Jayaram Poduval: How this project did get initiated?

Sanjeev Sinha: I conceived this idea in the post 9/11 era. There was Afghan war going on and the world was searching for the peace. And suddenly another war broke out… and so on. I was really upset about the situation and wanted do something for the world peace. It has never happened before that, the artists from all over the world has come together on a single platform for a cause like this. We have Documenta, Triennale etc, but never on a theme like world peace. However, the project was not understood well by the authorities or people at the site. Maybe they thought it as a religious project or promoting Buddhism. Though it was a celebration of Buddha’s enlightenment, it has nothing to do with Buddhism. It is more about the artistic expression for the peace.

However, the basic queries remained; how does one understand peace in the global context and which could be a suitable location for the artists’ meet on peace. Since I hail from Bihar, I thought of Bodhgaya as a location, which represents peace through its historical connection with Buddha’s enlightenment. Bihar, where Bodhgaya is located, is also known as the most violent state in India. Owing to this, I thought any artist would not like to visit Bihar. Still, I thought I could give it a try. 

Then I started asking the artists as to how they feel about this concept. Like I mentioned earlier, none of the artists had visited Bodhgaya earlier. I thought, for the artists it will be a new discovery.

Gagan Vij

JP: It would have been a daunting task to organise a camp in Bodhgaya, when most Indian artists prefer exotic locations.

SS: Yes. Moreover, Bodhgaya is a small village. It finishes within two kilometres.

JP: It is a World Heritage site as well.

SS: It is. So I had to procure UNESCO’s permission to organise a camp. They wrote to me saying that no artist should come inside the temple or touch the Bodhi tree and the sculptures. They did not want us to disturb the devotees of the temple. We were asked to stay 200 meters away from the temple premises.

JP: They were probably afraid of the desecration.

SS: Or maybe they did not want us to hurt the Buddhist religious sentiment. So I wrote to the artists not to make erotic images and also told them to restrain on the use of plastic.

JP: When you are talking about the religious sentiments, let me ask you:  are there ‘Indian Buddhist groups’ in Bodhgaya?

SS: At least two to three groups are there. One group is called Ambedkar Buddhists and another one is the Tibetan group and the third is a Mahayana group from Japan. But the temple is controlled by the Hindus. And around the Maha Bodhi temple there are lots of Hindu temples. There is also a mosque a few meters away.

JP: Because the sight is sacred and everyone wants to build there.

SS: That’s so right.

Dianne: There is a Hindu sculpture in the Maha Bodhi temple itself.

JP: Did they allow you, a foreigner, to go inside the Maha Bodhi temple?

D: Oh yes.

SS: Joseph from Holland wanted to make a film inside with theme of the ghost of Napoleon walking through the ruins. They objected to it saying no film should be shot in the temple, quoting the UNESCO rule. They said the artists might misinterpret the site. Basically, they did not trust us. I must admit that I was a bit scared.

JP: So did Joseph manage to shoot any portion of the film at the site?

SS: No. He shot the film in Nalanda, which is primarily an archaeological site. It’s a nicely done film.

Sometimes, I thought, the monks were very sensitive. One artist had made a Buddha-like sculpture with a very long neck and the monks did not object to it. But, the Indian Buddhists created lots of problems.

D: The Tibetan monks were saying that you couldn’t decide on a single way of representation of Buddha, because after all it’s the expression of the artist.

SS: There were so many sculptures of Buddha at the site and in every sculpture Buddha looked different. So how could one judge, which was the right way of representing Buddha?

JP: True there cannot be a single representational strategy.

SS: Yes.