Aishwarya Das

The idea of me and the world, inside and outside, generated complexities. To what extent can artistic interventions and collaborations affect the ways of action in the public domain?
My artistic praxis stems from memories, identity, and childhood traumas, deeply shaped by my surroundings and lived realities of Asia's largest red-light district, where trafficked and local sex workers, along with other marginalised women, have formed hybrid communities across diverse cultural backgrounds. Immersed in this context, I have been engaged with issues of identity, resilience, and survival. Here, the boundaries between public and private are blurred. Coming from a privileged background and living a few blocks away, this exposure influenced my explorations of the politics of the body, space, and the authority over one’s self. These themes often intersect with intersectionality, communal trauma, and shared alternative history, questioning how bodies affect spaces and how spaces define bodies.

I explore the fluidity of identities in relation to geopolitical and socio-economic markers. My work examines how these influences shape my experience as I navigate between indoor and outdoor spaces, and how my actions, in turn, impact the world around me. Through themes of repair, care, and empathy, I question the role of art and the artist in such environments.

My interdisciplinary, research-driven practice engages with community, sustainability, collaboration, and issues such as commodification, consumerism, and the impact of soft power in the South Asian context.