Making city walls colourful
In an endeavour to beautify the city they live in and dissuade the habit of scribbling, spitting and other derogatory acts that dirty walls in public places, members of RC Talegaon Dabhade, RID 3131, recently organised a wall painting competition among school children which was a thumping success.
In this clarion call given by the club to all the schools in the city, around 80 children from 21 schools participated and the result is bright, colourful and nicely done walls in certain parts of the city enhancing its aesthetic appeal.
Explaining the project, club president Kamlesh Karle said that his basic objective was to “ensure that we live in a clean and beautiful city. I shifted from Pune to Talegaon, which is about 35km from Pune, about 25 years ago. I noticed many of the walls in the city were looking either dirty or covered in dust and hence dull. So I thought why not transform these walls into vibrant canvases by covering the unsightly walls with socially relevant and environmental messages.”
Prior to the event, which was held on Feb 25, the members of this 33-year-old club organised a drive to clean the walls, and whitewash those which required a simple coat of white paint. Having family connections with a school of fine arts in Pune, which was founded by his grandfather and in which his aunt teaches art, he requested her to find for them one of their students. She identified Omkar Jadhav, who is a commercial artist and he agreed to help with the wall painting project. The walls identified included one at a telephone office, another in a school, a hospital and even a graveyard. Club members contributed the cost of the project which was around ₹1.29 lakh.
Working in collaboration with the Talegaon Municipal Council, the club identified key environmental themes for the wall paintings, which included air, soil and water pollution, urban waste management, and the importance of growing trees.
During this project, 10 students from each participating school, along with their art teachers, were assigned a specific concept to focus on. They were given 10 days to develop their ideas on paper, and after a review and minor modifications, they were permitted to bring their designs to life on the walls. The commercial artist Jadhav, who specialises in wall painting, educated the students on how to prepare different shades from five basic colours, and after they had got the concept of the colour mixing technique, the students set about the task of painting their designs on the walls.
“They were so excited and enthusiastic; we had asked them to assemble at 7am, but they were all there by 6.30am. There was such an air of excitement and cheerful atmosphere that the passersby stopped their cars or two-wheelers to stop and watch,” smiles Karle.
Club member Sharmila Shah, who oversaw the project, said it was such a hit that “we are getting volunteers who are saying please involve us the next time you do any initiative to beautify the city.” Once the summer vacation is over the Rotarians are planning similar event, and “to our surprise a local paint company has come forward to sponsor the paint for such an event,” she said.
Karle added that there is one dirty wall at the railway station identified by several residents who have requested the club to beautify it in their next project.
