Photo Still by Sunil Gupta from the film, Looking for Langston
I also saw the show, Paris-Delhi-Bombay…which asks “what is India today?”
The work of over 50 artists from India and France seeks to cover six aspects of Indian society: politics, religion, the home, arts and crafts, town planning and the environment, and identity. Although it is the largest democracy in the world and an economic power, India remains a mystery to many in France and this show is an effort to begin a conversation between the two cultures. The work of Sunil Gupta, perhaps India’s best known photographer, was included (image above).
The exhibit demonstrates how open the French are to other cultures, while also showing those cultures in a somewhat idealized state. As often happens, the depiction of another culture no matter how well intended, cannot entirely escape its own cultural assumptions.
