Your exhibition “Singed But Not Burned” at Emami Art, Kolkata (curated by Ina Puri till 20 August) documents the transition from early photorealistic images to documentary work, in a series such as “Crossfire” (2010) is clear. Extrajudicial execution in Bangladesh Can you talk about your work in art and activism?
I have developed a visual vocabulary where politics cannot be separated from my art. photography In the case of “Crossfire” the ability to provide information was not required. The story was known. What was needed was to create resistance, to shake the people, to come under their skin and to challenge the oppressive regime. I felt that by making a solid link to the moment of death, a more powerful response would arise. This was confirmed not only by how people reacted to the task, but it also showed how fearful the Rapid Action Battalion was.
Student in Prison Van by Shahidul Alam (1996, Dhaka) (Photo credit: Emami Art, Kolkata)
You began photography in London as a chemistry doctoral student when a friend couldn’t reimburse you for the Nikon FM you bought for him in 1980. If you can tell us more.
It was a happy accident. It was my association with the Socialist Workers’ Party and seeing how effectively they used photography in their campaigns, that made me decide to take up the medium. Never having had any formal training, my major influences were camera clubs and popular photography magazines. But while creating beautiful images is no longer a matter of practice, using aesthetics as a visual tool is a strategy I still find useful.
In the 1980s, you left London and moved to Dhaka to do photography. He created a conducive ecosystem through initiatives like Dric Picture Library, Pathshala (School of Photography), Chobi Mela (Asia’s first International Photography Festival).
Setting up an agency in commercial centers of photography in Paris, London or New York will never help Bangladeshis photographer, If we want to serve local photographers, we need to speak their language and understand their concerns. As far as school is concerned, you cannot fight a war without warriors. A school teacher called the students fighting for justice as photo terrorists. The Chobi Mela served two purposes. It introduced our warriors to the cutting-edge work and practitioners from around the world, which was needed when they needed to gain a foothold on the global stage.
Solidarno Movement by Shahidul Alam (1981, UK) (Photo Credits: Emami Art, Kolkata)
From the capture of protests to the first elections after military rule, how was the picture of democracy in Bangladesh?
We have never really had a democratic practice in Bangladesh, so I have always faced some form of repression. That’s the question I’ve asked and why I’ve always offended the powerful elite. I first showed “The Struggle for Democracy” in the 1980s during General Hussain Muhammad Ershad. I sent an open letter of protest to the Prime Minister, against the silence of the media during the BNP (Bangladesh Nationalist Party) ruled in 1992. I showed the Kalpana Chakma trilogy “Crossfire”, and reported the attack on student protests during the Awami League regime. As a result, I had a gun to my head during the Ershad regime, eight stab wounds during the BNP regime, and this government tortured me and put me in jail and there is still a case hanging over me. I work in this area. When the government starts giving me plots of land and invites me for PR exercises and paid junkets, I start worrying that I am doing something wrong.
Rural Kitchen by Shahidul Alam (1992, Bangladesh) (Photo credit: Emami Art, Kolkata)
Your actions often bring up socio-political concerns. Can you talk about some of them?
Much of the global wealth has been created through the exploitation of migrant workers. New forms of slavery continue to enrich today’s wealthy nations. About 3,500 bodies of young migrants, mostly men at their peak, return to Bangladesh every year as corpses. No one can be held responsible for this mass murder. About 3,500 bodies of young migrants, mostly men at their peak, return to Bangladesh every year as corpses. My work on migration is a story I’ve been working on for almost 30 years. Sadly, the work (Pravasi Atma) has received appreciation, but it has not really changed the lives of migrant workers.
buy now , Our best subscription plan now has a special price
“Embracing the Other” (2017) was produced to support a campaign for freedom of religion or belief where I remain active. Islamophobia in India and in the West has led to internal conflict and ruined Iraq, Yemen and many other countries. Palestinian lives are being ruined by illegal occupation, while the most powerful nations look the other way.
Woman in Ballot Booth by Shahidul Alam (1991, Dhaka) (Photo credit: Emami Art, Kolkata)
Through the series “Warriors of Imagination” you tell the story of not only an indigenous rights activist (who was kidnapped at gunpoint in 1996 and has not been seen since) but also of Bangladeshi campaigners who was silenced. Can you tell us about the project?
The central rationale behind the liberation of the need to speak our own language was Bangladesh in 1971. Yet in our land we deny the right of others to have our say and subject us to military occupation. The abduction of Kalpana Chakma is a shameful act of barbarity of the state. The inability to bring criminals to justice leaves a deep blemish on our judiciary and our executive. Through demonstrations, I have tried to interrogate silent witnesses at the crime scene, try to humanize a revolutionary the state has tried to portray, and try to persuade the warriors who still campaign for his justice.
Portrait of a Samaritan Chakma from the Imagination Warrior series, laser etching on straw (2015, Dhaka) (Photo Credits: Emami Arts, Kolkata)
Through it all, how do you interact with power at the interface?
I am part of a team and when you face repression the biggest threat is the position of the weakest. They take more risks than me, and not all of them have signed up for a life of activism. I am very grateful that he is with us during this difficult time.
That China could order the closure of a show in Bangladesh (when the police stopped Drake from opening the exhibition “In exile: Tibet 1949 – 2009”) that is important to his regime, to our citizens There should be a wake-up call. This is a sign of how spineless our government has become. Mahasweta DeviThe denial of access to our gallery (to inaugurate Crossfire in 2010), one of the most respected citizens of our region, is a sign of how our value system has been destroyed.
So the Shilpakala Medal (in 2015) was a surprise, as these awards are usually reserved for party mates. I constantly remind my students that doing bloody good work, consistently and tirelessly, is an artist’s best defense.
The Floating Forest, Kew Gardens, London, 1983. (Photo Credits: Emami Art, Kolkata)
In 2018, did you think you could be arrested for supporting a student protest demanding road safety in Bangladesh? Besides, what did you put in jail?
I was also attacked a day earlier, on August 4, 2018, when my equipment was broken. So, there was always a chance of getting caught, but when I knew the risks, I didn’t anticipate that their decision would be so bad. My immediate instinct was to try to survive and I did whatever I could to slow my arrest, and to make sure others knew I was being taken.
The support from my Indian friends and colleagues was incredible. The fellow prisoners sneaked into the letter written by Raghu Rai to our Prime Minister, and I read the letter Arundhati Roy Wrote on the 100th day of my imprisonment. Amartya Sen and other Nobel laureates who have joined the campaign for my release mean a lot to all of us.
In prison, I read diligently. I interviewed people to whom I would not normally have access. I worked with fellow inmates to paint murals throughout the prison. We founded a musical band, Adult Literacy Classes, and started a vegetable patch. I certainly wasn’t the only one involved, but between us, I believe we were able to turn the place. I am involved in jail welfare.