He grew up fascinated with the tattoos sported by wrestlers on the WWE trump cards he loved playing. Today, Micky Malani, Co-Founder of BodyCanvas Tattoos, lives in London making a mark with his Indian and ethnic art form. The Rajasthan-born artist calls Delhi his second home and visits the city often as he has a studio here that he started nine years ago. More than the studio, Delhi has inspired his work that makes it special.
“I incorporate India’s rich culture in my work, thus gaining recognition as an artiste whose work can be associated as Indian-ethnic art form. In London, I experiment with a lot of Indian sculptures and patterns, especially Mughal style. That’s why, Delhi is my gateway to art,” says the 36-year-old.He has inked numerous people and attended more than 30 international tattoo conventions, but the journey wasn’t easy it was a challenge to deal with society.
“My friends and family wondered what I was getting into. There’s a misconception that pursuing tattoo art as a career would either make you a junkie or get you involved with drugs and women. I found people reluctant to get tattoos because people didn’t have exposure to this art form. Today, two out of three have tattoos…” adds Malani.
Initially, he made temporary tattoos on his tuition-classmates. “I interned with my brother, who was already an established tattoo artist, for a couple of years. He wouldn’t let me touch the skin until he was really confident of what I’m going to do. I would clean the place, get the drawings ready, and attend to clients.”
In 2002, he started working on permanent tattoos, but getting clients was a challenge. “I took up numerous jobs. I once sold firecrackers during Diwali and worked in 11 call centres where I would always introduce myself as a tattoo artist and distribute my visiting cards. The pieces we do for Rs 50,000 today, we did for Rs 700, because people then didn’t understand the hard work that went into it.”
With a brother who was a tattoo artist himself, Malani was never nervous about working on someone’s skin. “The only pressure I had was to be the best.”Malini himself has many tattoos, the latest addition is of an elephant dedicated to his aunt who passed away. One thing that he values the most is the safety of his clients. “We use all FDA approved products, be it the needles or the ink, and import these from the UK or the US. Sadly, there’s no medical body in India that regulates the products we use.”