Rajaram Naik has been documenting ritualistic and gender-based narratives of Dashavatara, a centuries-old theatre form prevalent along the coastal belt of the Konkan region and based on mythological tales about Vishnu’s ten avatars. These stories are performed by male actors who play both male and female roles. Naik has been archiving this tradition, specifically the dual life of Bunty, the central protagonist in his project.
His work invites us to explore the inner world of his muse evoked through photos, videos, text, Chittari miniature illustration and sound. Experienced through short performances, monologues, GIFs and animation, metaphors of masking and unmasking and gender identities blur and unfurl. Naik draws us into the world of suspended reality lending a cultural insight into this lesser-known theatrical form.
Rajaram Naik is an interdisciplinary artist from Goa, who has completed his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Goa College of Art and Masters of Fine Arts from MIT, Pune. His research and community-led artworks range from photographs and video works, to installations and sculptures. His work intends to make one witness a particular history in the future, through documentation.