Indian Artists Challenging The Status Quo With Their Political Art

Indian Artists Challenging The Status Quo With Their Political Art
Published on
3 min read

Election fever is upon us. With the general elections being conducted all over India, its likely that you too have been exhausted by the sheer brouhaha of our country’s current political climate. Enough already!!

But we can’t run from it, for there’s no doubt that this year’s election is extremely crucial. While our fate shall be sealed on May 23rd, we here at Homegrown thought how you could have a respite from the political banter, but still engage in important conversations: art.

Artists have always had the courage to reflect the sign of the times. Be it films, poetry or music, art has always managed to shed light on vital political issues through its varied mediums.

Given below is a list of some of the best politically charged art by painters, designers, illustrators, comic book artists and more. Check it out!

Main Bhi Chowkidaar

Known for his surreal portrait painting of renowned personalities and celebrities, Sushant Deorukhkar isn’t shy to call out the bullshit when we feels need to do so. When he’s not busy gifting the likes of Alia Bhatt and Diljit Dosanjh their portraits, he’s doing satirical art about the current party’s governance, just like the chowkidar piece above.

Code Of Conduct

A senior political cartoonist, Nala Ponnappa work is an absolute treat. On a daily basis, he delivers witty takes on the political affairs through his cartoons. In this piece, he’s taking a at the sheer disrespect shown towards the Model Code of Conduct by the competing politicians and it’s messy aftermath.

Thugs Of Hindoostan

Appupen is a comics creator, visual artist and musician who uses his darkly vivid art to tell satirical stories. His comic style is sharp and imaginative and never fails to drive the point home. The above piece, done in collaboration with Rahul Chacko, cleverly uses the movie poster reference to shed light on the usual suspects of our sketchy political system.

Guardians Of The Galaxy

Rahul, who often collaborates with Appupen, is another comic with a distinct voice. His refreshing style always manages to weave in some form of relevant pop culture which helps translate his message. Here you can see him ridicule our government’s mindless spending on national statues.

The Republic

Sabari Venu, who goes by the name of Mean Curry, is a comic artist with a quirky style and sense of humour. Even though his comics are great, we actually picked a piece he did on his personal account, a hilarious reflection of the infamous Arnab Goswami brand of journalism. While you’re at it, check out his video on the Forest Right Act.

Acha Time Aayega

Abhilash Baddha’s world of satirical pop art is not new to the Homegrown audience. He has the precise restrain in his creative choices which make his work crisp and effective. Here’s him taking a dig at the Modi government’s slogan with a clever reference to Kanye West’s album cover.

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