Pushpamala N. is an independent artist, writer and curator, based in Bangalore. Much of her work engages with the construction of the feminine and the scaffolding of the nation state, expressed with sharp wit and humour. Starting off her career as a sculptor, Pushpamala began using photography and video in the mid -1990s, creating tableaux and photo-romances in which she casts herself in various roles, thereby placing herself as the artist at the centre of social and political inquiry. She has recently started doing live performance, where she creates similar theatrical mise-en-scenes.
Pushpamala’s live cooking performance, Gauri Lankesh’s Urgent Saaru, is an act of remembrance for the artist’s close friend, journalist Gauri Lankesh, who was assassinated in 2017 for her political views. Gauri was the artist’s neighbour and a good cook who gave the artist several recipes. Urgent Saaru— which means a quick curry that is dished up for unexpected guests – was probably invented by Gauri’s mother. The performance takes off from popular TV cooking programmes while also referring to the Hindu prasada and the Christian Eucharist, where red wine and bread representing the blood and flesh of Christ are given out in remembrance of his sacrifice. This particular recipe was specifically chosen for the performance as the tomato coconut curry is deep red in colour, the colour of blood, and because the times are…urgent.
