Vaanar on her mind

In February 2020 Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal recited the Hanuman Chalisa for a TV channel to prove his devotion to Lord Hanuman Around Makar Sankranti last month the womenrsquos wing of the Congress party in Madhya Pradesh also took refuge in the chant though some members clarified that the Chalisa wasnrsquot compulsory for nonHindus The use of the Chalisa as a Hindu majoritarian symboltext was amusing in both instancesFirst it spoke of the iconic status of the text as already exemplified in the T Series Hanuman Chalisa rendition by Hariharan which recently broke all viewership records on YouTube Second it demonstrated the innovative ways in which mythological texts and characters are coopted in everyday discourseKanika Jain Guptarsquos childhood in Mumbai especially her schooling in Juhursquos Arya Vidya Mandir exposed her to a certain kind of dharm shiksha which inspired her meditative penink illustrationsAn interesting reflection of the monkey God motif is seen in visual artist Kanika Jain Guptarsquos new doodle series titled The Divine Monkey Army Vaanarsena The lockdownimpacted artist a new mother currently surrounds herself with Vaanars big and small illustrations and wooden cutouts Her Vaanars were initially part of an early January solo show in Mumbairsquos Nippon Gallery thoughtfully called Mythical Nobel Peace But the exhibition shifted to the virtual space because of the surge in COVID19 cases due to OmicronGupta 39 a Sir JJ School of Applied Art alumna is a Mumbaite who relocated to Bengaluru after marriage Since her JJ days her work resides at the intersection of graphics and illustrations She is deeply influenced by her seniors Sam Kulavoor Aashit Singh and Lokesh KarekarThe artist is exploring the market for Vaanar art especially puppets and toys which can be installed together like an lsquoenablingrsquo army in a hotel or living roomGuptarsquos Vaanars are in demand in many pandemicimpacted cities She is working on a sevenfoottall mural depicting the Hanuman Chalisa for a client in Bengaluru Ideally she would have worked in the living room of the client but now she will courier the canvas ldquoThe piece of art is taking shapemdashthe brief for me is to capture the Vaanar magic and its association with Bhaktirdquo Similarly she is also ideating on a range of Vaanar toys and figurines made of wood which can be placed in kitchens bedrooms office cubicles and laptops She is encouraging her clients to suggest ways to customise the presence of the VaanarsldquoThese toysfigurines bring an instant smile to anyonersquos face And the idea of having the miniHanumanjis in our midst is so empowering It extends our imagination it aligns us with our higher selfrdquo At this point in our national life any art popular or otherwise that gives hope is welcome she maintains For her the Vaanar form symbolises a multitasker agile force that can take on an uncertain worldGupta is drawn towards the Vaanar theme for personal reasons Concepts like Swadhyay Jaap and Prasad Buddhi electrify her ldquoI donrsquot necessarily see them as religious and am definitely unconnected and uninterested in the political connotations of some of these constructs like Ram Sethu and Satsangrdquo she clarifies adding that the lsquoVaanarrsquo turn of her art came post March 2020 when Gupta was locked in her apartment ldquoIt was a phase for ample reflection a time to reassess why I like to do what I like to do My earlier body of work in fact had the seeds of my connection with mythological charactersrdquo Guptarsquos graduation project was based on a pictorial representation of a devotional Meerabai Her design firm Iktara draws its central idea from the instrument espoused by the saintLike Meerabai Gupta feels close to many mythological parthistorical characters which explains her sense of attachment for the Bhagwad Gita class she attended in the formative years She reconnected with the text five years ago which also became her vantage point to look at the popularity of Ramcharitmanas She is aware that her Vaanar art has sprung from the choice of Hindu scriptures ldquoMy childhood in Mumbai especially schooling in Juhursquos Arya Vidya Mandir exposed me to a certain kind of dharm shiksha That was the beginning of my meditative penink illustrationsrdquo she recalls Gupta at a later point would want to move on to other religious scripturestexts which can be an immense source of strength in COVID19 times ldquoAt this point I am in touch with art galleries where I intend to represent stree shaktimdashborrowing from mythology and history toordquo The artist is exploring the market for the Vaanar art especially puppets and toys which can be installed together like an enablingempowering army in a hotel a living room or a reception lobby She is playing around with wooden puppets in variable dimensions on book shelves or planters There is one range styled around affirmation diaries tooGuptarsquos Vaanars come only in black and white which not just vibes well with her generally preferred colour scheme but she also feels that the intriguing use of the monotone triggers thought ldquoWhen confronted with a mix of two evocative streams one starts thinking of colours and the various realities they represent I feel black and white brings a reallife dimension to my Vaanarsrdquo The dual colours indeed tickle a lot of grey spotsSumedha RaikarMhatre is a culture columnist in search of the subtext You can reach her at sumedharaikar middaycom