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| ATMA NIRBHAR BHARAT! (Self Reliant India) A series of Terracotta sculptures dedicated to the Migrant Labourers during the Corona Virus Lockdown period by Milan Sengupta. The sculptures of "The Atma Nirbhar Bharat" (Self Reliant India) Series are dedicated to over 1 crore utterly helpless Migrant Workers who suffered and died and walked hundreds and thousands of Kilometers to go back to their homes, with their "Democratically Elected Govt" practically absent where required. The sculptures are also dedicated to those Press Reporters and Photographers, Doctors, Medical personnel, Bank Staff, Government Workers, Police personnel and all those who laid down their lives serving the nation while trying to save and help the people from Corona virus, in whatever capacity they were in. "The Atma Nirbhar Bharat" Series has over sixty sculptures. All of them were made seeing real life photographs and not a single from the sculptor's imagination, over a period of Seven months starting from March 2022. Burning the sculptures into terracotta and finishing was completed in December 2022. The choice of the medium of sculpture was made by the sculptor primarily due to his inability to afford more permanent and expensive mediums for obvious reasons and Poet Rajesh Datta feels that the choice is befitting the subject as both, the lives of the Migrant Labourers and the medium of sculpture have been thoroughly BURNT! |
| The sculpture shown here is that of the Child on the Muzaffarpur Railway Station platform trying to wake up his dead mother. The Migrant Labourer lady died while travelling from Ahmedabad in Gujarat to Katihar in Bihar by a Shramik Special train on 25th May 2020. Her body was removed and kept on Muzaffarpur Railway Station platform. Two of her children 4yrs and 2 ½ years old were with her. Some reports said that she had died of hunger and dehydration which the Railways was quick to dismiss. The vdo had gone viral. |
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| ATMA NIRBHAR BHARAT (Self Reliant India) terracotta sculptures. To view any sculpture click on the links |
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The sculpture shown here is that of a Mother pulling a suitcase with a plastic rope and her Child, fallen asleep on it due to exhaustion. On or around 15th May 2020, they were spotted in Hariparvat police limits in Agra district of Uttar Pradesh. They had been walking for several days from Punjab, to reach Agra bus stand to catch a bus for Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, if available. This VDO went viral. The sculptor is not surprized seeing the courage and physical ability of this Mother because she hailed from the Land of Jhansi ki Rani Lakshmi Bai (Queen Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi 19th November 1828 - 18th June 1858) who has become immortal for showing highest form of bravery, against the British, with her adopted son Prince Damodar Rao, on her horse Badal. |
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This is a four-piece sculpture about a viral vdo of a child pushing the stretcher of his grandfather, with one hand and one leg plastered, while his mother pulling it. According to the reports, grandpa Chedi Yadav, a resident of Gaura village was assaulted by some people a few days back and sustained serious injuries and was admitted to a government hospital in Uttar Pradesh’s Deoria district, where the hospital staff were asking for Rs 30 every time the patient had to be taken from ward to OT/dressing room and back. Unable to pay Rs 30 to the staff as bribe, the woman and her six-year-old son were forced to push the stretcher themselves. Some Fact Checking websites, in their attempts to exonerate the Govt from any controversy, could put the date of the vdo as early as July 2020! Which was after Unlocking had been declared by GoI, but actually very much during the Corona Virus period! As if it was OK if this incident happened after the lockdown period! |
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| This is the sculpture of a Migrant labourer Rampukar Pandit, who worked at a cinema hall site in Delhi, was spotted weeping as he talked on his mobile phone by the side of the Nizamuddin Bridge in Delhi by PTI photographer Atul Yadav on 11th May 2020. His son was ill in his home in Begusarai in Bihar, almost 1,200 km away and died. He had pleaded with the police but was not allowed to go home. A journalist offered to give him a lift in his car but the police did not allow. The lady gave him food and 5,500 rupees and booked his ticket in a special train, and that’s how he reached home but did not get to see his son. Govt of India was forced to start some Special Trains for the Migrant Labourers after they realised that nothing could stop them from going back to their homes and after a worldwide condemnation! The Govt even made these people, who had lost everything, buy tickets for the train journeys, even during this Natural Calamity! Just to mention here that the same Govt, the one that is Democratically Elected by the People of The Largest Democracy, through Reserve Bank of India, on 27th March 2020, declared a debt relief of Rs. 68000 Crores (Rs. 68 Billion or 821.75 Million USD) for 50 Billionaires including Ram Dev and Bhagoras (fugitives) like Mehul Choksi! |
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| This sculpture is about a one-legged man taking his family of wife and two children and riding a bicycle! This video went viral where the man is seen to start riding the bicycle initially with the help of a bamboo stick and then rides away pedaling with his only leg, with his whole family! One fact checking website said that this incident had occurred before the lockdown, in an attempt to absolve the Govt of any controversy. Even though the sculptor has reservations against such pro-Govt fact checkers, he takes it on face value and asks --- “If this is not an act of Self Reliance of the highest order by any Indian, then what is?” |
