From January 23-26, Vadodara will be the venue for a large international festival that aims to draw attention to the city's status as Gujarat's cultural capital. Vadfest 2015 is scheduled to have 50 events involving art, music, dance, theatre and culture, and has widely been promoted by the Gujarat government and its tourism department over the past few weeks.
But barely three weeks before the festival, a group of artists have started to protest against the fact that the visual arts events being held at MS University’s fine arts faculty as part of Vadfest have been endorsed by the state's Bharatiya Janata Party government.
On Monday, Bangalore-based artist Pushpamala N and Mumbai-based filmmaker Madhusree Dutta began circulating messages to artists across India, asking participants to draw back from the Vadodara exhibitions.
Their emails say that the arts department has faced several attacks from the BJP, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and other right-wing groups over the past few years, and that the faculty should not be involved in a festival endorsed by the state's BJP government.
In response to this appeal, at least three artists decided to withdraw from the event: Gigi Scaria, Tushar Joag and Sheba Chhachhi. As of Monday evening, other artists were also in the midst of discussions about whether to participate in Vadfest.
Festival organisers, meanwhile, sent out a clarification letter stating that Vadfest has been organised and funded by a non-profit citizens’ group and faces no interference from a supportive Gujarat government.
What the protest is about
In 2007, in an episode that became a national controversy, activists from the BJP and VHP attacked and vandalised artwork at a student exhibition at the MS University for depicting Hindu gods Vishnu and Durga as well as Jesus Christ in an allegedly derogatory manner. (Christian groups also protested against the exhibition.) Chandramohan, the student whose work was vandalised, was arrested by the police and had to spend a night in jail. Shivaji Panikkar, the dean of the arts faculty at the time, had refused to close down the controversial exhibition and was suspended by the university.
In December 2012, VHP activists once again protested an exhibition at the university’s fine art faculty, claiming that Hindu deities had been portrayed in an obscene manner. This time, the vice chancellor of the university chose to pull down the paintings in question.
Such incidents, according to the artists protesting Vadfest, are a reflection of how the Sangh Parivar has been making concerted efforts to attack art, culture and education.
In her email addressed to artists, Madhusree Dutta explained why she was opposed to the fine arts faculty hosting and curating the visual arts section of Vadfest:
Her email also describes Vadfest as a “Thanksgiving event” for the people of Vadodara for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s victory from that parliamentary seat.
Pushpamala N, an alumnus of the fine arts faculty, was not one of the participating artists but has been at the forefront in raising the issue with other artists.
“The Baroda fine arts faculty is the most famous art school in the country, even till today with all the efforts of the BJP and Sangh Parivar to crack it,” said Pushpamala in an email to Scroll. Because of the progressive and open atmosphere that has traditionally characterised the department, she believes it is a “prize catch to take over and control”.
“The state government (and the Centre) speak in two tongues at the same time: you try to destroy an institution and then hold it up as an iconic one, you attack artists and also use them to project a liberal face,” said Pushpamala. “It is part of a plan to control the entire cultural and educational sphere.”
Artists pull out
The email appeals caused a stir among artists on Monday, pushing many to rethink their participation in Vadfest.
Gigi Scaria is among the prominent names to withdraw from the event. His work scheduled to be showcased in an exhibition of Indian contemporary art alongside 21 other artists during the festival. In his letter to the festival organisers announcing his withdrawal, he said his decision came from a “collective anxiety” shared by creative individuals in the field of culture.
“Gujarat as well as the central government has taken a most pathetic stand on culture and history of this country," said Scaria's note to the organisers. "Their increasing fundamental attitude towards censorship, conversion and rewriting the secular fabric of India in recent times is more tragic than ever before. It is need of the hour that we should take a stand so that our ideas are not to be appropriated by the fundamentalists. Since it is a government initiated project and it stands on many cultural policies, which are dangerously confusing, I have taken the decision not to participate.”
Scaria told Scroll.in that artists Tushar Joag and Sheba Chhachhi have also withdrawn from Vadfest.
Meanwhile, artist Shilpa Gupta, who was never invited to showcase her work at the festival, claims her name has been listed in the programme of the festival. “I saw my name on the website, but my work is not going to be in the show and they never asked me,” said Gupta. When questioned, the organisers claimed it was a mistake and would be corrected. However, on Monday evening, Gupta’s name was still listed on the programme.
‘Not a government festival’
Reacting to the unexpected protest by Dutta, Pushpamala and other artists, festival organisers issued a statement on Monday afternoon clarifying that the Gujarat government is merely a “deficit sponsor” of Vadfest and has not interfered in any way with the curation of the visual arts events.
The festival, they said, has been conceptualised and organised by the Vadodara Art and Culture Society, a citizens’ group supported by more than 200 professionals.
“The curators of the shows are in no way endorsing the political beliefs of the present government or going soft on the Chandramohan issue or the hoodlums’ attack on him,” the organisers’ note said. “However, the support of the government is absolutely crucial to organise anything in this scale.”
“In fact, no government official even knows who the curator of the arts events is,” said Amit Bhatnagar, the director of Vadfest.
