Three untold communities unite in Monon Muntaka’s first solo exhibition

Showcasing the vibrant textures of the worn walls of local houses, and the amalgamation of the culture and heritage within those, Monon Muntaka's audio-visual treat tells the stories of the Oraon, Marwari and Bihari communities. 

"Texture and mixture", with 67 artworks on display, was inaugurated on July 28 at Kala Kendra in the presence of economist and writer Anu Mohammad, and political activist, feminist and environmentalist Khushi Kabir. 

The gallery opens with the textured walls of the Oraon houses at the entryway with a side dedicated to their way of life, expressed in their paintings, the naming of their people, the livelihood from selling garlic, and tales in their endangered language 'Kurukh'. 

This is where Monon Muntaka stood back in 2021 when the artiste visited Dinajpur with a team of photographers as part of the Diversity Fellowship patronized by the Center for Enterprise and Society. She began exploring the lanes of Dinajpur and met the Marwaris and Biharis as well, where she was amazed by the attuned harmony of the fundamentally different yet united people. 

Photographed and recorded during that time, the series displays the simple way of existence of these three communities, which are at risk of losing their culture, language and heritage. The series of photos are a plea to the world to roar out their existence in utmost simplicity and rawness.

The exhibition not only provides a visual insight into the culture of the three communities but also an audio and video narrative of their way of life. In the backdrop, two women from the Oraon tribe are singing a wedding song that  keeps  playing as you make your way to meet the Marwari tribe in the next section. In a stark contrast with the Oraon tribe that lives off the garlic business, the Marwaris are vegetarians who avoid garlic in their culinary habits. 

Monon Muntaka dreams of expanding on this genre and telling stories about the people who are rarely under the spotlight. A person of many talents- an artist,elocutionist, writer, filmmaker, and more, who combined her diverse skills to produce the exhibition about diversity, and inclusion, shared about the story behind her first solo exhibition. She told The Daily Star, "Ever since I came across the communities, this has always been at the back of my mind for years. It is as if I conceived an idea and nurtured it for months. I knew I had to deliver it, and here it is now." 

With each wall there was a story to tell, you would see Chandradevi Agarwal's henna stained hands while on the other side, you can hear Bimal Agarwal's audio of reciting an excerpt from his current read at his terrace. The walls are bright hued with centuries worth of resilience etched in concrete. 

Finally, the Biharis are at the end of the gallery where natives describe for you, a typical marriage in the Bihari way. With precious photographs from old wedding albums and tragic stories of the partition and loss on the other side of the boundary. While the tranquil stories of each wall end here, it leaves you seeking for more. In intricate portraits, the people that you meet here would stay with you, in songs and in stories. But will there be more? 

"Texture and Mixture" will stay open from 4 pm to 8 pm, till August 5 at Kala Kendra Foundation gallery at Lalmatia.