A Larger Game Plan

A residency at Khoj has visitors playing with art

Krishnarjun Bhattacharya, gamers, Juliusz Zenkner, Khoj residency, exhibition, Syrian refugees, Of Games-III, Chinmayee Samant, Talk

Krishnarjun Bhattacharya with gamers at Khoj Studios.

When Juliusz Zenkner left Poland to head for Delhi in September, he carried with him stories of Syrian refugees.“They are being discussed everywhere in Europe. Some are offering them help, others are turning them down, I’m not sure what my stance is, though I think they should be given the support they need,” says the game developer. Over the last few weeks, he has put in all the information he has gathered on them in a digital game that he is sharing as part of the Khoj residency “Of Games-III”. The participants are journalists who head from one camp to the other, interacting with the refugees on screen. Their attitude determines how the interaction goes. “If you are polite to the refugees they will let their hearts out, or else you’ll head back with no information for your news article,” adds Zenkner.

He is one of the eight participants at the residency that, in its third year, focuses on “community”, games that deal with politics, society and culture. If Chinmayee Samant has attempted to decode conversations between the government and the common man, Jiten Thukral and Sumir Tagra have based their board game on an ancient Indian game called Ganjifa; originally played with a set of 120 cards.

Sanket Jadia and Mario D’Souza have the participants take a journey across Kashmir, zooming on different sectors, and bringing out stories from the heartland — of Robert Thorp, born to a Kashmiri mother and British army officer, and a shrine in Srinagar where Jesus is rumoured to have spent some years, among others. The gamers can add their own stories, which are being archived by the duo.

Heading to the terrace of the Khoj premises in Khirkee could be a bit spooky, for this is where Krishnarjun Bhattacharya has groups of participants interacting with the ghost of an old lady — they all want her property and claim to know her better than the others. The lawyer needs to be convinced and the winner will be one who deciphers the cue cards planted by Bhattacharya in different makeshift rooms on his set. Art here is not just interactive, but also investigative.

The exhibition at Khoj Studios, S-17, Khirkee Extension, is on till October 17. Contact: 65655873

Vandana Kalra

Vandana Kalra is an art critic and Deputy Associate Editor with The Indian Express. She has spent more than two decades chronicling arts, culture and everyday life, with modern and contemporary art at the heart of her practice. With a sustained engagement in the arts and a deep understanding of India’s cultural ecosystem, she is regarded as a distinctive and authoritative voice in contemporary art journalism in India. Vandana Kalra's career has unfolded in step with the shifting contours of India’s cultural landscape, from the rise of the Indian art market to the growing prominence of global biennales and fairs. Closely tracking its ebbs and surges, she reports from studios, galleries, museums and exhibition spaces and has covered major Indian and international art fairs, museum exhibitions and biennales, including the Venice Biennale, Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Documenta, Islamic Arts Biennale. She has also been invited to cover landmark moments in modern Indian art, including SH Raza’s exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the opening of the MF Husain Museum in Doha, reflecting her long engagement with the legacies of India’s modern masters. Alongside her writing, she applies a keen editorial sensibility, shaping and editing art and cultural coverage into informed, cohesive narratives. Through incisive features, interviews and critical reviews, she brings clarity to complex artistic conversations, foregrounding questions of process, patronage, craft, identity and cultural memory. The Global Art Circuit: She provides extensive coverage of major events like the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Serendipity Arts Festival, and high-profile international auctions. Artist Spotlights: She writes in-depth features on modern masters (like M.F. Husain) and contemporary performance artists (like Marina Abramović). Art and Labor: A recurring theme in her writing is how art reflects the lives of the marginalized, including migrants, farmers, and labourers. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) Her recent portfolio is dominated by the coverage of the 2025 art season in India: 1. Kochi-Muziris Biennale & Serendipity Arts Festival "At Serendipity Arts Festival, a 'Shark Tank' of sorts for art and crafts startups" (Dec 20, 2025): On how a new incubator is helping artisans pitch products to investors. "Artist Birender Yadav's work gives voice to the migrant self" (Dec 17, 2025): A profile of an artist whose decade-long practice focuses on brick kiln workers. "At Kochi-Muziris Biennale, a farmer’s son from Patiala uses his art to draw attention to Delhi’s polluted air" (Dec 16, 2025). "Kochi Biennale showstopper Marina Abramović, a pioneer in performance art" (Dec 7, 2025): An interview with the world-renowned artist on the power of reinvention. 2. M.F. Husain & Modernism "Inside the new MF Husain Museum in Qatar" (Nov 29, 2025): A three-part series on the opening of Lawh Wa Qalam in Doha, exploring how a 2008 sketch became the architectural core of the museum. "Doha opens Lawh Wa Qalam: Celebrating the modernist's global legacy" (Nov 29, 2025). 3. Art Market & Records "Frida Kahlo sets record for the most expensive work by a female artist" (Nov 21, 2025): On Kahlo's canvas The Dream (The Bed) selling for $54.7 million. "All you need to know about Klimt’s canvas that is now the most expensive modern artwork" (Nov 19, 2025). "What’s special about a $12.1 million gold toilet?" (Nov 19, 2025): A quirky look at a flushable 18-karat gold artwork. 4. Art Education & History "Art as play: How process-driven activities are changing the way children learn art in India" (Nov 23, 2025). "A glimpse of Goa's layered history at Serendipity Arts Festival" (Dec 9, 2025): Exploring historical landmarks as venues for contemporary art. Signature Beats Vandana is known for her investigative approach to the art economy, having recently written about "Who funds the Kochi-Muziris Biennale?" (Dec 11, 2025), detailing the role of "Platinum Benefactors." She also explores the spiritual and geometric aspects of art, as seen in her retrospective on artist Akkitham Narayanan and the history of the Cholamandal Artists' Village (Nov 22, 2025). ... Read More

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