Did you know that India might have had two Taj Mahals? One white and the other made in black marble. But history unfolded differently.
Emperor Shah Jahan made the white Taj in the memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal. He made his eldest son, Dara Shikoh, promise him that he would make an identical Taj in pure black marble on the opposite side of the Yamuna after his death. Shah Jahan dreamed that he and his wife Mumtaz would meet on the cold waters of Yamuna; both lovers coming from their own paradises to reunite under the starry sky.
However, Shah Jahan's second son Aurangzeb defeated Dara, seized the throne and imprisoned his father. Thus shattering a lover's dream. Shah Jahan spent his final years staring at the Taj Mahal, imprisoned in his own fort. Upon his death, Aurangzeb buried his father in a tomb right next to his beloved Mumtaz Mahal in the white Taj Mahal. Consequently, making the tomb the only asymmetrical object in an otherwise perfect monument.
This artwork envisions an alternate history, with the Black Taj under construction and Dara returning after inspecting its progress. I intentionally chose to portray the Taj Mahal in its unfinished state, symbolizing Shah Jahan’s incomplete dream. The image reflects a moment in history that might have been, frozen in time. 

"A solitary tear suspended on the cheek of time" - Rabindranath Tagore