Intallation, Khoj, New Delhi, 2006
A personal response to hearing the soundscape at nangla maanchi basti on the west bank of the jamuna both before and after the violent demolition of this community in mid 2006.
As recordings of the before and after soundscape weave through each other visitors are invited to step into the images of the site projected onto fabric drapes they can walk amongst.
Bricks from the demoltion site are presented alongside photographs of the spot where they fell. Torches are provided for personal examination of these material relics of a demolished locality as they listen to the voices of it’s former inhabitants and the vacated sonic panorama left behind. Throughout the space, in english and hindi, are some reflections and questions addressed to the viewer which attempt to situate the presence and absence of the locality in the memory of the city. I was not in delhi during the demolition, only some weeks before and some months after. Local reports from the demolition process itself can be found here.
