Loudspeaker (Chaye meet up between Sayera and Simeen) | 2021| Video Art | 03:09

In the midst of the global pandemic, when most countries have enhanced, introduced, or are facing travel restrictions, this project explores the idea of borders. These limitations of physical exchange have existed for Pakistan and India since the partition due to political rivalry between the two countries. However, the shift to the digital paradigm has authenticated the space as a primary way of communication, and has introduced possibilities for collaboration between the two countries. For this project, I collaborated with an Indian artist, Simeen Anjum, and we

met for the first time for a chai session over Zoom from the comfort of our respective homes in Karachi and Delhi. We had a heartfelt conversation, and it felt like we were speaking to each other through the window of our homes as neighbors.

During our conversation, the Azan commences in Delhi. The sound of Azan combined the two spaces into one, and we both decided to maintain silence to listen to the call to prayer. While the mutual connection based on similarities temporarily erases the metaphorical border between us, it is evident that there is always the unknown, or the ‘other’ that remains on the other side of the border unless we have physically experienced it. This video explores whether the schism that is created by physical borders are too powerful to overcome, or if the digital space can act as a provisional land of connection.