The Impact of Cultural Arts | Conversations with che kothari


che kothari is a recognized leader in the Toronto community. He is popular among the vibrant youth and artists of the city. I first met che when I attended a joint book launch of Keisha Monique and album launch of Ian Kamau. che kothari had a very warm personality and was the least intimidating despite his strong influence in the community. It would be hard to adequately conceptualize his impact on the city if you had just met him right then because he’d treat you just like his own. I sat down with che to talk about his views on the value of cultural arts and its role in cities like Toronto.
Self-portraits
PhotoCredit: (Left & Right) By Che Kothari

About che kothari
Our interview began with an introduction to che kothari’s family. che began by telling me about his mother and father’s immigration from their native India to Canada. che’s father worked in the shoe industry in the Middle East.  As is the dominant story of many Indian families, che was expected to take on his father’s work but although he was grateful and respectful of his father’s journey, his destiny took him along a different one.

Once settled in Guelph, Ontario, the Kothari family would find time to travel to the Caribbean, which felt like a physically closer version of Indian home. che fondly recalled a tender moment on Curacao, an island just north of Venezuela. Carnival was happening and che was absorbed in his efforts to document the scene. In that moment he realized what a blessing it was for him to have the opportunity to witness such strong culture. This was one of his first introductions to the role of documentation through photography.

Trinidad
PhotoCredit: Che Kothari

Back in Guelph, che’s classmates belonged to affluent families and there was little diversity in his neighbourhood. Other than during his travels, it was not until he moved to Toronto at age 17 that he found people who looked like he did, spoke like he did, and were as culturally expressive as he was. He describes Toronto as a “burst of creative and cultural energy that was not as present in Guelph”. There he also discovered communities of young people who were expressing themselves with hip hop and cultural art.

Over his time working and leading in Toronto’s vibrant communities, che has developed a multitude of stories and a strong understanding of cultural arts. He values the cultural arts because, “art begs us to look at who we are and go within ourselves to the deepest source of our self-knowledge”. Cultural art has the potential and power to bring people together beyond race, sexual orientation, and other forms of oppression or exclusion.  It has the ability to promote social and economic development. It serves as an alternative to violence in communicating social frustrations. che is also quick to acknowledge his mentors and influencers. He cited d’bi Young, one of his main mentors, who suggests the existence of a ‘multiverse’ rather than a universe. “To say that there is a universe would imply that we live in the same world with the same truth, yet we all have such different experiences and we are all a microcosm of the universe, making each of us connected universes living simultaneously, so a multitude of personal universes make up a multiverse.  Also, we know that humans have not explore the depth of galactic infinity so it is naïve of us to say uni-verse which means only one, because in all likelihood, there are many or multi-verses to this story.”

About Manifesto
I asked che what he believes the greatest reward from Manifesto has been. Without hesitation he told me that the greatest reward has been the impacts it has had. The organization has transformed young people and is uplifting the spirits of a generation of young socially minded individuals.

5th Annual Manifesto Festival
PhotoCredit: Lisa Wong

“Hip hop has been coopted and represented to our communities and the world as negative, commercialized, misogynistic, and violent, while that does exist within the storytelling, much of the origin of hip hop lives in people power, love, justice, equality, ingenuity, and community.” He quoted Public Enemy who describes hip-hop as the CNN for marginalized voices. “In our current times, hip hop must be redefined so this generation and future generations may reap its truest benefits. KRS1 teaches that ‘hip’ means to know and ‘hop’ means to move. So hip-hop is a knowledge movement. It has been presented as something external from you when hip hop is storytelling, and it really it’s about your mom, your grandmom and your brother, it’s your story, it’s history, it’s herstory, it’s ourstory. Hip hop is evolving and in too many current cases has lost its power and potency for personal and community actualization, so we want to support and re-infuse the original creative energy into it with the ultimate mission of uniting, inspiring, and empowering diverse community of young people through it.”

One Message:
I was curious to know how che related with the youth he works with so I asked him what the number one message he communicates is. He again cited his mentors and answered with two words:

“Look Within.”

 “Storytelling is a cycle,” he said. “There exist dominant world stories that you are born into,  you are then told stories, resulting in you telling yourself stories, and then there are the stories you choose to tell. and therefore we must rigorously investigate the cycle of stories within and surrounding us so that we can continue of our journey of self-actualization and fulfill our purpose.”
5th Annual Manifesto Festival, Youth Pitch Contest
PhotoCredit: Michael Dach

Other questions we should ask ourselves are, “What do we do as artists in the 21st century with technology so present at our fingertips? How does it help us to amplify the voices that are not heard otherwise? How do we recognize our privileges and open doors to unearth and revive the discarded, buried and raped stories and provide platforms for those stories to be told by those people? We are all artists sharing the human experience. How does that define your artistry? What are your choices about how you spend your time and your voice?”

Responsibility:
With such a culturally aware mind, I asked che what responsibilities he feels as a photographer in terms of the images he projects to the public. He remembered that he just recently revisited his previous work through which he recognized his own human limitations and evolution as an artist. che explained that he strives to avoid producing any images that perpetuate social stereotypes or harmful messages. He has become hypersensitive to the need to uplift people’s spirit, and he does this by showing his subjects that they are beautiful, and by pulling their essence out in photographs.
Left: Common (musician), Right: Nanima & Nanupa (Che's grandparents)
PhotoCredit: (Left & Right) Che Kothari
The future:
As we discussed this, Che told me about a future project, with which he would like to document images of nature for young people to show the beauty that exists in their world. “There are so many negative and traumatic experiences people go through,” he said. “I want to document as much of the beauty in the world and share it.  I am not however afraid to document the devastation taking place and share that to create awareness art. We have changed the natural circle or cipher to triangles of hierarchy, moving from eco-systems to ego-systems and I want create images that awaken spirits to realize this over and over again.”


A Great Day in Toronto with members of the Toronto Hip Hop community
PhotoCredit: Che Kothari

As we talked about upcoming projects, I could appreciate that che kothari is truly a passionate and busy man. He mentioned Manifesto Toronto 2013, One Nation, his personal photobook, and Manifesto Jamaica 2013 as some of his many endeavors.

Manifesto Toronto just wrapped up its 6th Annual festival in September 2012, and is currently developing a new strategic plan for the organization, which will involve new divisions of social enterprise.  One Nation is a global hip-hop festival union in development. che’s photobook will be revisiting the first 30 years of his life as he places himself back in the eyes and moments of each photo. Manifesto Jamaica 2013 will be facilitating art-based workshops in prisons across Jamaica as well as fleshing out their strategic plan in tandem with Toronto. 

che will also continue the work he does in arts advocacy - participating on boards and committees pushing open doors for more voices to be at decision making tables as well as working with the arts community to centralize, organize and mobilize.  He also tells me about continuing his work around the inaugural ART IS POWER walk which was founded in Sept 2012, and pushing forward with the team at BeautifulCity.ca to ensure that the recent billboard tax goes to the arts and culture budget earmarked for youth arts and cultural programs in public space with a special focus on under-served communities.  

With all this in motion, che doesn’t forget to emphasize his unwavering support and dedication to help fellow artists like d’bi young or organizations he believe in, in whichever way he can.

6th Annual Manifesto Festival.
Art is Power walk, Led by Che Kothari on Sept 23, 2012

After enthusiastically describing the change that art has had on himself and his friends, che paused and clarified, “I don’t think art alone can change the world, but you definitely can’t change the world without it”.




With special thanks to Raymond Robert.

Written by Sharon Obuobi.

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