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But barely three weeks before the festival, a group of artists have started to protest against the fact that the visual arts events being held at MS University’s fine arts faculty as part of Vadfest have been endorsed by the state's Bharatiya Janata Party government.
On Monday, Bangalore-based artist Pushpamala N and Mumbai-based filmmaker Madhusree Dutta began circulating messages to artists across India, asking participants to draw back from the Vadodara exhibitions.
Their emails say that the arts department has faced several attacks from the BJP, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and other right-wing groups over the past few years, and that the faculty should not be involved in a festival endorsed by the state's BJP government.
In response to this appeal, at least three artists decided to withdraw from the event: Gigi Scaria, Tushar Joag and Sheba Chhachhi. As of Monday evening, other artists were also in the midst of discussions about whether to participate in Vadfest.
Festival organisers, meanwhile, sent out a clarification letter stating that Vadfest has been organised and funded by a non-profit citizens’ group and faces no interference from a supportive Gujarat government.
What the protest is about
In 2007, in an episode that became a national controversy, activists from the BJP and VHP attacked and vandalised artwork at a student exhibition at the MS University for depicting Hindu gods Vishnu and Durga as well as Jesus Christ in an allegedly derogatory manner. (Christian groups also protested against the exhibition.) Chandramohan, the student whose work was vandalised, was arrested by the police and had to spend a night in jail. Shivaji Panikkar, the dean of the arts faculty at the time, had refused to close down the controversial exhibition and was suspended by the university.
In December 2012, VHP activists once again protested an exhibition at the university’s fine art faculty, claiming that Hindu deities had been portrayed in an obscene manner. This time, the vice chancellor of the university chose to pull down the paintings in question.
Such incidents, according to the artists protesting Vadfest, are a reflection of how the Sangh Parivar has been making concerted efforts to attack art, culture and education.
In her email addressed to artists, Madhusree Dutta explained why she was opposed to the fine arts faculty hosting and curating the visual arts section of Vadfest:
“It is quite ironic that only 7 years back the visual artists formed the most formidable resistance in Baroda against the hooliganism of the party in power in Gujarat. Today the same party/government, more powerful than ever, plays the gracious host to a show that can be described as the largest assembly of visual artists in the country. And the master stroke is that they have chosen the same site (Fine Arts Faculty) to showcase this...It is a very simple strategy to generate the widest acceptance.”
Her email also describes Vadfest as a “Thanksgiving event” for the people of Vadodara for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s victory from that parliamentary seat.
Pushpamala N, an alumnus of the fine arts faculty, was not one of the participating artists but has been at the forefront in raising the issue with other artists.
“The Baroda fine arts faculty is the most famous art school in the country, even till today with all the efforts of the BJP and Sangh Parivar to crack it,” said Pushpamala in an email to Scroll. Because of the progressive and open atmosphere that has traditionally characterised the department, she believes it is a “prize catch to take over and control”.
“The state government (and the Centre) speak in two tongues at the same time: you try to destroy an institution and then hold it up as an iconic one, you attack artists and also use them to project a liberal face,” said Pushpamala. “It is part of a plan to control the entire cultural and educational sphere.”
Artists pull out
The email appeals caused a stir among artists on Monday, pushing many to rethink their participation in Vadfest.
Gigi Scaria is among the prominent names to withdraw from the event. His work scheduled to be showcased in an exhibition of Indian contemporary art alongside 21 other artists during the festival. In his letter to the festival organisers announcing his withdrawal, he said his decision came from a “collective anxiety” shared by creative individuals in the field of culture.
“Gujarat as well as the central government has taken a most pathetic stand on culture and history of this country," said Scaria's note to the organisers. "Their increasing fundamental attitude towards censorship, conversion and rewriting the secular fabric of India in recent times is more tragic than ever before. It is need of the hour that we should take a stand so that our ideas are not to be appropriated by the fundamentalists. Since it is a government initiated project and it stands on many cultural policies, which are dangerously confusing, I have taken the decision not to participate.”
Scaria told Scroll.in that artists Tushar Joag and Sheba Chhachhi have also withdrawn from Vadfest.
Meanwhile, artist Shilpa Gupta, who was never invited to showcase her work at the festival, claims her name has been listed in the programme of the festival. “I saw my name on the website, but my work is not going to be in the show and they never asked me,” said Gupta. When questioned, the organisers claimed it was a mistake and would be corrected. However, on Monday evening, Gupta’s name was still listed on the programme.
‘Not a government festival’
Reacting to the unexpected protest by Dutta, Pushpamala and other artists, festival organisers issued a statement on Monday afternoon clarifying that the Gujarat government is merely a “deficit sponsor” of Vadfest and has not interfered in any way with the curation of the visual arts events.
The festival, they said, has been conceptualised and organised by the Vadodara Art and Culture Society, a citizens’ group supported by more than 200 professionals.
“The curators of the shows are in no way endorsing the political beliefs of the present government or going soft on the Chandramohan issue or the hoodlums’ attack on him,” the organisers’ note said. “However, the support of the government is absolutely crucial to organise anything in this scale.”
“In fact, no government official even knows who the curator of the arts events is,” said Amit Bhatnagar, the director of Vadfest.