One can’t even begin to comprehend the stories the city of Mumbai has seen. One wonders how many tales it tells of those who overcame the accident of birth and achieved their heart’s desires. It makes sense how this metropolitan stage marries some of the most unexpected things in the world. For who would have thought that amidst the painful labyrinth of slums and ghettos, where to struggle is to survive, where there is no space left uncrowded, a boy would be filling the world with the art of Grafitti.
Those of us who have means to get by cannot understand how it must have been like to grow up between constant brawls and crowds. In its latest post, Hindustan ki Kahaaniyan prompts us to imagine a life like that. It brings us the story of Zake, a boy who in his young days couldn’t help but blame God for being born in an environment which was far from hopeful. “The challenges for water and electricity were always prevalent; on top of that, the mental struggle and physical abuse make it even harder to live. Every moment was grinding” Zake says. Simple things like using the toilet was an arduous challenge. Art, however, has a way of slipping through the cracks of even the most bottomless pits.
Fortunately, Zake obtained formal education and had access to colour television. He was affixed to the art of hip-hop and even more so to the strangely charming wall-art that it featured. He had found his calling. Zake would imitate and master the art form in his own way when one day he saw a few German artists making graffitis on the wall of the same
toilet that had been the source of much discomfort for Zake.
When Zake asked the artists if they were using ‘Montana cans’, they were amazed to their very core, they never expected a boy from remote slums to know such things. The artists gave him some of their cans and fuelled an upward trajectory in his life. Zake had now found freedom like never before. A few months later, the same german artists came back and
invited him to an international graffiti festival in Germany. Zake recalls this as one of the happiest moments of his life.
Today, Zake is the flag-bearer of Indian Graffiti artists. His passion has made the Indian flag fly all over the world. The world is uncaring and ruthless, but as long as one doesn’t stop doing what sets their soul on fire, it will always show you a way!
One of his incredible creations!
