Segregation isn’t always loud; most times it’s in the quiet differences that remind you where you stand. For many Dalits, even today, this isn’t a thought experiment, it’s a lived reality.
Exploring the struggles, resistance, and evolving identities of Dalit communities; histories that have long been marginalised or overlooked, in observance of Dalit History Month, is The Whole Story. The fifth edition of Vaanam Art Festival by the Neelam Cultural Centre, brings together 36 artists from across India.
The art works here are not just paint on canvas or clay shaped into sculptures. Each one carries a clear sense of identity, shaped by histories of exclusion, everyday negotiations of dignity, and acts of quiet defiance. As you walk through the exhibition, certain elements repeat. Eyes appear in many of the paintings, almost as if they are watching back, making it hard to just pass by. They hold your gaze, making you more aware and accountable. Mirrors placed around the hall and within some artworks pull you into the frame, making you part of what you are looking at. Nothing feels random; every detail seems to be shaped by a long history of caste and exclusion, much like the histories these works reflect.
Continue further, and a mud wall stands firm, representing the spaces these women come from, with fibre sculptures of Dalit women emerging from it, as if stepping out of those confined environments into new spaces. “Despite their work and contributions, Dalit women have long remained sidelined, their contributions rarely finding space in recorded histories,” says artist and curator Natarajan Gangadaran. The work resists their historical erasure and insists on visibility in spaces that once excluded them. Among the figures is Annai Meenambal, the first woman president of the South India Scheduled Castes Federation, who is seen reclaiming a place in history that has often left women like her out.
“Thambi, left ah right ah?” (used in Thirunelveli to determine Pallar as left and Paraiyar as right), “Neenga enna aalunga?”— phrases like these which are often used casually, carry embedded markers of caste. As a student, Purushothaman did not fully understand their meaning until much later. Today, he brings these expressions into his artwork. “As a non-Dalit, I feel it’s important for me to be part of this. If we are moving towards caste abolition as a society, I think the responsibility lies more with non-Dalits,” he says.
How deeply rooted are discrimination and pain, that one begins to find moments of happiness within them? Catherine, born and raised in Chennai, draws from her childhood to answer this. Growing up in confined spaces, she recalls how rainwater, often mixed with sewage, would enter their homes. Yet, amid this, there were small moments of joy, making paper boats from old notebooks with her brother and letting them float in the water. She brings this memory through a stone sculpture. “The landscapes have not changed in these places,” she says. “Most people here are workers who are oppressed and segregated and that’s why I wanted to present this here.”
One of the works that stands out is Rajasekar’s depiction of Savitribai Phule, highlighting how she used education to empower women, what the artist calls a “silent revolution”. At the centre of the painting, Phule sits surrounded by a small group of students, an open book in her hands from which light emerges, symbolising knowledge being passed on to the widowed and Dalit women. “In the next frame, I’ve portrayed her as a metaphor, almost like an angel,” Rajasekar explains. “She holds a cage and opens it, and the women inside are like birds. When birds are freed, we usually offer them grains, but here, the angel holds stars. The stars represent knowledge,” he adds. As the women, imagined as birds, reach out to these stars, they move towards an endless blue sky, a space that opens up beyond the frame.
These are just five stories of artists, their thoughts, and lived experiences. The art works at the exhibition make it harder to look away from the caste system.
The Whole Story, the fifth edition of the Vaanam Art Festival, is on view until April 18 at the Lalit Kala Akademi.