“If I were in Tibet, I would walk up to the top of Potala (in Lhasa, capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in China); chant ‘Om mani padme hum (a Buddhist mantra)’; host the Tibetan flag high up in the air; dash across the green meadows with yaks and sheep and yell, ‘Free Tibet!’,” Kunga Dechen describes his painting of the Potala Palace, Buddhist monks and Tibetan land.
Like Kunga, many Tibetan students from five schools across Himachal Pradesh—Upper TCV, Meweon Tsuglag Petoen School, TCV Gopalpur, TCV Suja, and TCV Chauntra—painted Tibet through their perspective.
Centred around the theme ‘If I were in Tibet’, a total of 50 such colourful artworks are on display at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi. These paintings—presented in collaboration with the Foundation for Universal Responsibility and Khadhok—not only represent the dreams of an “individual”, but of “a generation separated from its homeland”.
A large Tibetan population has been living in India for more than six decades after they followed the Dalai Lama into exile. The exiled community has been speaking out against the alleged repressions of the Chinese Communist Party’s People’s Liberation Army in Tibet. While the younger generation has not visited their homeland, the exiled community is making constant efforts to keep them linked to their roots and understand and preserve the Tibetan culture and ethos.
“Many Tibetans in exile, especially the younger generation who have never been to Tibet, know very little about the country. But we grew up hearing stories about what life was like there,” says Tashi Nyima, a visual artist and co-founder of Khadhok.
The idea for the theme of this exhibition, titled 'Dreaming Tibet', also grew from the same—“to letting the kids open up with their dreams and imagination about Tibet”.
“With information now available instantly, these kids are more aware of what is happening in Tibet,” Nyima added. “Some paintings are simple and innocent, as expected. But in others, you can see how deeply aware these students are of the political struggles in their homeland.”
Some sketches show the beauty of Tibet—its valleys, green meadows, yaks, and even the Potala Palace. But others, according to Nyima, are also “quite intense” in nature. He refers to “a painting of a child being forced into a ‘5/5 rated’ school, where kids study about Chinese culture while Tibetan history and culture fades into the background.”
