Performing Belief exhibition in New Delhi brings together 22 modern, folk, tribal and contemporary artists to examine ritual, memory and cultural continuity through visual art.
About the Performing Belief Exhibition
A new group exhibition, Performing Belief, will open in New Delhi on 13 August 2026, bringing together works by twenty-two leading modern, folk, tribal and contemporary artists. Curated by Rahul Kumar, the exhibition presents ritual as more than a religious act. Instead, it explores ritual as a way of remembering, creating, caring and connecting across generations.
Hosted at Kalakaar Art Salon in Defence Colony, the exhibition marks the beginning of the institution’s renewed curatorial programme. The initiative aims to create meaningful conversations between modern Indian art and contemporary artistic practice through exhibitions, research and public engagement.
Haku Shah | Untitled | Oil on canvas |24 x 24 inches | Image Credit: Kalakaar Art Salon
Modern Masters Meet Contemporary Voices
The Performing Belief exhibition features works by some of India’s most celebrated artists, including S. H. Raza, F. N. Souza, M. F. Husain, Jamini Roy, G. R. Santosh, Sohan Qadri, Haku Shah, Shanti Dave, Bhuri Bai, Lado Bai, Jivya Soma Mashe, Manu Parekh, Madhvi Parekh, Thota Vaikuntam, Shobha Broota, Manisha Gera, Yudhishthir Maharjan, Sheetal Gattani, Satyanarayana Gavara, Savia Lopez, Himmat Gyari and Dibin Thilakan.
Manu Parekh | 2 panels of 5 x 6 ft | Image Credit: Kalakaar Art Salon
Rather than presenting these artists in separate historical categories, the exhibition places their works alongside one another. This approach highlights shared ideas while showing how artistic practices have evolved across time. Visitors can see how mythology, folk traditions, memory and lived experiences continue to shape artistic expression today.
Ritual Beyond Religion
The exhibition expands the meaning of ritual beyond sacred ceremonies and religious symbols. Here, ritual appears through repeated actions, labour, devotion, memory and everyday experiences. Contemporary artists revisit these ideas through themes such as migration, ecology, gender, urban life and identity.
The exhibition also looks at artistic practice itself as a ritual. The repeated act of making art becomes a way of preserving memory and renewing cultural traditions. Materials such as pigment, paper, cloth, earth, wood, thread and found objects are treated as carriers of history, linking art with craft, labour and devotion.
A New Curatorial Direction
Curator Rahul Kumar says the exhibition creates fresh conversations between modern, vernacular and contemporary artistic practices.
He explains that bringing these works together allows viewers to discover unexpected connections while reconsidering familiar stories of Indian art. According to Kumar, contemporary artists continue to reinterpret and extend the legacies of modernism in new and meaningful ways.
Shivin Khanna, Co-Founder of Kalakaar Art Salon, says the salon was envisioned as a space where artistic traditions could meet outside rigid categories. He adds that Performing Belief shows how symbols, materials and cultural memories continue to change as artists respond to the present.
Image 1: G R Santosh | Acrylic on Canvas Board | 24.0 x 20.0 in, Image 2: FRANCIS NEWTON SOUZA | Pieta, 1974 | Oil on Board | 30 X 20 in (76.5 x 51 cm) | Signed and dated upper left: Souza ‘7, Image 3: Jamini Roy | Signed ‘Jamini Roy’ on lower right | Tempera on paper | 30 x 19 inches | Image Credit: Kalakaar Art Salon
Co-Founder Saira Khanna hopes visitors leave with more than memories of individual artworks. She says the exhibition encourages close observation and conversation while helping audiences understand ritual as something connected to memory, materials, repetition and everyday life.
About Kalakaar Art Salon
Kalakaar describes itself as an art salon rather than a conventional gallery. Founded by Saira Khanna and Shivin Khanna, it brings together modern and contemporary art, collectible furniture and cultural objects within carefully curated spaces. Every exhibition is designed to encourage dialogue between artworks, materials and histories.
With Performing Belief, the salon begins a long-term programme that places historical and contemporary practices in conversation, encouraging viewers to think about the many connections that continue to shape Indian art.
Exhibition Details
- Exhibition: Performing Belief
- Curator: Rahul Kumar
- Artists: 22 modern, folk, tribal and contemporary artists including S. H. Raza, F. N. Souza, M. F. Husain, Jamini Roy, Manu Parekh, Madhvi Parekh and others
- Venue: Kalakaar Art Salon, D-64, Block D, Defence Colony, Second Floor, New Delhi
- Dates: 13 August – 30 September 2026
- Timings: Monday to Saturday, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
This article has been created from the press kit shared with Abir Pothi. For press releases and related queries, write to editor@abirpothi.com.
Cover Image: Himmat Gayri Visarjan | 2025 | Staedtler pencil | Watercolor on paper with etching tool | 24 x 35 in | Image Credit: Kalakaar Art Salon
Contributor
