This “song” is based on a prose narrative inBahr-e-Zakhkhār, the Persian biography of Indian saints and mysticsproduced by Wajihuddin Ashraf in 1788-89.The Sufis described in this biography, from which a short excerpt has been selected, not only had…

This “song” is based on a prose narrative inBahr-e-Zakhkhār, the Persian biography of Indian saints and mysticsproduced by Wajihuddin Ashraf in 1788-89.The Sufis described in this biography, from which a short excerpt has been selected, not only had…

This “song” is based on a prose narrative inBahr-e-Zakhkhār, the Persian biography of Indian saints and mysticsproduced by Wajihuddin Ashraf in 1788-89.The Sufis described in this biography, from which a short excerpt has been selected, not only had…

The fourth song is taken from the corpus of lyrics by Ramprasad Sen, a well-known saint and devotee of Goddess Kali, who lived Halisahar, Bengal, during the 18th Century. Ramprasad's devotional songs to Goddess Kali, known as "Ramprasadi", influenced…

The fifth song is a poem by "Kangal Phikirchand" - the pseudonym was adopted by Harinath Majumdar (1833-1896) who made a pioneering contribution to Bengali journalism, particularly in the cause of oppressed peasants of the region, in the 19th…

The fifth song is a poem by "Kangal Phikirchand" - the pseudonym was adopted by Harinath Majumdar (1833-1896) who made a pioneering contribution to Bengali journalism, particularly in the cause of oppressed peasants of the region, in the 19th…

This is one of two songs in our collection by Kabir the well-known fifteenth-century "weaver poet", whose works circulated widely and survive in often variant forms in later manuscripts. In his life and subsequent reputation, Kabir was influential…

Graphic artist Debkumar Mitra makes vivid the dark symbolism of Kabir's poem and its criticism of greed.

This is one of two songs in our collection by Kabir the well-known fifteenth century "weaver poet", whose works circulated widely and survive in often variant forms in later manuscripts. In his life and subsequent reputation, Kabir was influential…

The graphic artist Sekhar Mukherjee builds on the more satirical edge of Kabir's tone in his interpretation of this song.

This graphic story by Sarbajit Sen tells the tale of Dukhushyam's self-fashioning in the act of writing famine from below.

Our final song is by our contemporary poet, painter, and singer Dukhyshyam Chitrakar. In this short lyric, Dukhushyam speaks in the blended voice of thepīr, drawing on multiple religious traditions to the point that these are indistinguishable. His…

These images are the final version of the graphic story.

In these short clips artist Aratrika Choudhury demonstrates the development of the graphic narrative, and takes us through her preparatory drawings at an early phase.

These images show the artist's initial sketches and work-in-progress as she makes decisions on how to develop the storyline.