Artist Soura Chatterjee and the world as he sees it

On Nahi Manzoor artist Soura Chatterjee’s solo show

Ever wondered how peeping Toms are creepy voyeurs while Big Brother is a not-so-benign Snoopy? In Nahi Manzoor, Bengaluru-based artist Soura Chatterjee depicts scenes from daily life and commonplace problems that barely cause a ripple, only because we have normalised them.

“I depict everyday activities because as an artist I feel it is my duty to society, just as a doctor, lawyer or policeman have their obligation to the community. As artists, we chronicle the times we live in as a record or reference for the future,” says Soura. “We may not be here 500 years from now, but if our art survives, it would give future generations an idea of our lives.”

While Soura admits the depictions depend upon individual perspectives, he believes artists “not only do this for themselves but also for people who do not have the language to share the problems they face on a daily basis.”

In a way, he is also spying on their lives, agrees Soura.

Born in West Bengal, Soura unabashedly admits to having been influenced by the philosophy of the Communist Party which has been a part of the fabric of his native state. “I consider myself a ‘people’s artist’ and I am attuned to the political views and ideologies of the party.”

“In all my work, you will see a linear equalisation of some aspect of society — issues of gender, caste, levels of economy,” he says, going on to talk about one of his works in the show titled An Independence Day where a man is asleep at the foot of the tricolour while vultures circle overhead.

“It’s shameful that even after 75 years of independence, people are left to sleep on the roads. The vultures are those whose only interest is to profit as much as possible. In Threat to Privacy, the tiger is symbolic of those who encroach on one’s private space via surveillance.”