Dalit painter's artefacts on atrocities, preserved at Gujarat's tech institute, to form part of proposed Dalit museum

Anil Vardhan (right) with Martin Macwan

By A Representative
While young Dalit painter Anil Vardhan is all set to go ahead with his third one-man show in Ahmedabad's Ravishankar Raval Kala Bhavan on paintings (click HERE) which which seek to provide an exposure into his experiments with colour intermingled with his love for music, a tete-a-tete with the young artist revealed his other side -- his deep anger over atrocities on Dalits and their incessant fight against untouchability.
Vardhan possibly believes that by exposing works before a wider audience would require him to display themes of love and music. However, he told Counterview, "Time will come when I will be only displaying things that tell a wider social message, of untouchability and caste discrimination."

Inspired to paint on themes of caste discrimination by well-known Dalit rights activist Martin Macwan, who is founder of the Dalit Shakti Kendra (DSK), a technical institute near the industrial hub of Sanand, which houses Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pet Tata Nano car plant, Vardhan showed some of his excellent art works on Dalit issues, which have been carefully preserved at DSK.
Reaching DSK on way to Ahmedabad, where his exhibits will be opened by former National Institute of Design (NID) director Ashoke Chatterjee and Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad (MICA) director Preeti Shroff on Tuesday, he took this reporter around DSK to show his small as well as life-sized art works ranging from themes like Dalits being offered water from a distance in Gujarat villages, to how they are denied permission in temples.

Based on the temple theme, one of Vardhan's art works showed how Dalits were forced to peep from the holes from outside a top Odisha temple to have a glimpse of the offerings before the God because they were not allowed in. Standing next by him, Macwan explained, "It is an important chapter of Dalit history. It took a court order to stop the despicable practice. Significantly, decades ago, a similar practice prevailed at Gujarat's famous Santram Temple of Nadiad."
Also on preserved at DSK are Vardhan's 98 illustrations -- all in Madhubani style -- he prepared to highlight as many types of discrimination prevailing in Gujarat's rural areas. "These illustrations, on paper mash, suggest as 98 different questions posed to Dalits across Gujarat during a complete survey of untouchability practices prevailing in the rural areas in 2009", he said, displaying a few of them to this reporter. On display at DSK, apart from his paintings, include Vardhan's miniatures, murals and wall paintings.
Asked whether he would exhibit these and many other art works on Dalit atrocities, Vardhan, who is a primary school art teacher in Sihor, Bhavnagar district, and has been associated with DSK for about a decade, said, "I will exhibit as an example few of the artefacts at the Ravishankar Raval gallery. However, I am waiting for an appropriate time to highlight these works. They will surely form part of the Dalit museum, being planned at DSK."

Intervened Macwan, "While Vardhan's works would form a major part The Dalit art museum, which we are planning at DSK, he is not the only artist who will find a space."

He added, taking this reporter around DSK to show others' works, "Several artists have contributed their paintings and other art works to DSK on caste-based atrocities theme and would find a prominent place include well-known American black painter Juliet Seignous' 28 paintings preserved at DSK; Rina Vaghela, a brilliant fine arts student at Vallabh Vidyanagar; and Savi Savarkar, whose painting on Dalits and cow was attacked by saffron brigade in Maharashtra."

Comments

Manufacturing, services: India's low-skill, middle-skill labour remains underemployed

By Francis Kuriakose* The Indian economy was in a state of deceleration well before Covid-19 made its impact in early 2020. This can be inferred from the declining trends of four important macroeconomic variables that indicate the health of the economy in the last quarter of 2019.

Incarceration of Prof Saibaba 'revives' the question: What is crime, who is criminal?

By Kunal Pant* In 2016, a Supreme Court Judge asked the state of Maharashtra, “Do you want to extract a pound of flesh?” The statement was directed against the state for contesting the bail plea of Delhi University Professor GN Saibaba. Saibaba was arrested in 2014, a justification for which was to prevent him from committing what the police called “anti-national activities.”

Food security? Gujarat govt puts more than 5 lakh ration cards in the 'silent' category

By Pankti Jog* A new statistical report uploaded by the Gujarat government on the national food security portal shows that ensuring food security for the marginalized community is still not a priority of the state. The statistical report, uploaded on December 24, highlights many weaknesses in implementing the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in state.

The soundtrack of resistance: How 'Sada Sada Ya Nabi' is fueling the Iran war

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The Persian track “ Sada Sada Ya Nabi ye ” by Hossein Sotoodeh has taken the world by storm. This viral media has cut across linguistic barriers to achieve cult status, reaching over 10 million views. The electrifying music and passionate rendition by the Iranian singer have resonated across the globe, particularly as the high-intensity military conflict involving Iran entered its second month in March 2026.

Why Indo-Pak relations have been on 'knife’s edge' , hostilities may remain for long

By Utkarsh Bajpai* The past few decades have seen strides being made in all aspects of life – from sticks and stones to weaponry. The extreme case of this phenomenon has been nuclear weapons. The menace caused by nuclear weapons in the past is unforgettable. Images of Hiroshima and Nagasaki from 1945 come to mind, after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the cities.

Modi’s Israel visit strengthened Pakistan’s hand in US–Iran truce: Ex-Indian diplomat

By Jag Jivan M. K. Bhadrakumar , a career diplomat with three decades of service in postings across the former Soviet Union, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, and Turkey, has warned that the current truce in the US–Iran war is “fragile and ridden with contradictions.” Writing in his blog India Punchline , Bhadrakumar argues that while Pakistan has emerged as a surprising broker of dialogue, the durability of the ceasefire remains uncertain.

Lata Mangeshkar, a Dalit from Devdasi family, 'refused to sing a song' about Ambedkar

By Pramod Ranjan* An artist is known and respected for her art. But she is equally, or even more so known and respected for her social concerns. An artist's social concerns or in other words, her worldview, give a direction and purpose to her art. History remembers only such artists whose social concerns are deep, reasoned and of durable importance. Lata Mangeshkar (28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was a celebrated playback singer of the Hindi film industry. She was the uncrowned queen of Indian music for over seven decades. Her popularity was unmatched. Her songs were heard and admired not only in India but also in Pakistan, Bangladesh and many other South Asian countries. In this article, we will focus on her social concerns. Lata lived for 92 long years. Music ran in her blood. Her father also belonged to the world of music. Her two sisters, Asha Bhonsle and Usha Mangeshkar, are well-known singers. Lata might have been born in Indore but the blood of a famous Devdasi family...

'Batteries now cheap enough for solar to meet India's 90% demand': Expert quotes Ember study

By A Representative Shankar Sharma, Power & Climate Policy Analyst, has urged India’s top policymakers to reconsider the financial and ecological implications of the country’s energy transition strategy in light of recent global developments. In a letter dated April 10, 2026, addressed to the Union Ministers of Finance, Power, New & Renewable Energy, Environment, Forest & Climate Change, and the Vice Chair of NITI Aayog, with a copy to the Prime Minister, Sharma highlighted concerns over India’s ambitious plans for coal gasification and the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR).

Labour unrest in Manesar trigger tensions: Recently enacted labour codes blamed

By A Representative A civil rights coalition has expressed concern over recent developments in the industrial hub of Manesar in Haryana, where a series of labour actions and police responses have drawn attention. A statement, released by the Campaign Against State Repression (CASR), said it stood in solidarity with workers in IMT Manesar and other parts of the country, while also alleging instances of police excess during ongoing unrest.

Search This Blog