Dead Dahlias

Amitabh Kumar, a designer and artist in Bangalore, graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts, MSU Baroda. He worked with the Sarai Media Lab (2006-2010) leading research, creating comics, programming events, designing books, and co-curating an art space. He is a visiting faculty member at Srishti School of Art and Design and Technology and a founding member of The Pao Collective, a Delhi-based comics group.

This mural draws from the site's historical context and its graphic potential. The image's story begins with the Pandavas' exile to Khandavaprastha after losing a dice game, where Krishna transformed it into Indraprastha, The City of Gods, believed to be in present-day New Delhi. Now crumbling, the mural invites viewers to capture its fragments, symbolizing Delhi's decline and potential regeneration. Public art in Lodhi Art District may signal its rebirth.