TITLE - NOBODY KNOWS SERIES...
SIZE – VARIABLE IN SIZE
MEDIUM – ETCHING
YEAR – 2018 -2019
IMAGE COURTESY TO KETAKI SARPOTDAR
NOBODY KNOW SERIES...
From a young age, I have been captivated by Animal folklore and fable stories, particularly the Panchatantra tales and Aesop's Fables. The Panchatantra, an ancient text written in the 5th century in Kashmir, this book travelled along the Silk Road, reaching diverse cultures around the world. For this particular series, I find the Panchatantra especially inspiring because its stories challenge conventional notions of strength and power. They illustrate that true success doesn’t always stem from dominance; instead, cleverness and strategy can enable seemingly weaker characters, like the donkey, to triumph in certain situations, some of which I used as metaphors in the series titled "Nobody Knows..."
For example: In 2016, a proposal was made to bring Humboldt Penguins, a native species of South America, to Byculla Zoo in Mumbai, also known as JIJAMATA UDYAN This initiative was reportedly a personal project of one of the leaders of a prominent regional political party name SEV SENA in India. Substantial funds, reportedly amounting to crores of rupees, were spent on the infrastructure necessary for the penguins and on their import from South America. The penguins, named Donald, Daisy, Popeye, Olive, Flipper, Bubble, Mr.Molt, and Dory, arrived in Mumbai from their cool habitats off the coast of Chile. Unfortunately, just a few days later, Dory, an 18-month-old penguin, died from a bacterial infection, which she is believed to have contracted due to the abrupt change in her environment. Additionally, the first penguin chick to hatch in the zoo also died within a few days .At the same time, there are many crucial problems in that state. This expenditure on what many considered a privileged dream was met with significant public criticism, as well as backlash from opposition party members, who used social media to create reels, slogans, and posters to challenge the project. It quickly became a central topic in regional politics for the entire year.
For a visual ,I drew inspiration from the Panchtantra tale "The Elephant and the Sparrow," where the elephant, believing himself to be the strongest animal, is ultimately frightened by an unknown sound that turns out to be a small bird. In my adaptation of this story, I replaced the elephant with a Tiger which is also the symbol of that same political party and the Penguin with a small bird. I used this narrative to highlight the misconception of power and the tendency to take public opinion for granted. The visual representation of this series is inspired by an old political magazine called PUNCH.
As humans, we are continually reinterpreting the world around us. Upon reflecting on these narratives, I notice similar dynamics in the people and situations I encounter. This series aims to explore the misconception that we can accurately predict a person’s actions or behavior. Such assumptions often lead us to mistakenly believe we know the outcomes of events, despite our limited understanding.
NOBODY KNOWS SERIES DISPLAYED AT KOCHI MUZIRIS BIENNALE IN 2022- 2023