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| The sculpture shown here is that of those Migrant Labourers who were tired after walking long distances and were sleeping on railway tracks, assuming that there would be no Trains during the Lockdown, and got mowed down by a goods train. They can be seen sleeping, while taking care of their meager belongings and the Train is shown as a fiery Angel of Death just about to devour them. This particular incident took place on 8th May 2020 near Aurangabad town in Maharashtra, killing 16 men. As per Railway Board shared the data, in reply to a RTI, more than 8,700 people, many of them said to be migrant workers, were mowed down on railway tracks in 2020 despite passenger train services being severely curtailed by the nationwide lockdown. |
| The sculpture shown here, consisting of 5 sculptures, is that of a family of Migrant Labourers consisting of 3 brothers and wives of the two elder brothers. On or around 13th May 2020, they were making a desperate journey with their bullock cart from Mhow to Indore in the state of Madhya Pradesh. On the way one of the bulls died. Unable to afford another bull, the whole family pulled the cart by turns including the women. This VDO had gone viral. |
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| This 3-piece sculpture (17”x10”) shown here is that of the Migrant Labourers, Women and Children, trying to board a truck for going back to their homes 100s of kms away. This was a very common sight in many places and was covered by the media. Here we can see the rear left tyre of a Truck showing Women trying to board the truck, with whatever little they could bring with them, practically risking their lives. A child can be seen being chucked by a man, and another waiting to catch the child, on top ! That’s how small children were made to board these trucks! This was for the lucky few who could afford the exorbitant charges being demanded by the truckers. These were the people of the Largest Democracy in the World and their “Democratically elected Govts” were just missing ! |
| The sculpture shown here is that of the Migrant Labourers being harassed by the Police. This was quite a common sight in many states. Instead of helping them the Elected Govts used all their power and machinery to treat them as criminals and made them hop or made them carry out other physically exhausting punishments such as sit ups and so on. We must not forget that these people had lost their livelihood and were walking 100s of Kms and were all exhausted. |
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| This sculpture shows a Migrant Labourer pulling his pregnant wife and infant daughter for nearly 700 kms from Hyderabad in Telangana to Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh, on an improvised wooden cart. Their "Democratically Elected Govt" was practically absent and they received no help from any government during the lockdown. |
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| The sculpture shown here is that of 70 yr old Gunja Dei, from Baragan village under Khariar block of Nuapada district of Odisha, who had to take her 120 year old mother Labhe Baghel (that’s what was in the news) to a bank in Naupada to get the latter's pension money after the bank demanded physical verification of the account holder. The bank official, denied to release the pension money and demanded physical verification of the account holder at the bank premises. Unable to afford an ambulance or any other transport, Gunja Dei, who is a senior citizen herself, had to drag her mother to the bank on a khatia (cot). |
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| The sculpture shown here is to commemorate the great journey by a 15 year old girl named Jyoti Kumari, who cycled nearly 1,200 km, all the way from Gurgaon, near Delhi, with her father Mohan Paswan riding pillion, who was a e-rikshaw driver and had got injured in an accident, to reach home amid the corona virus lockdown. She cycled for seven days, going hungry for two of those, before reaching home in Darbhanga district of Bihar. This news broke around 28th May 2020. The VDO went viral. |
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| This sculpture is about a family with two children walking back to their home hundreds of kilometres from their place of work, for days after days carrying both the children and their luggage. |
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| In this sculpture the sculptor has tried to show a man feeding his child while walking back to his village, perhaps hundreds of miles away. In the photo we do not get to see the child’s mother walking nearby. Who knows! She may have expired due to Covid!. The father did not think it wise to even wait for some time and feed his child! They were in such a hurry and in a state of panic! |
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| This sculpture is about a Migrant Labourer family with mother carrying a child and another son holding her anchal (edge of the saree) and father carrying all that he could carry! |
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| This is a sculpture of a Migrant Labourer Mother carrying a baby on her lap and a big sack on her head. Accompanied by her daughter carrying a Matka (pitcher), walking hundreds of miles to their home village. |
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| This sculpture is an endevour to tell the story of a Migrant Labourer Mother who had set out to go back to their home village during the Lockdown, with her child and all that she could carry! It seems she had set out with the child on her lap. But during the journey of 100s of miles, she had to put the child down and make him walk. But the child was not wearing any footware because the mother had started off carrying him on her lap! So she gave the child her pair of slippers and walked barefoot herself! The sculptor is proud to be born in this land which makes such brave Mothers! |
