Dilara Begum Jolly's solo exhibit opens at Daily Star-Bengal Arts Precinct

A solo exhibition of artist and performer Dilara Begum Jolly titled "Amorar Akkhyan" was inaugurated in Daily Star-Bengal Arts Precinct at The Daily Star Centre in the capital yesterday.

The exhibition portrays the trauma of two lakh women brutally raped during the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971.

Dilara said, "The idea of Amorar Akkyan came to me last year when I visited Dalim Bhaban in Chittagong, the torture cell operated by Mir Quasem Ali in 1971."

"When I visited that place, I took pictures of the room where Mir Quasem Ali's atrocities were carried out. Those pictures are being displayed in the exhibition", she said.

A strong supporter of feminism, Dilara has used the metaphor of the uterus to express her concept.

"In 1971, they wanted to wipe out Bangalees by violating the women repeatedly," she said.

"I tried to bring out the agony of an abused woman, her fear of rejection by the society as she was no longer 'pure', and the unwanted yet unavoidable pregnancy causing birth of a war baby, who is an outcast," she explained.

Dilara said uteruses of women around the world were injured through rape in times of war. Amorar Akkhyan is a tribute to all those women who survived this brutality with their outstanding bravery.

Prominent artists Nisar Hossain, Shishir Bhattacharjee and architect Salauddin Ahmed were present among others at the opening ceremony.

The exhibition, which comprises sculptures, installations, and performance art, is open for public viewing from 10:00am to 10:00pm till January 9 next year.