Gliding in Intertwined Dreams
63.5 x 84 cm
2024
This work narrates the story of a heroine/hybrid being, a tree and a horse who are running away with each other in a dream where everything is intertwined.
The image of women embracing a tree while riding a horse takes a reference from a folio representing a popular Indian subject, the love between Sultan Baz Bahadur and his courtesan Rupmati. Baz Bahadur (r. 1555-61) was the last king of Malwa before its absorption into the Mughal Empire who fell for the beautiful musician, dancer and poetess Rupmati after encountering her on a hunting trip. Rupmati was made Queen of Malwa, but the fantastic love story came to a tragic end in 1561, when the Mughal Emperor Akbar and his forces took the kingdom. Baz Bahadur fled without his beloved Rupmati, who then decided to commit suicide rather than submit to their conqueror.
To counter-narrate this story, this time Rupmati(who now has the head of a bird) chooses to love a tree and a horse in search of true companionship, therefore replacing the figure of a man with a tree. Isolating the subjects from their background helps to create a new narrative. These works propose a post-queer way of thinking, fostering notions of care and love by extending it to other species.