EKDOM NA
2025 - ONGOING
2025 - ONGOING
“Ekdom Na” (Absolutely Not) began in a state of injury, two weeks after knee surgery in the village of Makardah, West Bengal. A village filled with beautiful ponds interspersed between houses and winding lanes, and the strange hum of industrial noise. I met Soujit Banerjee by chance, a birdlike man in a pink T-shirt, cutting zigzags across the road on his bicycle. His appearance was sudden, and unlike the reserved villagers around, he had an air of familiarity. He quickly became my guide as well as a force of disruption. Within minutes of meeting, he abandoned his bicycle and took it upon himself to redirect my route through gullies, private properties and sudden confrontations.
His movements were erratic yet self assured; his presence both welcomed and resisted. In his rhythms, gestures, and side quests, I began to recognize an echo of restlessness that I felt. I explored Makardah and the neighbouring towns with Soujit, noticing the slight peculiarities and eccentricities I found.
Through Soujit I looked for humour while questioning the state of affairs in West Bengal and in India, where development often just means industrialisation and an inflow of commodity without infrastructure or a system of care for the land. The village and surrounding towns, which on their own are idyllic and tranquil, are now quite run down. The little glimmers of bygone glory days remain as relics of a dream from a not so distant past.
His movements were erratic yet self assured; his presence both welcomed and resisted. In his rhythms, gestures, and side quests, I began to recognize an echo of restlessness that I felt. I explored Makardah and the neighbouring towns with Soujit, noticing the slight peculiarities and eccentricities I found.
Through Soujit I looked for humour while questioning the state of affairs in West Bengal and in India, where development often just means industrialisation and an inflow of commodity without infrastructure or a system of care for the land. The village and surrounding towns, which on their own are idyllic and tranquil, are now quite run down. The little glimmers of bygone glory days remain as relics of a dream from a not so distant past.