A Silenced Protest, Hasdeo Aranya Bachao, Chhattisgarh (Set of 6) by Bhanu Shrivastav

This artwork combines the tactile depth of a carved inked block with the layered subtlety of silk-screen printing, merging imagery and text into a charged political statement. In the background, the Preamble to the Constitution of India is printed, its promise of justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity serving as a stark counterpoint to the lived reality it overlays. The foreground carving is one of seven visuals narrating the enduring struggle of the Adivasi people of Hasdeo Aranya, Chhattisgarh—a decade-long protest, ongoing since 2012, against coal mining in their ancestral lands. Hasdeo Aranya, known as the “lungs of Chhattisgarh,” is a rich forest and a crucial elephant corridor. Home to over 20,000 Adivasis from Gond, Oraon, and other tribal communities, it faces existential threat from mining projects led by major corporations. Despite constitutional protections for tribal land under the Fifth Schedule and the Forest Rights Act, large-scale deforestation and displacement have advanced, threatening biodiversity and severing co-existence between humans and wildlife. The carved figure here evokes a silent march—an emblem of displacement and resilience—signifying the community’s cohabitation with elephants and their determination to protect their land. This is a visual of unheard voices, where silence itself becomes an act of defiance against erasure. 

This artwork was exhibited at Method in the group exhibition "The Parliament is Now in Session" (August 2025)