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| The Stylish Family! This sculpture is about a well dressed Migrant Labourer family with mother carrying a child on her lap. The Father carrying all that he can carry. The son and a daughter walking together, son too carrying a big bag on his back and taking care of his sister! This family stood out in the eyes of the sculptor because they are quite stylish in the way they dressed up! |
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| This sculpture is about a Migrant Labourer family with mother and father each carrying a child and walking back hundreds of miles back to their home village from their place of work. The child on mother’s lap is asleep! |
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| This is a sculpture of a 7 month pregnant lady who along with her husband walked a distance of 500 kms from Mumbai to Buldhana. She can be seen in a viral NDTV vdo! |
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| This sculpture is about a Migrant Labourer carrying his mother on his lap and walking back to his village hundreds of miles away. His Democratically Elected Govts of the World’s largest Democracy was no where to be seen. |
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| This is a sculpture of a Migrant young lady carrying her slippers in one hand and her mobile phone in the other, walking hundreds of kms back to her village or town. Perhaps blisters developed on her feet from walking for so long!. She can be seen in the same viral video as the one with the Mother pulling a suitcase with her sleeping son on it! |
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| This sculpture is of a son carrying his father hundreds of miles while going back to their village during the lockdown! The Democratically elected Govts of citizens of the Largest Democracy were just missing! |
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| A Migrant Labourer walking back to his home village hundreds of miles away with his meager belongings in a sack on his head and in a bag in his hand! |
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| This is a sculpture of a Migrant Labourer carrying another man on his back. |
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| This is a sculpture of a Woman with one bag in hand and two on her head! How much can she take and walk for hundreds of miles!? A citizen of the Largest Democracy of the World, her “Democratically Elected Govts” are nowhere to be seen! |
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| This is a sculpture of a Migrant woman carrying her child on her shoulders and walking hundreds of Kms back to her village or town. |
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| This sculpture is about a couple who were walking back to their home village hundreds of miles away from their place of work, during the Lockdown. That the man is holding the hand of his wife in public goes to show the love and affection they have which they did not hesitate to show. |
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| A Young man in pant & shirt carrying a backpack and walking hundreds of miles back to their village or towns. |
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| This is a sculpture of a Migrant old man in Dhoti carrying his meagre belongings. Walking hundreds of Kms back to their village or towns. |
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| Here are 6 sculptures of 5 men and 1 woman! All young ! All carrying Mobile phones, talking, texting or taking selfies with the stream of Migrant Labourers following behind! But all walking hundreds of miles to reach their home villages or cities. These are the young hands that builds modern India and were not only left to fend for themselves by their “Democratically Elected Govts” but were harassed mercilessly at many places they passed through by the Govts of those provinces. |
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| ATMA NIRBHAR BHARAT! (Self Reliant India) A series of Terracotta sculptures dedicated to the Migrant Labourers during the Corona Virus Lockdown period by Milan Sengupta. The sculptures of "The Atma Nirbhar Bharat" (Self Reliant India) Series are dedicated to over 1 crore utterly helpless Migrant Workers who suffered and died and walked hundreds and thousands of Kilometers to go back to their homes, with their "Democratically Elected Govt" practically absent where required. The sculptures are also dedicated to those Press Reporters and Photographers, Doctors, Medical personnel, Bank Staff, Government Workers, Police personnel and all those who laid down their lives serving the nation while trying to save and help the people from Corona virus, in whatever capacity they were in. "The Atma Nirbhar Bharat" Series has over sixty sculptures. All of them were made seeing real life photographs and not a single from the sculptor's imagination, over a period of Seven months starting from March 2022. Burning the sculptures into terracotta and finishing was completed in December 2022. The choice of the medium of sculpture was made by the sculptor primarily due to his inability to afford more permanent and expensive mediums for obvious reasons and Poet Rajesh Datta feels that the choice is befitting the subject as both, the lives of the Migrant Labourers and the medium of sculpture have been thoroughly BURNT! |
| A Self Caricature of the Sculptor |
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| Women and Children, boarding a truck for going back to their homes |