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A visual artist and a filmmaker have turned their studio into a space where artists on the fringe can showcase their work

The Blank Space Studio, in a century-old mill in Mahalaxmi, can be what you want it to be. It can be a space where you conduct a workshop, screen a film, or stage a garage sale. If you're visual artist Namah Shah and filmmaker Satyarth Shaurya Singh, it can also be an office. In fact, the two work out of the one-room, one-garage, one-terrace space, and sometimes, even use it as a set. "The whole idea is to treat this space as very collapsible," says Singh. "If someone wants to watch a film, they can; someone wants to work from here, they can; and if someone just wants to chill post-9 pm, they can also do that." In this spirit, they have held photography workshops and a self-portrait workshop by textile artist Sarah Naqvi; they have hosted garage sales in support of artist Aqui Thami's Sister Library; and they've screened films such as Counterfeit Kunkoo by Reema Sengupta, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival last year. "Sometimes, if there's an event at G5A, people just carry forward their scene here.

So, it's pretty interesting like that," says Singh. About three years ago, the space was actually empty. "We would bring our laptops, and just work," says Shah. "The idea was to have a space to expand our own work, to build in-house sets. As time passed, people would come here for meetings. This interest to make it an alternative space very much came from the outside. We anyways collaborate so much with our peers. We're in that time now when it's not so much about competition, but collaboration. So, we started off with film screenings, with 20-30 people, and then we started exploring [the idea] that if people are interested in making their way to our neck of the woods, then why not do this?" The reaction has been interesting. "It's very intimate and the discussions allow for a free flow of ideas. It feels like we're welcoming you into our safe space, where we create."

Satyarth Shaurya Singh and Namah Shah. Pic/Ashish Raje

Of her experience, Thami says, "Namah and Satyarth really believed in Sister Library and reached out to organise a fundraiser. I'm really happy to have an independent space like this in Mumbai, where it's easy for artists to come together, which seems impossible with bigger, organised institutions." The two admit that the space is for artists who are slightly left of centre. Singh says, "If you think about it, places for commercial stuff is in abundance. Even a pathetic film will still find a theatre. But, there are so many films that go to film festivals, which never come online, and they never see [the light of the day]. So, the idea is to get that across, because that's the content that needs to be seen." Prior to this, Singh used to curate film screenings at AntiSocial in Khar, under the label of Peepshow. "It's great to have a bunch of people — even if it's just 15 people — over."

Perhaps, because of space constraints, they've been fairly low-key. "You would end up here, if you knew us personally, or if you're a friend of a friend," says Shah. "It's still word of mouth." That may change when they open up the terrace. "We haven't used it so much because of functionality," says Singh. "But, by December, when the weather's good, we can actually get going with one or two screenings a month." Shah and Singh seem like the sort of people who wouldn't let a single inch go to waste. In that sense, The Blank Space is a pucca Mumbai institution: in its lack of space, and in its open doors.

Where: The Blank Space Company, S11, Laxmi Mills Estate, Shakti Mill Lane, Behind Blue Tokai, Mahalaxmi
Log on to: Follow @theblankspacecompany on Instagram to get updates

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