The Womb

THE WOMB

The piece draws from a childhood ritual once performed for Shani Dev, the planetary deity of karma and discipline – tying red threads around the Peepal tree for protection. What began as an instructed gesture is now reclaimed as a personal offering, reframed through the lens of the body, memory, and choice. The red thread becomes more than a symbol of protection; it carries associations with blood, fertility, desire, war, love, and death. These layered meanings sit at the core of the work.
The number nine, considered sacred in Hindu cosmology, appears as a structural and symbolic element. It is linked to divine creation, the 9 planetary system, and the feminine cycle of transformation (Navaratri). Here, the 9 red threads mark the rhythm of repetition, transition, and return. The Womb is not a reenactment of ritual, but a transformation of it – a space shaped by the influence of Kali. It invites reflection on how power can emerge through powerlessness, and how love, when chosen freely, becomes its own kind of protection.