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A MODERN GYPSY
"THEY came with painted faces of time and a need for purpose,and motion: wanting to fill in the gaps. Like angels with jazz on their minds." These lines aptly describe the spirit of Katarzyna Pollok, a Roma Sinti gypsy, and her work. For Katarzyna, who is on a Journey to rediscover her "gypsy roots," a cultural journey which has taken her from Morocco to Italy, Israel to India.
"My parents tried to hide my Sinti descent because of the traumatic experiences of my father, who bore the brunt of Holocaust. But I was eager to know about my ancestors and my roots," reminisces Katarzyna., who speaks little English, bur whose eyes and expressions get every message across.
Dressed in a fiery red outfit (she hates the colour black), long braided hair, black boots, big gold hoopla earrings (gifted by her husband), Katarzvna ika Kasia is unmistakably vibrant, bright and has that free spirit one hears gypsies have. "I am not a traditional gypsy. I am a modern gypsy with a modern way of life," she says.
For this modern gypsy, who was here to attend a friend's wedding, this first trip to India has been mesmerising. "I love the people, there seems to be a bonding and it's good to know that my forefathers went from here too," she says. The Roma Sinti believe their forefathers were from Sindh. Along with this gypsy came her art - her paintings which are as striking as her personality. Though just a handful, which she has brought from Germany where she resides with her husband, they are interesting with a dance of vibrant colours and play of forms. -The energy in her work is unmistakable. From Japanese Geishas, Jewish arabesques to Egyptian Pharaohs and Gypsy angels, Kasia has absorbed something from different cultures and woven into her work, but remains a gypsy, at heart. A gypsy who leaves you mesmerised with her vibrancy, her energy and her free adventurer spirit.
JAGMEETA THIND
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