a signature of my habitat, created with elements from around my home, in kalady, kerala.

I was informed of a passage which I pursued, plodding on, lightwards, & when I came out of it I made a film about it, seeking vessels for the story in the spaces and worlds I found, in my vicinity I found the lilypond that flowered a purple lily everyday, in its waters a thriving ecosystem of snails of two kinds, larvae, guppies, worms in the thousands, daphnia, and other innumerable life forms, as well as visiting dragonflies, spiders and kingfishers and the occasional cat for a sip of water thus was my film leaving lilypond, born out of observation under a microscope and walks beneath bamboo canopies devising verse.

while in bed, through my window, I can see the canopies of the trees that surround my home. I see the light that passes through them, and the canopy frames the light, like the iris frames the light that enters the pupil of the eye. I have wondered often about this space through which the light enters the trees and reaches the earth. this space is significant as it shows us the relationship between trees, and also is the space in which other elements such as the birds and wind interact with the tree. I like to call these spaces the negative of the canopy.

for months, I studied the motions of this space with my camera and eye, stepping out especially on windy days, and I learnt its patterns, when the wind blows, in which direction, at what height, at what intensity, and at what time. this video is a composition of selected parts of the canopy, collecting multiple negative spaces and elements such as birds, sun, moon and wind.

a life form that has occupied the body of a mosquito ponders its birth.

this film was created during a residency at sara centre in the foothills of the western ghats in karnataka. during this period, I spent my time walking around the lush forest nearby and observing its patterns. I was intrigued by the racophorus malabaricus (malabar flying frog), an exquisite, leaf green frog that glides through the canopy. all day they lay snug on a leaf, indistinguishable because of their color. as the sun goes down they emerge, and the night is peppered with their calls. I spent many late nights looking at them, wondering what they called for, what they spoke about, and also - what they dreamt of during their long siestas of day.

(work in progress, will be completed in march 2026)

for the last few months, I have been observing the little creatures and insects in the wild areas of the indian institute of science, bangalore. the most common of creatures caught my interest - the milipede - phyllogonostreptus nigrolabiatus. I am creating a video installation that captures my period of observations.

video created for kunjana parashar’s poem to pollen to gadfly. the kind people at zeiss india lent me a stereo microscope for the duration of this project.

a lush piece of land tucked away from the city, the animals that live there, both wild and domesticated, the care it takes to keep a place like this going, and the pursuit of wisdom that trickles down from the rishis of old - a dish with leaves is the story of one woman and her effort to bind all things together in her pursuit of wisdom.