Research

Phase 1 header image © GI-Kol and S. Mukherjee

Taking advantage of the fact that the tradition of film-postering or political-postering on the walls around the city of Kolkata is a common practice and is still a tool which can attract the attention of a maximum number of people in the city, posters were considered to be the main tool for artistic intervention in the public domain to start a discourse and lead people to introspect.

The project began with an intense research phase during which the artist conducted several interviews randomly with people from all walks of life in Bengal, not only in cities but also in the suburban and rural areas. The responses were documented (videos with subtitles) and archived for later reference.
 

Looking for the ideal man image © GI-Kol and S. Mukherjee

Looking for the ideal ‘MAN’

Who is a man? The teaser raises the first question about what our society thinks, is the basis of addressing someone as a ‘Man’. Is a man a creature based on sex and gender, on responsibilities or on his social presence? What does our society feel? This teaser is an initiation into the subject of MALE as an entity and what makes his persona.
 

Looking for the idea of ‘MAN’ image © GI-Kol and S. Mukherjee

Looking for the idea of ‘MAN’

Mard ko kabhi dard nahi hota!!! (a man never experiences pain) Says who? Inhowfar is this statement true when it comes to acknowledging a man as a humane creature? Is it not what the society has conditioned a man into believing? To be oblivious to pain? Why are we so bound on creating an entity without the basic right of expressing emotions? Why is it socially acceptable only to ‘HERO WORSHIP’ the idea of a being who is devoid of emotion?
 

What’s in the ‘MALE’? image © GI-Kol and S. Mukherjee

What’s in the ‘MALE’?

Man. Male. Masculine... The third teaser in the series raises the question about what is it that turns a male into a masculine identity. Iconification of a MAN as a masculine entity has had a deep-rooted effect in the psyche with which male members of the society are either accepted or rejected. But what is it that final ingredient that makes a human into a MAN?
 

Who art thou image © GI-Kol and S. Mukherjee

‘MASCULINITY’- Who Art Thou

This video raises a direct question about what is understood by masculinity or “Mardangi” in society! We have earlier spoken about THE MAN being devoid of pain, being iconified as masculine, but what attributes to ‘MANHOOD’ in a behavioural context?