Last year marked a series of massive terrorist attacks in Delhi, one of these was in gali (street) no. 42, Karol Bagh. The day was 13th September, 2008. Life was on a usual routine when suddenly everything turned upside down. The loved ones were gone. The land smeared with blood. The air filled with smoke. The sound resonated with cries and howls. All around, one could see nothing but limbs ripped apart, bones fractured, glass smashed into pieces. It was one of the most frightening sights for those who survived. Many sat there, trying hard to come to terms with the incidence when suddenly their eyes sighted a huge peepal tree situated right at the entrance of their gali. They realized the tree had absorbed so many shrapnels of the blast and in turn, saved many who lived behind it. At that period of loss and grief, the tree transformed into their mother who soaked up the pain to keep her children safe and sound. They even felt the tears oozing out from her eyes and they ran to embrace their beloved parent. They sat there offering prayers and gratitude. The plain peepal tree now became people’s tree symbolizing hope that was shattered after the incident.
We at Swanchetan always endeavored to reach out to those who are under pain and this prompted us to meet the survivors of Karol Bagh every Monday. At first we targeted adults who were willing to communicate and share their heart out with us. Our next objective was to talk to the children. There was reluctance. Several weeks passed. We tried hard but they were unwilling to meet strangers; scared even to come out of their homes. Finally we thought of involving them through means that would be both interesting and helpful to them. We organized an art workshop at their gali itself. It was not easy to get them together to participate for the same. At first they found it amusing and even showed their hesitance. We then spoke to them and their families and gradually the children thought of exploring the idea. They were provided with mud, plaster, clay; the materials they had known but which they were using for the first time in their lives. They sat there wondering how they would use the same. Making a sculpture is not something they had known. We persisted on giving it a try and finally they took the inner courage to make it. Slowly, they dig their hands into mud and plaster. As their hands began to play; they experienced thrill and excitement. They started loving the activity. In between,
We asked, “what do you revere as your savior?.”
“The peepal tree”, said one of the participants.
“Would you like to build it?” ,we asked further.
“Yes”, came the consensus reply.
They slowly began to build the trunk, its branches and leaves but the structure never lasted for long. They tried several times but did not succeed. Few weeks passed. Finally, we prepared a metallic tree frame for them to help them build an enduring sculpture of their peepal tree.
At first they constructed the trunk for which they applied several layers of plaster. With the passage of time, they came up with the ideas on how to make the tree appear similar to their real peepal tree. Accordingly they scratched lines on the trunk, shaped leaves with a pointed edge and built veins with threads. The tree was finally brought to life with various colours which they painted with much enthusiasm; sometimes wrongly painting on another’s segment. After a month, the first tree became ready. They now pondered on the sculpture and thought if they could recreate the scene of the blast. One of them suggested the use of clay for making human figurines, many of them behind the tree and some in front to show how the tree became the savior for people who were positioned behind it. Similarly some others thought of making shrapnels, broken pieces, bomb, etc with clay. Some even made birds hidden inside their nests during the blast. Later they decided to show broken glasses and metals spread around the tree.
Today, this is how the first model of the tree looks like (refer to the image in Terrorist Violence's Album )
The tree gives a shrunk appearance with shrapnels stuck on the frontal part of the trunk (notice the circular clay forms of gold with a black centre). The golden chrome symbolizes shrapnels and black chrome symbolizes nails; the elements that are used for preparing bombs. The branches also depict a nest on the back side and birds hiding inside it. The site of the blast depicts an exploded bomb both in and outside a broken dustbin. It also shows bits of broken glass (notice portions of plastic sheet spread on the wooden base), metallic pieces (notice the silver sparklers (sitare) spread all around the base) and other objects (notice the broken parts of clay). A group of people can be seen hiding behind the tree, together acquiring the support from the same. The black marks on the board are a representation of smoke that might have appeared during the blast. The front view presents a gory scene with dead bodies, their broken limbs and blood oozing out from the same. A child can also be seen crying for help sitting near his dead parent.
Building the above model gave them strength to accept the incidence and yet move on with their lives. With the period of time, children desired to build another tree showcasing their life after the traumatic incident as they had began to felt changes in their lives. Their fear had reduced; they now felt courageous to come out of their homes. Some of the younger children regained their confidence of crossing the road. They even felt much more united and together after working with each other during the workshops. Their faith in the tree also strengthened with time and encouraged them to build another model of the same peepal tree.
The tree was prepared in the similar manner as mentioned above with increased number of branches and leaves. The clay figurines now appeared more colourful and lively.
This is how the second model looks like (refer to the image in Terrorist Violence's Album )
The second model is symbolic of the spirit that survives come what may. The same shrapnel ridden peepal tree now looks fuller and alive with widespread leafy branches. Birds here are now out of their nests seeking pleasure of their freedom, a few of the white ones are busy chomping their grains. The tree has been shown surrounded by the children of the community wearing colourful attires. Some of them can be seen playing or doing yoga or reading or simply relaxing under its shade. Girl figurines can be seen involved in different activities such as skipping, dancing, etc. A few of them can be spotted as worshipping the tree (notice the female figurines in salutations with a lamp and offerings on the left side of the model). The sun rise in the background symbolizes the new life, the community experienced after recovering from the traumatic event. The green dabs on the base along-with the golden sparklers indicates ‘the happiness’, ‘the shine’ that returned months after the blast. The model signifies how people of this community learnt to rejoin the broken pieces of life and live again.
Our frequent visits resulted in these two sculptures of the tree which today stand as a testimony to what the community went through. Both the trees were prepared painstakingly over a period of time. Initially these children playfully experimented with the idea but with time, they became completely involved in the process.
We hope you found inspiration in reading the above story. They shared the experience with you to describe how people and communities learn to survive even in the most traumatic situations. We look forward to hearing from you and ask you to send your feedbacks.
From The Team of Swanchetan
(Written by Srishti Tikku)