Memories From Margins: Artist Vikrant Bhise바카라�s Canvas Celebrates Constitutional Values & Ambedkarite Resistance

Toiling legs with the visible marks of squeezed muscles; bent bodies carrying the burden of unidentifiable objects 바카라� mixed with sweat, despair and unabated exploitation; and some nets, axes, and sickles that trap the bodies in the backdrop of the preamble of the Indian Constitution welcome one to the world of the marginalized communities. Painted on blue backgrounds that mostly symbolise the colour of Amebedkarite resistance(s), artist Vikrant Bhise바카라�s canvases in the exhibition titled 바카라�Sense and Sensibilities바카라� embody the sense of constitutional freedom, equality, and fraternity.

 The solo exhibition curated by art historian Y S Alone at Anant Art Gallery in Noida makes an effort to understand the promises of constitutional democracy through the sufferings of people who live at the margins of society. As one steps into the gallery, paintings of Ambedkar, the portrayal of Mahaparinirvan Janayti, and the preamble of the constitution encapsulate the gaze. It is not a celebration of Savarna ethos and imagination, rather as the curatorial note points out these visuals emerge 바카라�from agony, disgust and imposed anarchies on the page of the preamble바카라� and work as a 바카라�constant reminder towards responsive self for the citizens of the republic바카라�.

Belonging to an untouchable community himself, Bhise withstood turbulent waters throughout his life. On one hand, he got inspiration from his family members who were closely connected to the Dalit Panthers movement that during the late 1960s-70s mobilised Dalits across western and northern India against the relentless social, economic, and political oppression; on the other, his own early day career as a courier person made him realise the struggles of carrying the burden through an unending path.

바카라�During those days, the couriers had to walk for long. It was not an easy task,바카라� says Bhise. This experience of carrying others바카라� burdens shaped his series on farmers and labourers whose legs and bent bodies represent the schema of subjugation that only subversive actions to restore constitutional practices can contest.

While writing about Bhise바카라�s journey as an artist, Alone notes, 바카라�In 2015, his uncle made sketches based on Namdeo Dhasal바카라�s poetry Golpitha, which had a deep impact on Vikrant. Vikrant could visualise the power of the figure to delineate the Dalit narrative and could address various themes mainly labour caste and migrations in the metropolitan city of Mumbai.바카라�  

The burden on the shoulders of these labourers, nevertheless, marks the ambiguity. 바카라�Every person has her/his own burden. Sometimes, those are material, in other times these consist of memories,바카라� says the artist. In most of the cases, the faces are replaced with unidentified objects 바카라� ranging from farming instruments to the materials for everyday usage.

The artworks in the show overall represent the Dalit artist바카라�s journey from the days of lockdown to the recent protests across India that wanted to subvert the norm to establish constitutional promises. The 40 ft. long canvas where he paints the protests is divided into 10 slides with each portraying a specific moment in recent times 바카라� farmers바카라� protest, anti-CAA movement, mob lynching to name a few. 바카라�The paintings on farmers바카라� protests I made during 2021 when our farmers were fighting for their rights,바카라� says Bhise.

Apart from showing the protests through the united legs marching towards reclaiming their rights, he also shows Ambedkar trapped in rusted sickles in the backdrop of the preamble. 바카라�During the protests, the farmers couldn바카라�t use their farming instruments. The abandoned axes and sickles got rust. And they got trapped within,바카라� he notes.

The Protest Series that Alone says, 바카라�marks a new beginning for Vikrant바카라�, is not the only space where the sense of being trapped could be realised. In his lockdown series, the use of net that traps the human body upholds the realities of marginalised communities during the Covid-19 days. Interestingly, this was the time when Bhise started reading Ambedkar and Phule바카라�s works extensively. Perhaps this was the watershed moment that shaped his works and made these two pioneer scholars central to his projects.

Referring to the centrality of Phule and Ambedkar in his works, Alone writes, 바카라�He is well aware that the educated and acclaimed liberals have been instrumental in blocking Phule-Ambedkar consciousness among the larger public whereas the followers of Ambedkar are diligently consistent in conserving Ambedkar's contribution to the life of every Indian.바카라�

Another space where Ambedkar becomes the fulcrum of his works is the portrayal of Chaityabhumi where the great scholar had been cremated. 바카라�Every year during the Mahaparinirvan diwas 바카라�December 6, the death anniversary of the Babasaheb바카라� millions of Dalits gather at Chaityabhumi. It is one of the most significant days for us. People here buy several books and Babasaheb바카라�s message of 바카라�educate, agitate and organise바카라� finds resonance,바카라� says Bhise. The series titled 바카라�Jayanti바카라� and 바카라�Chaityabhumi바카라� embody the minute details of the programmes at Chaityabhumi that 바카라�people 바카라� mostly Savarnas hardly know about바카라�.

In descriptive words of Alone, 바카라�The upper part shows a truck carrying cut-outs of Ambedkar바카라�s images and people walking in the front and at the back of the truck. There are also people standing on the truck. A considerable number of women are shown. It is a fact that women have always been part and parcel of the Ambedkar movement and fully took part in the celebration. Youths are shown dancing before the truck and many at the back have raised their hands, shouting slogans. The slogans in such processions generally consist of Jai Bhim! (a salutation formulated by followers of Dr Ambedkar), Babasaheb Amar Rahe! (Long Live Babasaheb!) and many others.바카라�

Notably, the ideology of Ambedkar always finds resonance with that of Martin Luther King who fought against racism. And Bhise didn바카라�t miss the chance to bring them together. In the series titled 바카라�Pillars of Equality바카라�, his realist strokes show coloured people and Dalits being beaten by the same cane held in the hands of the oppressors 바카라� at one place the White men and on the other the Brahmins.

The different lives and livelihoods of Dalits that stem from their memories, struggles, and everyday exploitation also are echoed in the walls of their houses. The 바카라�Home Wall바카라� series of Bhise recreates a Dalit household where one can always find either photos of Ambedkar, Jyotiba Phule, or Sabitribhai Phule. Instead of the popular Hindu gods/goddesses, the spaces on their walls are reserved for the ideologues who taught them resistance.  

Talking about Bhise바카라�s body of works, Alone says, 바카라�The body of work Vikrant has produced is immensely extensive and absorbing, elucidating the process of their significance with objectives integrated into a rational mindset.바카라� The exhibition that started in January will be there till March 16.