Beneath the gaze, 16

This series of 20 paintings is rooted in the Hindi phrase “Jitni chadar ho, pair utna hi pasaro”—a reminder to align one’s desires with available resources. The works emerge from my lived experiences and observations of everyday life. During six years of commuting by train from Haryana to Delhi for college, I observed and sketched people, reflecting on why people travel, what drives them to leave home, and how economic circumstances shape their needs and aspirations. These experiences led me to explore the relationship between limitation, need, desire, dependence, and responsibility of human. The human body represents individual needs and desires, while the chadar becomes a metaphor for limited resources. Together, they reflect the ongoing negotiation between what we need, what we desire, and what our circumstances allow.