Amid ongoing geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan, multiple art exhibitions in London are fostering cross-border cultural exchange. The Barbican is showing Pakistani artist Huma Bhabha alongside Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacometti, curated by Shanay Jhaveri. At SOAS, a South Asian group show organized by Pakistani artist Salima Hashmi and Indian curator Manmeet K. Walia features over 25 artists, including a collaborative textile work by Maheen Kazim and Purvai Rai. Two Indian galleries in central London have also exhibited Pakistani artists, though gallerists requested anonymity due to safety concerns in India.
These exhibitions matter because they highlight how cultural diplomacy persists even when bilateral relations are toxic and cross-border art trade has collapsed since Narendra Modi became prime minister in 2014. The shows underscore London's role as a neutral venue for artistic dialogue between the two nations, despite the irony that the former imperial capital was central to the Partition that created the conflict. The collaborations also address urgent themes—war, water rights, and lost traditions—that resonate directly with current political realities, such as India's suspension of the Indus Water Treaty.