Women in Film & Photography 2025 Exhibition
Kuvaḷai, Home, and Booklet of Banned Objects | KRITHIKA SRIRAM

Kuvaḷai (Vessel) (2025)
Anthotypes are images created using photosensitive material from plants. The series consists of self-portraits made using rose pigments. As physical objects, these prints, serve as reminders of the significance of the Dalit female body within both ancient and contemporary Indian political contexts.

Roses, along with flowers in general, were once banned for Dalit females in Tamil Nadu, a southern state in India. By employing rose pigment to create images of my body as a Dalit woman, I aim to subvert the role of this material in my ancestral history and identity.

The Dalit female form lies at the heart of caste oppression. The entire system of hierarchy within the caste system has been founded on the control and regulation of women’s bodies. As Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar—a Dalit reformer and constitutionalist—argued, caste is sustained through enforced endogamy, making the control of female sexuality central to its preservation.

The Anthotypes themselves, much like the fleeting nature of societal attention, are impermanent. They mirror the transient acknowledgment afforded to the Dalit female, whose plight at the bottom of the Hindu-Indian social order is either conveniently forgotten or wilfully ignored. As these prints gradually fade into obscurity, they echo the continual erasure of the Dalit female narrative from the collective consciousness.

Home (2022 – ongoing)
Home, explores the nuances of the female Dalit Identity in Southern India. The images were made in response to the important writings of Bama Faustina Soosaira*, a prominent Dalit author and educator. The images were made in collaboration with my mother in my childhood home.

Bama’s evocative text unearths memories that resonate deeply with the lived experiences of Dalit women. In a landscape where dignified representations of our community, practices, and customs are rare, her seminal work, Karukku, holds a special place in my heart, profoundly impacting me and deeply moving my mother.

The process of making these images was a meditative journey. Staging images and photographing ourselves became an act of acknowledgment and celebration of our identity. Through this work, we honour not only the unique contours of our own lives but also the collective experiences of Dalit women. Home is a tribute to the power of representation.

*Bama Faustina Soosaira (b.1958) is known for Karukku (1992), which explores the experiences of Dalit Christian women in Tamil Nadu, India. After seven years as a nun, she turned to writing. Her narratives show self-reflection and inner strength, conveyed through the language of the oppressed, incorporating oral traditions such as turns of phrases, proverbs, folk songs, and ritual songs. Her writing is a powerful tool in the fight for justice.

Booklet of Banned Objects (2022)
This work serves as a visual exploration of objects integral to the historical and, in some cases, ongoing oppression faced by the Dalit community in India. Each image within the booklet portrays the body’s interaction with these objects, set against a theatrical backdrop. The camera’s unique ability to both freeze and extend time becomes a vital tool in documenting and deconstructing the act of ‘touching’.

These photographed actions aim to reclaim the objects and redefine their significance. The work seeks to disrupt dominant narratives and dismantle the oppressive symbols these items carry. The text featured in the work is drawn from the meticulous writings of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar specifically sourced from Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar’s Writings and Speeches, Vol. 5.

About Krithika Sriram
Krithika Sriram is a visual artist and photographer whose work explores identity, memory, and representation through images and text. Her practice often engages with personal and political histories, particularly those connected to caste and gender.

Her work has been shown at Photo 2024 in Melbourne and at exhibitions and screenings across India and internationally. She is currently based in Bangalore, India.

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