The performance project “Place Where We Live” is a long curatorial project to understand the historicity of place and to reexamine the unique value of architecture and history. In this performance, we used artistic and performative intervention to relocate ideas about the Hazrat Nizzamudin dargah (mausoleum) as a space. The performance took place near the tomb of a very popular Sufi saint, Nizamuddin Auliya, who is known as the patron saint of Delhi. This place is well known for several historical monuments featuring Muslim dynasty architecture from the twelfth century to the nineteenth century. Nearby, Barakhamba, a small construction of twelve pillars and four domes from a fourteenth century tomb building from the Tughlaq dynasty, is now used as a street children’s park and a place where homeless locals and travellers gather without restriction. This performance was a reaction and response to these places and the elements and objects found there.

I did not know what exactly I would do during this performance, at first. When I visited Nizamuddin tomb, I bought rose petals, which people use to worship the great Sufi saint. I also bought surma (eye wash) and found a broken red toy horse near the Barakhanba campus. I found a place for my performance in the central dome, and began playing with and riding the toy horse. After a while, I sat down and Saaqi put the eye wash in my eyes. I slowly lay down and placed the red horse on my chest, and then started putting rose petals in my mouth and chewed them. Soon my mouth was full of rose petals and I could not swallow, so I took the rose petals from my mouth and used them to make a circular shape around my body. While I was doing this, several people interacted with me and uttered some words, and some put rose petals on my face. As this was happening I was only listening to Abhimanyu’s guitar, which he was playing during the entire performance. After I finished repeating the action of chewing the rose petals and making the circle around my body, I took the red horse with me and left the dome.