Blank Noise is a nation wide volunteer led community arts collective that seek to address the issue
of 'eve teasing'. Volunteers are both male and female from across age groups and background. It seeks to bring into conversation the potential harasser, the spectator and the survivor of street sexual harassment.
Blank Noise builds itself into a public conversation collectively tackling attitudes towards sexual violence (shame, blame, guilt, provocation)
The collective seeks to establish street sexual violence/ harassment/ teasing/ as an issue that concerns men as much as women and therefore creates events that refer to street flirting, or focuses on encounters that are a series of cultural
misinterpretations amongst strangers; thus further examining the notion of class and power on the street.
Blank Noise volunteers are celebrated as Action Heroes.
For this project our target area was Yelahanka New town( a small yet upcoming town situated in the outskirts of Bangalore city), area where our college is located and where most of the students reside. The locals in this town aren't really fond of the students from our college, because of cultural, socio- economical gap. And often the students, especially women have been harassed in and around the town.
Hence we conducted a few events which included activities that helped us communicate with the locals, helped us show them who we are and vice versa. Basically owning the area , being a part of the community. We conducted various interviews with the local Cops, and government officials to understand the place and discussed steps that would help the place be more safer and friendly for the us students and the locals.
One of the Events called " TALK TO ME" which was held in a street near college. This street was tagged as 'the rapis lane' by a few students, as many harrassment incidents have occured in that specific street. We gathered in testimonials and then conducted our event, where in we put up five tables with tea and snacks and invited random people passing by the street to sit and have a one on one conversation with us about anything but sexual harassment. We are trying to build safe cities by means of empathy, connections and trust. This has so far been the most exciting project I've ever done.
"TALK TO ME" won the International Award for Public Art (IAPA, 2015) at the Cities in a Climate of change: Public Art and Environmental and Social Ecologies conference in Auckland, New Zealand.
This event went viral and was featured in various news papers, by various bloggers and was reconducted in other cities of the nation.
Hence we conducted a few events which included activities that helped us communicate with the locals, helped us show them who we are and vice versa. Basically owning the area , being a part of the community. We conducted various interviews with the local Cops, and government officials to understand the place and discussed steps that would help the place be more safer and friendly for the us students and the locals.
One of the Events called " TALK TO ME" which was held in a street near college. This street was tagged as 'the rapis lane' by a few students, as many harrassment incidents have occured in that specific street. We gathered in testimonials and then conducted our event, where in we put up five tables with tea and snacks and invited random people passing by the street to sit and have a one on one conversation with us about anything but sexual harassment. We are trying to build safe cities by means of empathy, connections and trust. This has so far been the most exciting project I've ever done.
"TALK TO ME" won the International Award for Public Art (IAPA, 2015) at the Cities in a Climate of change: Public Art and Environmental and Social Ecologies conference in Auckland, New Zealand.
This event went viral and was featured in various news papers, by various bloggers and was reconducted in other cities of the nation.
Reflection on the first week of project
through a self portrait
Painting the walls of " safest lane" a.k.a "rapist lane.
Poster for HAHA SANGHA , a laughter club we started for the local house wives in Yelahanka, helping them liberate inhibitions about the place and us.
Helping them own the city.
featured in Bangalore Mirror
Times of India
DNA mumbai
Mid Day Mumbai
A picture of me and the guy I had a 2hour conversation with during the Talk to Me event.
It was quite an experience as he happened to be one of the offenders from the lane!
It was quite an experience as he happened to be one of the offenders from the lane!
A few links about the event and the organisation.
http://blog.blanknoise.org/2012/12/hahaha-sangha.html
http://cis-india.org/digital-natives/making-change/blank-noise-citizenship
https://openideo.com/challenge/womens-safety/shortlist/talk-to-me
http://www.thealternative.in/society/photo-essay-blank-noise-talk-to-me/
