Language Barrier

I armed myself with the Concise Oxford Dictionary. But I did not find the meaning of "decathect", which I assumed was opposed to cathect which is derived from cathexis meaning concentration of energy in one direction. Such words are sprinkled all over.

To be fair the book wishes to communicate with a different level of readers. Clearly, it is aimed at scholars and academics: those with general or some level of specialised interest in cultural studies will find the book tough going given the complexity of language, the abundance of references and allusions. But Kapur has a fine mind and many of her ideas are worth grappling with even if one does not agree with her all the way.

Along with the Preface, where Kapur explains the underlying ideas of this project, the book is divided into three sections. The first section deals with 'Artists and Art Work'. The second with 'Film/Narratives' and the third, 'Frames of Reference' where the essays relate to culture studies. None of the essays are new. They have been presented on a variety of platforms and published with additional material. It is as if Kapur has favourite topics in the realm of ideas on which she likes to dwell, coming up every now and then with new insights and allusions. All of these are woven in without altering much of the basic text.

The first essay in the first section deals with four women artists - Amrita Sher Gil, Frida Kahlo, Nalini Malani and Arpita Singh. While one may not agree with the parallels Kapur has drawn between Sher Gil and Kahlo who was a highly politicised artist, what is significant is her insightful discussion of the representation of the female body in the works of these women artists.

Although Kapur has moved away from her earlier style of art writing, she still retains the elan. Highlighting Arpita Singh's painterly quality, she writes, "Working with pure pigment and little oil, the artist is bold in her patisserie, kneading colour, building up a dry cake with sweet stuffings, layer upon layer." Unfortunately, such writing is rare.

The second essay is a memorial to the minimalist artist Nasreen Mohamedi who died in 1990 at the age of 53. Mohamedi was a close friend and this piece is suffused with a measure of poetry.

The first essay on cinema analyses Ritwik Ghatak's Jukti, Takko ar Gappo, the filmmaker's last film. The second dissects the Apu Trilogy by Satyajit Ray. The third interprets Sant Tukaram by V. Damle and S. Fattelal and Satyajit Ray's Devi. Kapur attempts to see how traditional iconographies are approached by directors far removed in time and sensibility.

The last section has six essays that offer a theoretical framework for the cultural practices of our time. The theme essay 'When was Modernisation in Indian Art' has an overview of Indian modernism which is significant if debatable. Although the approach to each essay is different, there is the same mind at work in all. Kapur is very transparent about whom she favours and for whom she reserves the merest nod of recognition. Consider the way she dismisses A. Ramachandran, Ganesh Pyne, along with Laxma Goud and others.

There are some imageries which surface again and again in her theoretical framework like the idea of a journey or a matrix or grid for living. And finally, the neologisms are often a little disturbing. Words like organicity and iconicity impede reading and does not always illuminate the line of thinking.

The question remains: does the complexity of ideas have to be communicated in so dense a language? I would like to think not.