Dhaka:Artist Moni Majhi's solo exhibition, titled 'Non-duality (Adwaita)', was inaugurated at La Galerie of Alliance Française de Dhaka (AFD) on Friday. The exhibition explores the interconnectedness of human life, nature, and cultural traditions shaped by the riverine landscape of the Sundarbans.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the exhibition is rooted in the ecological and cultural landscape of the Sundarbans, drawing inspiration from the region's rivers, forests, tides, saline waters, soil, wildlife, myths, and folk beliefs. It reflects a worldview based on coexistence, shared memory, and interconnectedness.
Through the concept of Adwaita, Majhi moves beyond religious doctrines to explore a cultural philosophy where distinctions between beliefs, identities, and forms of life remain fluid. The exhibition centers around the shared cultural imagination of different religious and spiritual traditions, where figures like Bon Durga and Bonbibi are seen as manifestations of the same Mother.
The exhibition also emphasizes the symbolic significance of everyday cultural practices, such as offering a 'piri', a low wooden stool, to guests as a gesture of respect and belonging. Folk practices like offering 'sinni' and 'payesh' to natural forces highlight reverence and humanity's dependence on the natural world.
However, the interconnected existence of people and nature is increasingly threatened by struggles for power, natural resource control, development pressures, and the climate crisis. Changes such as shifting river courses, increasing soil salinity, and disappearing wildlife habitats are impacting communities and their cultural identities.
Against this backdrop, 'Non-duality' presents the idea that people have become 'refugees of the green.' This notion of displacement extends beyond human communities to include the habitats of rivers, seeds, trees, and animals. The exhibition invites visitors to view ecological loss not as a distant concern, but as a shared condition threatening the foundations of existence.
The exhibition will remain open to visitors daily from 3 to 9 pm until November 10.