spill Deceit’ by Reena Kallat is wrapped in red thread used commonly in temple rituals in India. The threads are tied as a sign of prayer and untied when the wish is fulfilled. The ultraviolet light shining between the gates is the same light used to lure insects in pest control devices. It serves
as a reminder of the tensions and conflicts between the two countries.

After the 1947 war between India and Pakistan, women were abducted on both sides of the border. They adapted to their new country and had families. Many of them were repatriated later. There is an online petition to erect a monument to victims of violence following the war. In her set of photographic prints ‘Crease / Crevice / Contour’, the names of signatories of the petition are stamped on a woman's back. The red stamps create a map of the part of Kashmir that is administered by Pakistan. They show how the size of the contested area changed during the war.

The theme of Supriyo Sen’s documentaries is also often the conflicts between India and Pakistan. The short film Wagah (2009) describes the flag-lowering ceremony on the India-Pakistan Line of Control as seen through the eyes of three children. The ceremony has been repeated every evening since 1959. Sen's film is a statement against walls that separate people from one another.

(Information courtesy: Helsinki City Art Museum)