And We Will Clap Whilst the City Burns...

Rekha Rodwittiya’s paintings describe complex issues of life and living, of alienation and belonging, of discrimination and acceptance, of accord and discord. The issues of feminism have been at the heart of the art of this Baroda-based artist. In this painting, she takes the classic image of goddess Durga astride a lion or a tiger (traditional prints show both) and brings to it her own sensibility, questioning a woman’s place in contemporary times. Rodwittiya’s Durga is struggling to balance on her vaahan or the animal-vehicle, looking uncomfortable to carry off this role.