Colours Unlimited – The Bus Art of Tamil Nadu

The focus of this photo project is a widely seen but an unacknowledged art form found across the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a subaltern expression that attracts attention of sociologists rather than art critics. This portfolio focuses on this art found on the sides of buses crisscrossing the state. Everything from classical dancers and architectural heritage of ancient India to androids from modern western science fiction find space on what are akin to art galleries on wheels. Not to be missed in such colourful and apolitical graphics is the occasional political statement such as the prominent appearance of Jallikattu bulls in the period when the Indian courts briefly banned this 2400 year-old Tamil tradition on grounds of cruelty to animals.