A French word, Flâneur, was introduced to me in the Navigators project. The direct translation of this French term to Hindi would be Awaara, a term which is incessantly looked down upon in the Indian society.
Brought up in a conservative Indian family, I was taught to always walk through a city with reason, fulfilling a responsibility, errand, task, duty. I did not understand what was meant by letting go, I did not understand how to let go and little did I know that I was not alone.
My challenge was to learn how to let go. A way to break this habit of existing with purpose or reason was engaging in unscripted, random and spontaneous performance art. I felt emotions I’ve never felt before, instinctive and animalistic. Solely based on the connection between the self, the collective and the art. In a class, we tried to recreate Marina Abramovic’s performance called, The Artist Is Present which was held at the MOMA in 2010. I sat across my colleague and attempted to hold a continuous gaze. I got lost in the present as if there was no variable such as time or an audience watching my every move. The connection we fostered was unadulterated and soul bearing. I felt naked. I could not fathom that something as simple as looking into a strangers eyes could make me so liberated yet vulnerable.
Coincidently, the same day, I ended up going for a Performance by Qin Feng. The performance, entitled Between the Tao, was inspired by the Taoist belief in the harmonious relationship between nature and humanity. The artist painted motifs on a scroll, then invited the audience to participate by adding their thoughts and feelings to it, thereby revealing a shared sense of unity between individuals.
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