Paribartana MOHANTY grew up in the coastal East Indian state of Odisha and now lives in Delhi, but remains driven by the ecological concerns of his home region. For his VH AWARD artwork, Mohanty traveled more than 10,000 kilometers of the Indian coast to witness and document the effects of natural disasters including cyclones and tsunamis. His artwork, “Rice Hunger Sorrow” follows two protagonists to the ocean and forest, asking continually, “who is the mightiest?” The answer, though never spoken, is perhaps best left as a reflection on our own lack of might in the face of mother nature.
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