THE ART OF HARD TIMES

ACCORDING to Bangladeshi artist Ashfika Rahman, the act of embroidering has long been the language of emotional expression for Bengalis.

- PANKIL JHAJHRIA

"Women historically stitched flowers, birds, and short lines of poetry or longing onto household textiles, as hidden and deeply personal messages," she remarks, pointing to one of the installations in her solo exhibition currently open at Vadehra Art Gallery in Defence Colony till January 24.

The exhibition Of Land, River, and Body (Mati, Nodi, Deho)' includes three of Rahman's ongoing projects 'Than Para: No Land Without Us', 'Files of the Disappeared', and 'Behula These Days'.

A large installation titled, 'Letters to Behula', part of 'Behula These Days', features 29 embroidered letters written by women living along riverbanks, addressed to the legendary heroine of Bengali folklore. These letters speak of domestic violence, displacement, religious conflict, state violence, climate disaster, loss, and survival. The giant artwork consisting of 29 distinct pieces of green fabric, embroidered together with golden thread, hangs in the centre of the room, forming a raft-like structure. The show overall focusses on gendered survival in south Asia.

Claiming land