Dawinder Bansal is an award-winning British artist and producer who unearths hidden stories that are personal, yet universal to amaze, entertain, inspire and educate people in society. She has a track record of creating successful stage shows & immersive art installations by weaving cultural heritage & contemporary stories into her work. Dawinder also was responsible for developing and producing Southbank Centre’s largest South Asian festival, ‘Alchemy’ for the Black Country region.
Here are a few excerpts from her exclusive interview with Asian Voice.
We're in 2021, yet we continue to talk of racism, homophobia and class prejudice. Why do you think we as a society have not been able to correct our mindset?
It was for this very reason that I based We Found Love In The 80s in the decade of the 1980s. Having grown up as a child in the 80s, I saw things through a child's lense and I was also protected from the reality of the world by my parents. As an adult, looking back and also having created so much work about this era - I felt there were so many parallels. This is the very question I wanted us all to stop and think about. Why are we still fighting the same battles of huge economic divides between rich and poor, homophobic behaviour and racism. I wanted this work to address all of these issues by means of love and showing the world that difference does not mean division. Difference can be delebratory and if we are open and curious about asking the right questions and importantly listening then perhaps it might challenge our own prejudices.
Every generation has its own struggles and it's up to activist artists like me - who remind people, through the vehicle of art that we need to understand what happened in the past so that we can live a better future while celebrating our differences. After all, wouldn't the world be a boring place if we were all the same? As the David Bowie quote says “The greatest thing you'll ever learn is to love and be loved in return.” -David Bowie. This for me extends to the communities across Britain, as well as our personal lives.
Please tell us more about the We Found Love in The 80s projects. How will it be of interest to the Asian community?
This project is a multi-art form project that celebrates the diversity of Britain through love stories who fell in love in the 80s. It was launched at a time of the Black Lives Matters protests and I felt people had become very angry and separated. I felt it was necessary to do an artistic piece of work which enabled highlighted ordinary lives of different kinds of people, from different ethnic backgrounds and sexual orientation to bring us all back to one thing that unites us all - love. It's an artistic creation with purpose and I hope that people who watch the film and listen to the podcasts will appreciate the uniqueness of each story and the honesty in which they share their lives.
We feature couples who are Asian - one who had a traditional arranged marriage and they talk openly about going to marriage counselling after their children left home. Another Asian couple talk about being in an inter-caste relationship and how people they knew were disowned for marrying outside of their own caste in the 80s. We also have an inter-racial Asian and White couple who are queer and highlight the need to keep their relationship a secret at a time when Margaret Thatcher brought Section 28 into the government legislation. They are currently featured in this week's podcast release on Spotify under the title of We Found Love In The 80s - Helen & Deirdre.
When you have the power to entertain with art, what kind of responsibility comes with addressing the issues you root for?
As an artist, I feel privileged to be able to use art as a vehicle to take people on new journeys of discovery. All of my artwork is complex, layered with a deeper reason or meaning to the work. Asian women & cars was about celebrating pioneering Asian women who fought the patriarchal family structure for independence. Love in the 80s is about celebrating the diversity of Britain through love stories. Jambo Cinema tackled the lack of South Asian representation on TV through my story of growing up inside my parents Bollywood rental shop and our working class migrant story.
Art has the power to change people's perspectives on issues and allows others to step into another's person's world and I believe this creates a deeper sense of empathy for others.
We all need more empathy in society and through doing meaningful artistic projects - I like to think I am a bridge to taking audiences into another world for them to see things from a different perspective and be changed by it while being entertained. It's actually quite magical when that happens.
What according to you, is the future of women in colour (especially as artists) post the pandemic?
I have to say, I really dislike the term Women of Colour, mainly because as a second generation Asian woman, we have had to fight to be recognised for our individual identities, which are richer and more complex than the colour of my skin. I deliberately avoid this term although I know it's widely used nowadays but the term unsettles me. I suppose it goes back to the days of being referred to as 'coloured' in the 80s and 90s which felt like I was being 'othered' and was quite offensive.
Historically, whenever there is a financial crisis, women are always affected negatively economically more than men. Now is no exception, which is why it feels like the 1980s - where the economic divide between rich and poor was huge. The creative sector has been hit so hard throughout the pandemic and financially people have been missed from any government help - especially artists. Interestingly though, its creativity that has kept us all entertained and sane during the Covid-19 pandemic yet the government places such little value on it.
After the pandemic - I'd like to think that people begin to appreciate how important art and creativity is in our daily lives. It's kept us entertained and sane during a time of separation, isolation and loneliness. For some people, creativity in whatever form that has come in - has been a lifeline while being stuck indoors for so many months. Once lockdown eases and life returns to normal - I hope that people remember the vital role of art and our well being and therefore, the need for artists to make work and create will put them in a stronger position. Artists are society's disruptors, thinkers, makers, doers and by creating art after the pandemic is over will be essential in healing our communities, hearts and minds.
