Viraj Khanna’s Exhibit ‘BRAIN ROT’ Masters the Art of Calling Himself Out

There is a massive pyramid at the farthest end of the gallery. It stands before a sprawling window looking out onto Annie Besant Road. The sculpture has been fashioned with brightly coloured fibre glass figurines, all fighting tooth and nail to make their way to the pointed top.

“I’ve titled it The Rat Race,” said Viraj Khanna at the preview of his exhibit, “I think it really brings the themes of the show together.” The show he is referring to of course, is BRAIN ROT: The Life You Live?, running from January 9 to February 9, 2025 at Tao Art Gallery.

You may have heard this word making rounds on social media (ironically), referring to the excessive use of trivial short-form entertainment digital media, particularly that which is passively consumed. This is exactly what Viraj Khanna aims to address through his provocative exhibit, premiering during Mumbai Gallery Weekend. His works often show a visually dramatic, absurdist subject navigating the rocky terrain of warped imagery, and public perception.

The artist also happens to be the son of acclaimed fashion designer Anamika Khanna who has made her name with intricate traditional hand embroidery appearing on Western tailoring. In fact, much of Viraj’s oeuvre feels like a nod to his early exposure to textiles, especially his work in the pricing department his mother’s clothing business, AK-OK. In his pieces, many of which appear to be fluid, and almost paint-like, his prowess with a needle and thread ties their themes together wonderfully.

“The idea is that we are always creating blurred, tampered versions of reality to post on social media so that others perceive us in a certain way. I found that using embroidery to make my subjects’ face look so messy and fluid seemed to fit that idea well.” Khanna explained.

Many of the subjects he speaks of tend to be borrowed from personal life and experiences as a social media user. For social commentary, his work is quite autobiographical; huge textile frames show replicas of his own Instagram posts. One for instance, depicts him lounging in a restaurant, face characteristically mushed in a blur of coloured embroidery, with the accompanying text, “300 dollar lunch…Should I upload so people know?”.

It’s all “too real” as the kids say. Each artwork’s title carries a similar, Id-style dialogue; the inner thoughts that make up the worst parts of ourselves. Not a single person could take a round of the gallery without feeling ‘called out’ by at least one piece of art. Mini sculptures show figures, in the blaring midst of logos, caught in the act of posing for “candid” pictures, while embroidered subjects in Instagram posts lament over their insufficient likes.

It is this satire and familiarity that draws people to Khanna’s style, not just now, but even during his early years toying with art during the pandemic. Though being an artist was never quite in the cards for him, people couldn’t help but look away from the collages he would share online. It was these works, the way he could use cut up scraps from magazines, articles, encyclopaedias to create meaning, that caught the eye of Art Exposure, Kolkata and landed him an opportunity to exhibit his work—the first of many.

Khanna has since then displayed his pieces at India Habitat Centre in Delhi, Untitled Art Fair in Miami, and Art Mumbai in Bombay. His status as a budding artist to look out for has only been cemented from the acquiring of some of his pieces by the Bunker Art Space in Miami and the capital’s Kiran Nadar Museum for Art (KNMA).

Still, despite his quick ride to success, he’s making sure not to give in to repetition; to keep things fresh. “I get very restless doing just one thing, so I’m always racking my brain over what new things I can try out”. Usually he does this by looking at what’s around him. Constantly picking up interesting odds and ends from the textile world, he imbues these borrowings into his art. Most recently, he has begun experimenting with ‘khakha’, the holed tracing sheets used when embroidering, for his upcoming solo show at the India Art Fair later this year.

Equally exposed and inspired by his mother’s line of work, Viraj Khanna can’t help but spin the materials he is so familiar with into lasting, introspective creations. It’s tough not to root for him, and even tougher not to keep an eye out to see where his art will take him next.

Visit Tao Art Gallery’s website to know more about BRAINROT.