Prime Minister Modi arriving in a village via helicopter
Artist
Dulari Devi
(Indian)
Date2015
MaterialsInk and colors on paper
DimensionsH. 21 7/8 in x W. 29 1/2 in, H. 55.6 cm x W. 74.9 cm
Credit LineAcquisition made possible by the George Hopper Fitch Bequest
Object number2016.123
DepartmentSouth Asian Art
ClassificationsPainting
On View
Not on viewSignedSigned (on verso): Dulari Devi 15/5
More InformationDulari Devi uses this painting to document Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s campaign visit to Bihar during the lead-up to the 2014 national election. He and his entourage are seen arriving in an imaginatively depicted helicopter.
Reflective of Bihar’s electoral landscape, we see here the politician’s female supporters. Women constitute forty-six percent of the state’s electorate, and in recent elections they turned out to vote in higher numbers than did men, thereby influencing political and policy changes in the state. Bihar is India’s third most populous state but suffers from poverty and inadequate infrastructure. In Bihar, the lower-caste Dusadh community, to which Dulari Devi belongs, plays a significant political role. Gaining support in Bihar was critical for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which organized several preelection rallies for Modi in the region, where he promised economic prosperity for all.
Reflective of Bihar’s electoral landscape, we see here the politician’s female supporters. Women constitute forty-six percent of the state’s electorate, and in recent elections they turned out to vote in higher numbers than did men, thereby influencing political and policy changes in the state. Bihar is India’s third most populous state but suffers from poverty and inadequate infrastructure. In Bihar, the lower-caste Dusadh community, to which Dulari Devi belongs, plays a significant political role. Gaining support in Bihar was critical for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which organized several preelection rallies for Modi in the region, where he promised economic prosperity for all.
