Imagine sitting in a crowded park or public transport - you might hear a jumble of words and phrases in various recognisable as well as incomprehensible languages, forming a blurred soundscape in the background. It is commonplace in a strange culture, to strain the cognitive senses to make meanings, and figure out contexts, sometimes in vain. Walking through public spaces, you automatically begin to look for signs and symbols to decode, for orientation to, and navigation of a space.

 Language is a profound thing. We express with words, gestures and images, among other subtler means of communication. Language becomes ingrained in the process of human upbringing; it evolves and expands to accommodate varied experiences and shifts in living structures. It is said that in a sense, language, and the will to interact grows inside every one of us like an organ or part of the body; once learnt, a language stays forever, however rusty it may get. In our present times, on the one hand, ancient tongues and systems of communicating are being lost, on the other, additions to virtual connections in a split-screen world, with AI hard on our heels, force us to contend with newer systems and identify with different modes of being in touch. What remains individual, and cultural, what is universal? What is understood and what is lost in translation? What is accessible and what is beyond reach? What are the languages of the future?

 In an age of encrypted data, emoji and algorithms, ENCRYPTED brings together commentaries on the contemporary experience of language and communication, both personal and collective. In varied ways, the artists unravel layers of human interaction – delving into written scripts, visual vocabularies, sensory responses and even digital messages, in a vastly transforming present.