‘The arts need the youth’: Why two Kolkata-based entrepreneurs are hosting Bengal’s first Biennale

It is an attempt to “instigate conversations between the Bengal masters and contemporary practices, between diverse forms of art”.

That is what cultural entrepreneurs Jeet and Malavika Banerjee are hoping to do at the Bengal Biennale, which starts on November 29.

The first event of its kind in the state, the Bengal Biennale will include art exhibitions, installations, musical performances, theatrical performances, conversations, and workshops. More than 100 artists will participate.

It will take place in Shantiniketan from November 29 to December 22 and in Kolkata from December 6 to January 5. A biennale is a grand art exhibition that is held once every two years.

Jeet and Malavika Banerjee, directors of Gameplan Foundation, are the brain – or heart, as Malavika says – behind the event. Malavika Banerjee is also the director of the Kolkata Literary Meet and Jeet Banerjee has been promoting sports in India for over two decades.

Siddharth Sivakumar, the curator of the Biennale added that the artworks on display “explore transformative moments: abstract forms challenge socio-political narratives, science influences creative contours, and fashion intertwines with resistance. These intersections reflect the layered complexities and shifting identities of contemporary art today.”

In a conversation with Scroll, Jeet and Malavika Banerjee spoke about their long-held dream of bringing a biennale to Bengal, representation in the art world, putting “surprise” artists on display and more.

Why a Bengal Biennale? How long have you been planning on doing something like this, especially when the Kochi-Muziris Biennale is already so popular in India?
Malavika Banerjee: My family has been in the arts since 1988. It’s wonderful that Kochi-Muziris has happened. I’m a Malayali, so it gives me an added sense of pride.

But I’ve never attended the Kochi Biennale. The only biennale I’ve attended more than once is the Venice Biennale. The whole city lends itself to the purpose – it’s happening all over. That is what really inspired me.

Kolkata too has many wonderful buildings and centres of art are strewn across its length. My aim was to embrace the idea that art is everywhere and to that extent, my inspiration, I would say, is Venice.

Jeet Banerjee: We’ve been thinking of this for almost ten years now. I visited three Biennales in a span of about six months, between late 2015 and early 2016. Since then we’ve been thinking of hosting a Biennale of our own. It took us a while but here we are now.

Once this plan was in motion you brought in curator Siddharth Sivakumar, what was the theme or the vision that the team led with?
MB: This idea of a grand exhibition has been dreamt by many in Kolkata. When we encountered Siddharth, we realised that this had been on his mind too.

I was very taken by the idea of a young curator because the general understanding is that these events are helmed by people of antiquity and one thing that often becomes a casualty is energy and the desire to do something differently, an agility in thought.

Since Sidharth already had a similar dream, we thought, why not?

JB: I wanted someone young to lead. The whole image of art in Bengal is that it’s in the past. You rarely hear of young artists…

MB: The art ecosystem in India, including Bengal, needs an injection of young blood. There was a time when the masters were teachers in the art colleges, so as a student, you had the exposure to really great artists. But many of them are gone now. So a budding art student might think, what are my chances of learning art here? We need the youth to witness global contemporary trends.

There’s also a lot of talk about there not being adequate representation in the arts. Have you taken any cognisance of this issue?
MB: I get very torn about this question. Strengthening women because of centuries of malpractice is one thing but that being the only reason to display their work at the Biennale is a little disrespectful to the women artists.

We have a lot of Muslim representation, but not because they are Muslim. We have a lot of women representation, but not because they are women. And we have a lot of Dalit representation, but not because they are Dalit. We have the representation of the best artists who are available.

JB: We have this wonderful artist Ohida Khandakar from Hooghly. She happens to be a woman. She happens to be a Muslim. But we haven’t chosen her because she ticks those boxes. There’s another woman artist called TK Padmini from Kerala, whose works are being brought here. We are showcasing artists from almost every part of the country – and therefore, a lot of women artists too. If you curate with an open mind the way Sidharth has, you will always find artists of diverse backgrounds.

Are there any artists who are making their debuts with the Bengal Biennale? In the sense, they are showcasing the work for the first time.
MB: There are many artists who have told me they are coming to Kolkata with a proper exhibition for the first time. For instance, photographer Dayanita Singh.

Another unusual name we’re exhibiting is Devdutt Pattanaik. You can see his illustrations at an exhibition. Our focus with him is illustration as an art form.

Then there is Louiz Banks – the godfather of Indian jazz. We’ll exhibit his artwork for the first time at the iconic Trincas restaurant [on Park Street].

Tell me more about these unusual suspects of the art world. Because most tend to be very private about their works if they are not professional artists…
JB: Abhijit Banerjee, the Nobel Prize winner in Economics! He has made some art too. We are very keen on this interdisciplinary approach – almost like getting various forms of art to jam with each other.

The Biennale will be hosted in Shantiniketan as well as Kolkata. And you have homestays, cafes working with you in both cities. All very non-traditional venues for an art show.
MB: As far as Shantiniketan is concerned, that’s the nature of the place. Wherever you go, you encounter art. Even certain hamlets like Pearson Pally will be a part of the Biennale.

We are collaborating with new art spaces in Kolkata. For example, the Red Bari,Z’s Precinct, and the Alipore Jail museum.

Every Biennale has its own “khasiyat”. We wanted Shantiniketan because it is such an important site for the arts. We could not dismiss it as an “off-site” venue and we couldn’t ignore Kolkata either. So calling it the Kolkata Biennale would be limiting it – the Bengal Biennale was more fitting.

JB: We have more than 25 venues working with us. In Kolkata, we also got St James’s Church involved in this. They were really happy to host.

MB: We actually saw very little resistance. People tend to say that Kolkata does not back anything, but that’s not true. People are excited.

In both Kolkata and Shantiniketan, we have tried to understand the two places as art centres.

How did you decide what to showcase where – in both Shantiniketan and Kolkata?
MB: Some artists have already visited the venues in Shantiniketan and Kolkata to see where their art will be put. We wanted them to be involved in this process.

JB: It has been a collaborative process between the artists and collaborators.

A Biennale is an expensive project, isn’t it? What are the economics of organising something like this?
JB: We kept trying to get funding for many years but it didn’t happen. So we thought, What is the worst that could happen? We will have to fund it. But luckily, we have started receiving some responses – it won’t cover the whole cost but we don’t mind paying the difference.

Have you taken help from the government or any art institutions?
JB: To be completely honest, we have not asked the governments for any financial assistance. Our aim was also to first do it. Not many people in India know what a Biennale is. We want to do our very best for the first edition and hopefully, if this does well, in future editions, we get more funding. But for now, the goal is to do the Biennale and do it really well.

There’s a lot of anxiety about a career in the arts. What’s your take on it?
MB: In a Biennale, you are generally dealing with artists who are already well-known. They are respected for their work – but there’s also an anxiety of things just “caving in” one day. And this has been true since the time of Aristotle.

In the creative arts, sometimes success or recognition comes after a long period of struggle. That’s just how it is.

Finally, what would make the Bengal Biennale a success for both of you?
MB: People visiting the various art shows, engaging with the artworks and the artists.

It is also important to mention that this is our first year. We’re going to make a lot of mistakes. I just hope we aren’t weighed down by expectations. Don’t say the first one has to be fabulous. There are no retakes here!

Sounds like you are already looking forward to the next edition…
JB: People have approached us from other parts of Bengal but we don’t want to bite more than we can chew. For the first edition, we’ve limited ourselves to Kolkata and Santiniketan. This is why the name Bengal Biennale works well – you can add, subtract. We’ll see what the future holds.