Two Bodies with One Voice on Poetry, Dance and the Law.

Can Art Save Us?

What does a commended poet, dancer of the Indian, classical form Kathak, outstanding legal academic and occasional writer in the hope-punk story genre, have in common? One person it seems, Bhumika Billa. What stands out is Bhumika’s astonishing ability to communicate through dance, language and legal linguistics. She has a sharp eye on identity, whether it’s her own as an Indian woman living in the UK, the gendered constraints on her female ancestors, gender and sexual politics today, social class or caste and the digital identity that we now adopt or are arguably forced into. In 2021, the BBC recognised Bhumika as one of Britain’s most exciting emerging spoken word artists and she has been a finalist in several, prestigious slams since then. She is in the business of observing and unravelling the intricacies of data politics, artificial intelligence and law, structural inequality and the future we all face if we don’t stand up for justice. We talk about living in two bodies, the male gaze, anger, curiosity as a privilege, freedom and storytelling through dance and poetry.

Series Audio Editor - Joey Quan.

Series Music - Courtesy of Barry J. Gibb

Closed Captions are added to all interviews in this series. Read only, text versions of every interview can also be found here: https://www.canartsaveus.com

Discover Bhumika Billa:

https://applesandsnakes.org/2022/11/25/bhumika-billa-my-mother-lives-in-me/