Mahanadi : An Interview With Birendra Pani
Pradosh Mishra
For me, what I document and how I imagine and use it in my work is most important. I enjoy the process; I may or may not like the fi nished product. My engagements with the Gotipua and Chhau dance forms are diff erent in nature.
Pradosh Mishra: “MAHANADI” is the name of the most popular river in Odisha. How have you conceptualized and contextualized this title?
Birendra Pani: My show Mahanadi: A Journey through History, Memory and Culture showcases 25 years of my artistic engagement in a glimpse. It highlights the ‘contemporary material culture and human life condition’ and the ‘negligence’ of the local place, culture, history, memory and identity in present time. It started with my art works from Santiniketan as a student in 1991, and then my practice in Vadodara, Mumbai, and Delhi. Being located in urban and metro spaces in India for a long time and yet constantly travelling to my native state, I perceived myself as an insider and outsider to this place. Moreover, it was a search of identity in relation to my native place and culture in contemporary times.
