OCAD University Open Research Repository

Activating Indofuturism: Applying a lens adapted from Postcolonial Futurisms

Bandodkar, Priya (2021) Activating Indofuturism: Applying a lens adapted from Postcolonial Futurisms. Masters thesis, OCAD University.

Item Type: Thesis
Creators: Bandodkar, Priya
Abstract:

In this research, I envision what a speculative future for India might look like without its colonial past to activate a largely unexplored futurism discipline for India, called “Indofuturism”. Serving a multifold intent, the lens of Indofuturism imagines an alternative future for India without a history of colonisation, reclaims aspects of its pre-colonial culture that were lost through colonialism, and highlights pressing social conditions and critiques prejudices prevalent within contemporary Indian communities. Considering the overlaps in postcolonial experiences of Indian people and historically colonised people worldwide, the emerging methodological lens of Indofuturism seeks insights from existing Postcolonial Futurisms. I apply Speculative Design and its subsets Critical and Dark Design as methodologies, and Thought Experiments as a method, to create five Indofuturist artefacts that illustrate this proposed vision of Indofuturism. These artefacts are built as interactive installations using virtual reality, 3D art, creative coding, physical computing, volumetric video, and dance performance with the intent of creating multiple avenues of engagement for the audience. They are narratively linked in a storyworld using a World Building framework, which leads to the tenets of Indofuturism distilled through this research and disseminated as an Indofuturist Manifesto.

Date: 2021
Uncontrolled Keywords: Indofuturism, decolonisation, Afrofuturism, Indigenous Futurism, alternative future, futurism, speculative design, critical design, dark design, thought experiments, world building, manifesto, physical computing, tactile interface, virtual reality, creative coding, 3D art, volumetric video, dance performance, digital media, interactive installation
Divisions: Graduate Studies > Digital Futures
Related URLs:
Date Deposited: 03 May 2021 14:56
Last Modified: 20 Dec 2021 21:00
URI: https://openresearch.ocadu.ca/id/eprint/3312

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