Indian culture has always placed ‘goddesses’ on a high pedestal. The Indian woman or the goddess is a symbol of purity and strength. The reality in our country, sadly, is the contrary. The plight of women in general has been steadily deteriorating in our country over the last decade or so. However, one section of women are especially persecuted by the misguided values of our patriarchal society – widows.
A group of artists undertook a self-financed photography project where they aimed to tackle the startling gender inequality that still exists in civilized society. The story and concept is by Sharmistha Dutta, an artist and a photographer. The proje ct focuses on the widows living in Vrindavan. Sharmistha Dutta, Rakhi Biswas, a senior fashion stylist and Dev J Haldar, who’s the Programming Director of a popular Bollywood radio station are three artists who have invested heavily into this project.
The project has two parts. One which depicts Goddess Durga as a common woman and the other focusing on widows.
It’s a moving and thought provoking project that uses our own culture to expose the harsh realities of our society. Hats off to everyone involved in this noble project and let’s hope this project makes a difference in shedding light on the terrible treatment of widows in India.