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Feature

36 hrs, June 06, 2014

36 hrs is a duration-based provocation to artists/non-artists to share a singular physical space. Through this entire duration of 36 hours people are invited to join in, stay, visit and become a part by contributing to or engaging with individual/collaborative acts, conversations, discussions, performances, readings, watching films, take naps, exert, and exhaust etc.

The first session of 36 hrs was organised by Paribartana Mohanty, WALA Collective, and was hosted by The Sarai Programme on Friday, June 06, 2014, 8:00 pm onwards.

People from various backgrounds, disciplines and practices were invited to join and to spend 36 hours in a finite space and collectively attempt to contribute and engage in individual and collaborative acts, conversations, discussions, performances, readings, watching films, sleeping, and exhausting. About 50 participants attended the event.

Images from the Session

36 hrs - Image by Murari Jha
Credit: Murari Jha.

36 hrs - Image by Rabindra Patra
Credit: Rabindra Patra.

36 hrs - Image by Preeti Singh
Credit: Preeti Singh.

36 hrs - Image by Rabindra Patra
Credit: Rabindra Patra.

Notes from the Session

Anybody on sleep, sleeping, sleepers and sleeplessness? Did you as a collective body imitate the building’s different times? Do you think any of the corners of the room began talking back to you? Did the softness of the grass soothe your minds? Were you relaxed? Did you find comfort in being with each other? What was this togetherness?

Akansha Rastogi

After returning, I mostly felt convoluted!

An anxiety is stalking, and I feel caged in 36hrs. Not been able to scribble a single line. I am not able to recall my’self’ from that space and time, yet feel overlapped by its tremendous energetic moments and exchange of something and nothing. Its loudness and silence both seem to have merged for me. It seems we danced and mourned in a silent protest for who we are together. The madness and ardor only grew and continuously moved towards understanding of deeper strings attached to its methods. reaching to an amplitude of reciprocations with calm and heated togetherness.

I only remember of myself is rubbing my skin when I was sweating, taking nap in a corner of glass room on the floor with all kinds of sounds in my ears, feeling psychotic as it felt I was talking to myself, sensing heat of bodies around, seeing with closed eyes… nights turning white as we sat on pricking but soft green grass barefoot conversing, waiting for nothing. I also remember reading a piece in loud voice from Happy Death by Camus when everyone conversed with each other almost ignoring what I read but not me…delusioned in slumber ate and sat conversing ideologies of politics, art, culture, body and possibilities of breaking them to construct layers of many invisible 36hrs which exists beyond any organized space…which breaths within us in joy and pangs and assemble us to stand affirmed in our positions to pass it on into another layer to its extensions making it a process of revival of banal conventions that we carry from ages in suspension of its surety.

It doesn’t matter what really happened within the contours of that defined time and space, what matters is we were THERE and we are HERE in bare minds and skin thinking about it. Rest rests under our skins for further contemplations and actions…

Thank You Friends, we all made sure we all were THERE and lets also make sure we got it HERE too :)

Preeti Singh

My 36 hrs, my decision, my way, my feeling, my point of view, my art, my reactions, my experience okay i don’t wanna talk like Mahatama Gandhi Ji ;)

The only place so far where i experienced the live distinctive behaviour changes among humans.
I needed this. I can feel the change in me after those 34 hrs (ahh i was late). The change which i can’t explain, the change which is only for my ownself. I feel more connected to my inner self. There is not a single point or moment where i felt this should not have had happened. All those arguments, discussion, performances were so beautiful. Wow. I would say as a art student this is the best thing happened so far. I am so relaxed. Thank you all.

Deepanshu Joshi

Friday night, 6th June 2014, saw many of us trooping into the CSDS building, more popular among the artists as ‘Sarai.’ Just like the travelers who rested at the sarai, we, a small group of practicing artists, from Delhi, thought of resting here for 36 hours. Thus the proposal came to be known as ‘36 hours’. Invitations were of course sent to people from other walks of life to make the gathering more eclectic.

Some felt hungry. So quickly, something to munch was arranged. The laptop and the projector were put in place. By 10, we settled down to watch a film on 1964 Tokyo Olympics. This was suggested by Parivartan. Really a unique film on human efforts and resilience. Discussions followed the film. Food was also served. All of us gathered and sat in the lawn. As suggested by two girls from Young India Fellowship, some events were played out to get to know one another. The internet and google played a great part in this. Question and answer sessions among the participants followed, but mostly among few eager ones. Feeling tired, me went to take rest on a sofa. In between people came in, made tea and went out again.

Around 4 a.m. and once again a film by John Berger is screened. An interesting film and we discuss on it .Early morning, we assemble in the lawn and do a few exercises. I suggest we should play traditional games which have disappeared totally. Playing hop scotch, everyone struggles on one leg. I too find it difficult. Men suggest a game of ‘kabaddi’. I too join them. The game begins and a few shirts are torn. We finally go in and have breakfast. Some people take a shower or change into fresh clothes. Pace slows down and people are in small groups. Some have gone to sleep spreading the newspaper on the floor. A film by Amar Kanwar is screened. I try my best, but feeling sleepy, couldn’t register anything. Again a film by John Berger is screened. Discussions often drifts tangently.Endless cups of tea and coffee follows. Evening approaches. Paribartana gives a performance or whatever u can call it on Gandhhi’s book ‘My experiments with truth’. Passages are read out. In the hot summer, rain god arrives and a storm is unleashed. People troop into the lawn and heated arguments follow. It is 8 a.m. and 36 hours comes to an end. Or is it the beginning?

Hema Guha