Blending mythical with the real elements

His central subject and concern is man, through whose aspirations and tensions, desires and disappointments, lusts and unending endeavors, the larger issues of life are deeply introspected. Here, God remains distant or indifferent, whereas the human 'other' is felt by its absence; the solitary male turns the sole site for conflict and resolution.

We are referring to Rameshwar Broota’s practice and process. Analyzing it further, art critic Gayatri Sinha has mentioned in an insightful essay: “The artist imbues his work with undiluted simplicity even as he firmly locates himself within the ordinariness of the burgeoning Indian middle class. A practitioner of meditation (dhyana and yoga) he also felt the contrary pull of the human world. In the early 70's, he was probably the first artist from India who turned outward with severely satirical paintings. Earlier, he had forayed into geometric forms, followed by stark figures of emaciated men, suggestive of the labor in New Delhi's growing streets.

“Soon, the sharp geometrically defined spaces and massive figures evaporated under the insistent scraping and nicking of the blade. The artist realized that a figure need not be imposed on a canvas. Instead it could be coaxed, revealed or evacuated from its depths.” This process unique to him involves the over painting of the canvas with layers of paint. It’s more intuitive, and draws on his love for photography and the intriguing complexities of the photographic process.

A significant transition in the 1980's in his imagery was marked by the ape’s mutation into the Man - essential, transitory, and firmly athletic. He typically employed degrees of sexual suggestion in them to denote erotic potential. A few years ago, he turned to technology to sift through images and explore the various compositional possibilities. This gave way to the extreme close up of the bodily frame that emerged as the locus for his philosophy of man that exists outside the purview of traditional morality or even the possibilities of expiation.

His metamorphosis into a photographer is indeed intriguing. Known for his strong masculine forms - actually intricate monumental drawings – Rameshwar Broota now infuses his photographs with a similar sensibility, albeit with a twist. "The caveman used to scratch & draw the movement of his fellow beings and animals on those dark walls. I believe I must have existed even then as an artist…," so he states of his painterly passion.