On the way to Manikonda, there are a plethora of tombs and other monuments, dating back from the Qutb Shahi period, which lay quietly on the side of the bustling roads. In an effort to bring attention to these slowly decaying sites, street artists Swathi and Vijay have kicked — sprayed, rather — into gear a disruptive project titled #HydHeritage.
On March 22, the duo approached three protected heritage sites and sprayed messages in stark white across the fragile walls, such as “Feeling lonely #hydheritage” and “I’m an oprhan, adopt me! #hydheritage.”
Swathi explains, “I personally love these monuments, so we felt that painting directly on these walls grabs more attention from the public than simply placing a sign in the ground by them. Signs are removable.”
Upon posting the project images to their social media, mixed response erupted; many vouched their support while others asked why they are blatantly vandalising these sites just like others who’ve carved their names into Charminar and the walls of the Qutb Shahi Tombs. Swathi acknowledges the combination of views, “We are not as bad as those people. On a day to day basis, the public observes the scratchings and other graffiti on these walls, and even participate themselves. Something as obvious as what we did will have impact. When we were doing the painting with the spray cans, people who were watching approached us and offered support too.”
She also says she’s seen better collective attention paid towards historic sites in other countries, so she’s attempting to emulate the same efforts here.
Dissent galore
Such a view is unlikely to change the minds of the angry dissenters who maintain Swathi and Vijay are doing no different than the vandals who merely etch or pen their names or declarations of love into these historic walls.
One user shared a photo on Facebook of the duo’s self-advertisement on the rangoli-decorated walls at Shilparamam Hitech City, adding, “Oh God! Stop! What is wrong with you?! Look at the pictures I’ve shared. They are insulting the artists who made the traditional design by advertising their company on it.”
Another user added, “Are you guys nuts? To think that so many of us Hyderabadis have to see our monuments being defaced all the time, and you’re adding on to it? Please stop this. It serves no purpose. How are you better than the people who draw or scratch their names of the Charminar?” before continuing in another post, “This is a Qutb Shahi era structure. Wanting to save our heritage is a different thing, but this literally is tantamount to vandalism. Please stop. There are better ways to draw attention, and this is not the right way. You can't just go spray paint over an edifice. Unacceptable.”
Swathi adds that they hope to continue the project in Warangal at the Kakatiya era wells or metla bhavi where plenty of vandalism has gone unnoticed. In 2016, parts of the wells were blasted with gelatin sticks by rogue treasure hunters.
However, more than ₹100 crores has gone into the refurbishement of the Qutb Shahi Tombs, thanks to the Aga Khan Trust, plans to revamp King Kothi gates are also underway and Charminar is undergoing a costly and extreme facelift to bring it back to its former glory, proving these sites aren’t entirely ignored.
