Black Mother

1999-2000

Black Mother is the first part of my ongoing series Story of Love, Desire & Agony. These photographs of the mother goddess ritual were shot during the Meena Bharani Festival in Kodungallur in present Kerala. During the Sangam period (3rd century BCE – 3rd century CE), the famous port MuchiRi was controlled by the Cera dynasty from this port town. As per epic Cilappathikaram, heroine Kannaki ascended to heaven from this territory. Black Mother is a continuation of my cultural search for the archetypal Mother Goddess cult worship that was commonly practiced here and Afro-Arabia during the Sangam period and a re-discovery of the primordial feminine in contemporary society. Read More….

Black Mother – The Myth of Kannaki  |   Story of Love, Desire and Agony   |   1999 – 2000   |  120 mm Film Negative