On July 25, when those supporting the protest launched by Cockroach Janata Party in New Delhi were rejoicing over the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as education minister, a teenager from Chennai was quietly assembling 11 aspiring artists whose craft is a commentary on systemic injustices.
Eighteen-year-old Samrutha SB is a student of BA Social Science at Azim Premji University in Bengaluru. In Chennai for her semester break, Samrutha decided to bring these artists with their works that open up avenues for conversations on fractures in social structures.
Samrutha SB, who conceptualised and executed the public art exhibition, is a student of BA Social Science at Azim Premji University
The trigger to do something to create a democratic space for dialogue and collective art stemmed from an experience she encountered in college.
In February 2026, Azim Premji University was vandalised by ABVP members over an event organised by SPARK, an informal reading circle constituted by students of the University. Many students including Samrutha were witness to that chaos on campus.
