Artist and photographer Raihan Vadra, son of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Robert Vadra, on Thursday slammed Bikaner House over the removal of more than 70 photographs from his collection just hours before his solo exhibition was set to open and accused the venue’s administration of curtailing artistic freedom.
Raihan alleged that the Bikaner House administration objected to 74 photographs across two rooms, citing their political context and booking policy, despite having received the exhibition layout in advance. The removal left the two rooms largely bare, with the artist saying the collection represented three years of his work rather than just photographs of recent protests in Delhi.
“I think any type of curtailing of art is wrong,” Raihan told India Today, arguing that removing a large number of photographs simply because they might be considered objectionable was unacceptable for a cultural institution.
Titled No Idea is Final, the exhibition brings together three years of his photographic work, including street photography, youth movements and images from recent protests in Delhi. While the show features more than 100 photographs and artworks, 74 photographs across two rooms were objected to by the administration.
Recounting the events leading up to the exhibition, Raihan said he had shared the layout with Bikaner House on October 15 and received an acknowledgement from the administration.
However, he was informed only hours before the exhibition was due to open on October 20 that some photographs might violate the venue’s booking policy.
“I said I am not inclined to remove any of these, but if you really have a problem, you can give it to me in writing and explain which are the photos that you have a problem with and why. Then we can discuss, maybe I'll replace a few,” he said.
Raihan said the administration did not respond until around 2 pm on October 21, when he was told that the photographs had to be removed. The principal resident commissioner subsequently told him that the timing and context of the images, given what was happening in India and Delhi, made the works political in nature and therefore contrary to the venue's policy, he recalled.
Questioning this reasoning, Raihan said the political context surrounding an artwork should not determine whether it can be exhibited.
He said that at around 3.30 pm, the administration warned that the exhibition would be cancelled and the building sealed if the photographs were not removed by 4 pm.
With only hours left before the opening, Raihan and his team initially turned the photographs around, leaving the backs of the frames facing visitors. However, officials insisted that the pictures be taken down entirely and placed in storage, he said.
For Raihan, the controversy was particularly disappointing because Bikaner House had been a regular venue for his work. He said he had held his first exhibition there in 2021 and had returned almost every year since.
He said he had regarded the venue as a space where artists could present their work and express themselves freely, regardless of the subject.
“I would understand if there's something that's a little too overtly political, that there are slogans being put, or if there's graphic nudity in some artworks. That is understandable. But just blanket removing 75 photos because they may be objectionable to somebody does not work,” he said.
Raihan argued that a cultural institution could not claim to support the arts while restricting the freedom of artists to display their work.
“You can't call yourself a cultural institution or a stakeholder in the arts if you're going to curtail freedom of expression,” he said.
He also questioned whether the same standards would apply irrespective of which political party was in power, arguing that artwork should not be removed simply because those in government disagreed with its content.
Despite the setback, Raihan said he did not want the entire exhibition to be cancelled after months of work by him and his team. The two rooms containing the photographs objected to by the administration have been cleared, while the rest of the exhibition is continuing as planned until Sunday.
He said he was looking for another venue in Delhi where the removed photographs could be displayed over the next month. The exhibition is also scheduled to travel to Bengaluru in December, where the works will be put on view.
The removal has left visible gaps in the exhibition space at the CCA building in Bikaner House, with two rooms on the first floor largely bare and nails still visible on the red walls where photographs had hung. Copies of the Preamble to the Constitution were placed along the otherwise empty walls.
A Bikaner House official declined to comment, saying they were not authorised to do so.
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