HYDERABAD: Art isn’t just there for adorning your walls in those fancy frames, wearable art is very much part of the lifestyle. In rural areas, from where most of these forms originate, it’s normal for men, women, and children to wear those colourful painted or embroidered garments it’s for denizens in the urban areas that the same becomes different because on a daily basis it’s not much cherished other than dupattas, saris or kurtas worn on special occasions or festivals. And now since masks are mandatory as part of clothing, several artists both from the cityscape and distant areas are coming forward to include their brushstrokes onto the fabric. One such artist based in Hyderabad has been painting masks with his signature style of bulls. Meet Vijay Belde, an artist in the city, who’s raising awareness about art and Covid-19.
His Instagram page has powerful images of the bull on the masks that he paints. He shares, “I am not doing it for money. I am not even charging for it. The initiative is to remind people to be responsible for their own health and that of the ones in the community.” He’s also started ‘paint your own mask’ challenge on social media which has garnered much interest and awareness.And it’s not just him promoting art through an absolute essential wearing item, artists from Madhubani, Bihar with their famous artworks, have been making masks on a bulk basis and supplying to different parts of the country. Says Bipush, a Madhubani artist from the region, “Our families are involved in the practice. The whole village is skilled in the art form. We make 150 cotton masks every day and paint them with the traditional designs.” They dispatch the masks within 10 days after receiving the orders.
They make three-layered masks which cost `120 per piece. His orders come from Hyderabad, other southern metros, Uttar Pradesh and Bengal. He can be contacted at 9334755300 / 7004542122
At the same time, another Madhubani artist Remant Kumar Mishra’s masks, priced at `50, are selling like hotcakes after he posted tweets of painted masks on his Twitter page which were retweeted by author-screenwriter Advaita Kala and later by various Netizens. Bollywood actor Raveena Tandon @TandonRaveena tweeted about his masks writing: “These are beautiful! Ordering mine now! Raman Kumar Mishra ji, bahot achhey” [sic] Remant can be contacted at 9899429912
— Saima Afreen
saima@newindianexpress
@Sfreen