‘Wanderland’ traces artistic journey across borders in Chennai debut

Chennai: Childhood places and memories often shape an artist’s adult work. That idea took center stage at Alliance Française recently with ‘Wanderland’, a multi-media production by Shastram, conceived by writer-director Ghirija Jayarraj.

The performance invited audiences to travel through Jayarraj’s artistic path, shaped across geographical boundaries. It unfolded as a series of fragmented visuals. Film footage of people and places from different time zones and backgrounds played on screen, alongside archival scrapbook pictures, recent photographs, and recorded interviews.

Interspersed with the projections were live dance performances and theatrical sequences woven into the narrative. The elements gradually merged into a cohesive collage of forms and memories, blurring the line between personal history and artistic expression.

Through the work, Jayarraj explored how experiences from one’s formative years resurface in creative pursuits, offering viewers a glimpse into the impressions that shaped her artistic persona.