Next Is Now

A project by
Panchsheel Gaikwad
Mithran RT Samuel

Supported by
Experimenter’s Generator Cooperative Art Production Fund

2022-Present

Next Is Now is an ongoing documentary series centred on contemporary Ambedkarite artists in India, with individual films currently in various stages of production. The project extends beyond film to include multimedia elements such as zines, art prints, and audio work, creating space for longer conversations, shared reflection, and community exchange.

Across the series, artists are approached through their everyday practices, collaborations, and ways of working. The films look at how art is shaped by caste, labour, and political belief, while foregrounding joy, skill, and imagination as forms of presence and continuity. Conceived as both a time-capsule and a community resource, Next Is Now connects personal stories to collective histories, tracing how Ambedkarite artists create cultural futures through embodied knowledge, inherited memory, and shared worlds.

Smita Urmila Rajmane

This film follows Smita Urmila Rajmane, a public intervention artist and art educator, through her work and the questions that shape it. Working across performance, pedagogy, and public space, Rajmane’s practice responds to histories of caste violence and the social norms produced by class, caste, and gender hierarchies. The film moves between conversation and observation, situating her work within the contexts in which it is made and received.

Priyanka Paul

This film follows Priyanka Paul, a digital illustrator and artist, through her everyday practice and modes of working. Moving between domestic space, digital circulation, and commissioned work, the film traces how her art is shaped by questions of caste, visibility, and labour within online culture. Through close attention to process and routine, the film situates her work within broader conversations around authorship, community, and the pressures placed on Dalit artists to translate lived experience into public image.

Shubham ‘Rekoil’ Chafe

This narrative-driven short documentary follows MC Shubham “Rekoil” Chafe, an independent rapper and producer with over a decade of experience in Mumbai’s underground hip-hop scene. Despite his long presence and range of collaborators, Rekoil continues to navigate an industry shaped by uneven labour conditions and the consequences of being open about his politics. As one of the first rappers to identify publicly as Ambedkarite, his music speaks directly to caste, hierarchy, and labour within contemporary hip-hop. Working across Marathi, Hindi, and English, Rekoil’s practice offers a grounded account of authorship and political voice within India’s independent rap scene.