ARTIST JAI RANJIT HOLDS ART BY THE HAND AND TAKES IT OUT OF ITS TRADITIONAL HOME, THE GALLERIES, FOR A STROLL AROUND THE CITY. WE WALK ALONG.

ARTIST JAI RANJIT HOLDS ART BY THE HAND AND TAKES IT OUT OF ITS TRADITIONAL HOME, THE GALLERIES, FOR A STROLL AROUND THE CITY. WE WALK ALONG.

    He can turn a pedestrian's shoes' into a work of art. Plain T-shirts become prices possessions, when he gives them his artistic touch. And the line of difference between wall hanging art and utility art vanishes when he uses his magic brush. Meet Jai Ranjit, one of the most socially active and unconventional artists of the Mumbai art world.
    Don't they say you can judge an artist through his/her canvas? Well, if that is true then, here is an art maverick that has extended his art beyond the limits of a conventional canvas. Taking his work out of canvasses and galleries, he believes in reaching out to people through his art. "Art is to share an idea and that could be anything or anywhere" says Ranjit. For him, any thing is his potential canvas and any place is his gallery.
    Breaking the barriers of and art shows and no curator to promote, Jai Ranjit is one of the few artists who have stepped out of the comforts of art galleries and are marketing their work otherwise. Traditionalists may still want to stick to the conventional norms of the art world, but creative novelty is the name of the game today as the young breed of artists are here to discover the new art horizons. "As a painter in the time of social media, it's important to be relevant in terms of outreach platforms that the public uses at large. To that effect, I'm also a people's person, so I enjoy randomly showing up in different parts of the city and tweeting about the fact that if someone's around, I'd be happy to paint something for them. This usually means they'll bring me their tees, bags or shoes, and I'll paint it on the spot. Some designs take longer than others, but if the folks are coming out to see me, they're doing so for the random fun of it," says Ranjit.
    So while there is no denying that the traditional art galleries will always be the art lover's paradise, there is also an excitement amongst art lovers about these new art trends. While Colaba is always going to be the traditional art haven, Lokhandwala too, has a great young crowd that is interested in art and pop culture and the art scene here is fast growing. About ideating, conducting and marketing these art sessions all by himself, Jai Ranjit says, "Lokhandwala is a great place to do this, because there are so many people in this crazy active area who like doing off-the-beaten-path stuff. Youngsters just love to get their shoes painted on the side of the road or on a bench. People simply like the novelty of me doing this."

> Khubi Ali