IFA@Bangalore | Presentation | Listening: Inside, Outside | Friday, September 06, 2019 | The Park

India Foundation for the Arts (IFA)
presents
Listening: Inside, Outside
with Avner Pariat and Sharbendu De
Friday, September 06, 2019 | 07:30 PM | Oak Room, The Park
No 14/17, MG Road, Bangalore - 560 042

India Foundation for the Arts (IFA) is pleased to invite you to Listening: Inside, Outside, presentations on engagements with specific communities in Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh by Avner Pariat and Sharbendu De, at 07:30 PM on Friday, September 06, 2019 at The Park, Bangalore.

Avner grew up hearing stories of various creatures that once roamed freely through the Khasi-Jaintia hills - narratives that are part of the collective trove that gets passed on from one generation to the other in Khasi families. As an insider, he will present his research into stories of the tiger as a cultural, social and political symbol in Khasi cultural practices in Meghalaya. In his work, he has attempted to trace the understanding of political connotations of the tiger; the transitions that have taken place in the tiger cult of post the influence of Christianity; and the changes in human-tiger relationships that have been affected by the modern environment laws.

On the other hand, as an outsider to the Lisus, Sharbendu will present his work with this forest-dwelling indigenous community inside Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve on the Indo-Myanmar border of Arunachal Pradesh. Sharbendu will present his work with the Lisus, a forest-dwelling indigenous community inside Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve on the Indo-Myanmar border of Arunachal Pradesh as an outsider to this community. The existing visual archive of the tribal communities in India is predominantly a colonial-anthropological repository of exoticised images focused on rituals, ornamental and unfamiliar aspects of tribal life. It has constructed a skewed repertoire of representations without providing a contextual understanding of their community life. Sharbendu’s work explores alternative aesthetic approaches through creative documentary techniques to depict the life of this community and communicate the relationships between inhabitants, nature and their state of mind.

Join us to listen to stories about communities from the ‘inside’ and ‘outside’; to explore what constitute these spaces, their blurring; and implications of occupying them as artists.

Avner Pariat is a researcher based in Shillong. With a background in Mass Communication, Avner works with the Doordarshan Kendra in Shillong. He has a deep interest in history and politics and is especially interested in the questions of origin and future of the Khasis.

Sharbendu De is a Delhi-based photographer and academic. As a photographer, Sharbendu has worked on various projects and exhibited his work in India and abroad. As an academic, he has taught at a number of universities and colleges, mentored projects, conducted workshops, published papers and participated in seminars and conferences.

Avner Pariat and Sharbendu De received grants from India Foundation for the Arts, under the Arts Research programme. Sharbendu’s grant was made possible with support from Titan Company Limited.