A Voyage to Permanence – An immersive celebration of visual poetry

Jooby Yohannan, gallerist and art consultant, is pleased to present A Voyage to Permanence, an immersive, multi-disciplinary exhibition built around three experimental films by noted filmmaker Purandar Chaudhuri. Curated by prominent art historian and critic Johny ML, the exhibition opens on March 10, 2026, and runs till March 14, at the Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, in the presence of distinguished members of the film and art fraternity.

Conceived as a 5-day-long cinematic and spatial experience, A Voyage to Permanence brings together film screenings, alternative photographic prints, a live installation-performance, and a book release, creating a layered dialogue between moving image, still image, sound, text, and performance. At its core are Chaudhuri’s three films– Dhushor, Tremors, and Impressions of Mingling– works that traverse memory, migration, erasure, and survival through a deeply contemplative visual language.

The exhibition reimagines the act of viewing cinema within a gallery context. The films are customised for immersive viewing, supported by state-of-the-art audio-visual design, allowing audiences to encounter them not as conventional narratives but as aesthetic meditations oscillating between abstraction and figuration. The works evoke the memories of analogue filmmaking while embracing digital possibilities, forging a contemporary cinematic vocabulary.

Accompanying the screenings are alternative photographic prints by Prakash Braggs, extending the visual grammar of the films into tactile, material forms. To supplement the exhibition, there will be a panel discussion on the topic, ‘Moving Focus of Film Making and Photography’ with panellists like Samar Jodha, Aditya Arya and so on. 

On March 11, a live installation-performance by Dr Bhoominathan, actor, director and tutor at the National School of Drama, will respond to and reinterpret the cinematic universe of Chaudhuri’s works. The exhibition will also host a book release by Jayanth Kodkani and Nemiraj Shetty, further expanding the intellectual and artistic discourse surrounding the project.

In his curatorial note, Johny ML reflects:

“Purandar’s films are not created to flag out the issues of migration or self-degeneration and regeneration caused by various forces. They are aesthetic contemplations using the medium of film, where the memories of traditional analogue movie making are evoked along with their digital possibilities. Letting this cinematic language oscillate between abstraction and figuration, Purandar attempts to give a new dimension to contemporary visual aesthetics using film as a medium.”

Chaudhuri describes his practice as an attempt to reimagine the grammar of cinema:

“I make films that break the conventional rules of movie-making. My films are like memory catchers. They are there, but you need a different sensibility to see and feel the memories. Each of my films is a tribute to the human exodus and survival. I look at the alchemy of turning the human body into labour; the very cruel alchemy.”

A Voyage to Permanence ultimately stands as a tribute to humanity and its trials, eschewing slogans and spectacle in favour of quiet intensity and visual lyricism. The exhibition invites audiences into a liminal space where moving images become meditations, and where each encounter is both deeply personal and universally resonant.

About Purandar and his films:

Purandar believes in strong visual aesthetics in his filmmaking. He blends still photographs with moving images, creating signature monochrome visuals that are imposing, add depth, and bring a unique sensibility to his films. Sparse dialogues, natural sound, and music create a hypnotic mood, engaging the audience deeply with his works. He believes his films should allow viewers time and space to reflect on life, an approach similar to poetry, music, and art.

His films explore thoughts and contemplation at physical and metaphysical levels, taking viewers on a journey as he stays rooted in his exploration. Purandar sees filmmaking as a powerful medium of artistic expression that needs constant experimentation, inspired by filmmakers who pushed boundaries and explored new grounds.

Though his films are recent, Purandar feels his journey as a filmmaker began years ago, as a boy watching films by Ray, Ghatak, Sen, Chaplin, and others in Calcutta’s streets and cinemas.

Fact Sheet

Title: A Voyage to Permanance 

Venue: Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre 

Dates: 11 – 14 March
Curator: Johny ML

Timing: 10 am – 8 pm26