Dhiraj Rabha Brings ULFA Camp Memories to Bengaluru Exhibition at Sabha BLR

Assam-based artist Dhiraj Rabha has brought his multi-media installation, Reminiscences of Home, to Bengaluru's Sabha BLR, where the work is on display between August 27 and 29. The installation reflects on the notion of home and archives the memories of community members residing in a Goalpara camp in Assam for former members of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA).

Implemented under the India Foundation for the Arts (IFA) Arts Practice programme, the project combines archival material, interviews, audio-video components, and physical structures. The installation incorporates the personal narratives of around 45 people, including former ULFA members who surrendered their arms after peace talks with the Indian Government.

Rabha drew directly on his personal background to create the installation. Born in Assam's Barali Gaon, he moved in 1999 at the age of four to the residential camp in Goalpara where his father lived after laying down arms. After studying Political Science and completing undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Painting from Kala Bhavana at Visva Bharati University in Santiniketan, Rabha returned home during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2021 and began recording the experiences of residents in the camp.

Among the accounts featured in the installation is that of Malati Rabha, who joined ULFA as a young girl hoping to receive free training to become a nurse, only to spend her time in camouflage gear rather than medical uniforms. She now lives alone in a house on a hill at the edge of a village.

Rabha explained that while the project does not defend or glorify ULFA, it seeks to present untold perspectives and understand the complex meaning of home for individuals living under surveillance.

The installation was originally assembled in 2024 at the Goalpara camp itself and has been featured at events including the Serendipity Arts Festival, Bengal Biennale, and the Kochi-Muziris Biennale. During the exhibition at Sabha BLR, Rabha is conducting multiple daily walkthroughs of the work.