TUM KAB AAOGE
Meera Devidayal
Anant Art Gallery, 2005
Catalogue Essay: Meera Devidayal
My paintings almost always begin from an image. I try to turn the ‘found image’ into a visual metaphor which forces the mind out of its usual rut, and charges it with new meanings. The recurring image was my take-off for an imaginary trip into the mind of a taxi driver.
Why taxi driver? Because with its 50,000 strong fleet, the taxi is an ubiquitous presence in Mumbai, and a constant reminder that its driver is a metaphor for the migrant people who flock from village to city, to make it their home while never really leaving the home they leave behind.
(excerpt from the catalogue essay ‘Tum Kab Aaoge’ by Meera Devidayal)