Aamir Aziz v/s Anita Dube: A Case of Copyright
Aamir Aziz, a 35-year-old poet from Delhi, has accused internationally renowned artist Anita Dube of utilising his well-known protest poem ‘Sab Yaad Rakha Jayega‘ without his permission, proper attribution, or payment. An alumnus of Jamia Millia Islamia, he referred to the act as “cultural extraction and plundering.”
Aziz claims to have sent legal notices to both Anita Dube and Vadehra Art Gallery, demanding responses and “asked for accountability.” He has also “asked them to take the work down.” However, he alleges that they did not take his claims seriously. He says, “In return: silence, half-truths, and insulting offers. They refused. The exhibition at Vadehra Art Gallery is now extended till the 26th of April.”
On the other hand, Vadehra Art Gallery’s side seems to be the polar opposite. They said on Instagram, “We have been in touch with Aamir Aziz and his legal representatives for over a month. This is a situation that we have taken very seriously. We immediately ensured that the works Aamir Aziz has concerns with were not offered for sale.”
Aziz had first published the poem in January 2020 through his YouTube channel during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens protests. Anita Dube was also among the artists who publicly criticised the government’s anti-democratic move.
The Whole Story
The case began when Aziz’s friend noticed his poem in a display at Vadehra Art Gallery on March 18. The gallery is currently showcasing Ms Dube’s artworks in an exhibition titled ‘Timanjala Ghar: Three Storey House.’ Aamir Aziz contends that the poem had been altered and recontextualised. He holds the gallery and Anita Dube in contempt for the unauthorised incorporation of his poem.
He took to social media, claiming, “That was the first time I learned Anita Dube had taken my poem and turned it into her ‘art.’ When I confronted her, she made it seem normal – like lifting a living poet’s work, branding it into her own, and selling it in elite galleries for lakhs of rupees was normal.” In the posts, he attached four works by Dube, which he claimed contained excerpts from his poem. He stated that one of these pieces was renamed after he issued a notice, while another piece was not renamed despite his notice.
Anita Dube remains a prominent contemporary artist in India who incorporates text, found objects, and various materials such as velvet, beads, bones, and ceramic eyes to examine the interaction between individual and collective narratives. Her artwork frequently engages with themes of loss, renewal, and resistance.
The current exhibition features a range of pieces referencing the words of influential figures like Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar; all figures who spoke up against injustice and discrimination. Some of Dube’s pieces also included a poem by Aziz, one titled ‘After Aamir Aziz.’ However, gallery director Roshni Vadehra claims that “All the works that used a few words from his poem were attributed to him in the wall text.”
He blamed Vadehra Art Gallery for presenting it as though it were authentically created by Ms Dube. Aziz asserted that this incident was not isolated. He later found out that his poem had also been previously used in the 2023 exhibition ‘Of Mimicry, Mimesis and Masquerade,’ curated by Arshiya Lokhandwala, and subsequently at the India Art Fair in 2025—both times without his awareness.
Aziz also claims that segments of his poem were reimagined into wood carvings and velvet cloth installations, displayed in commercial gallery spaces, rebranded and renamed. The poem had been “gutted, defanged, and stitched into velvet for profit,” without any proper attribution. When he asked her, “She didn’t mention this in our first conversation. She hid it. Deliberately.”
Courtesy – Vadehra Art Gallery
Aamir Aziz accused Anita Dube and the galleries at large of appropriating the works of marginalised voices for profit, labelling it “the oldest trick in the book, inherited from the same colonial masters: steal the voice, erase the name, and sell the illusion of originality.” He attacks Dube, saying, “It’s shameful how far she’s gone and how far her gallery is willing to go just to dodge a simple truth: that Anita Dube built her art on a living poet’s words, and they both refuse to acknowledge or compensate him.”
It seems that Aziz doesn’t mind his poetry being used in public discourse when it comes to resisting the oppressive regime. He says, “Let’s be clear: if someone holds my poem in a placard at a protest, a rally, a people’s uprising – I stand with them.” Gutted over the inappropriate use of his poem, he adds, “But this is not that. This is not solidarity. This is not homage. This is not conceptual borrowing. This is theft. This is erasure.”
Vadehra Art Gallery’s Response
Aamir Aziz’s post has sent the art world into a frenzy. It has sparked discussions surrounding ownership and repurposing. Anita Dube has yet to give a public statement, but Vadehra Art Gallery has chimed in through their socials. They say, “We hope that the discussions that are ongoing between Aamir Aziz and Anita Dube can be resolved in an amicable and constructive manner.”
Courtesy – Film Companion
According to a Hindustan Times report, gallery director Roshni Vadehra said, “Vadehra Art Gallery has always stood behind strong, political, creative expressions. We believe in giving such a space to this community of practitioners because it is important and vital for our society.”
Sab Yaad Rakha Jayega
‘Sab Yaad Rakha Jayega’ rose to fame during the anti-CAA protests. It reached an international audience when, in February 2020, Roger Waters, co-founder of the band Pink Floyd, recited the poem at an event in London, protesting the incarceration of WikiLeaks whistleblower Julian Assange. Aamir Aziz remains a popular author of songs of dissent, which include, Achche Din Blues and The Ballad of Pehlu Khan.
Image – Aamir Aziz via Facebook
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