It happened over a cup of tea at a roadside stall in the winding lanes of Khirki Extension in South Delhi. Writer Manoj Pandey and graphic designer Nidhin Kundathil, both in their early 30s, were discussing literature when it occurred to them that it should be accessible to all — “outside the high walls of institutions,” says Pandey.
The duo immediately went back to their studio in Saket and created a sticker carrying the poem ‘Wajoodiat’ by their friend Riazat Ullah Khan, on the theme of existentialism. The poster was stuck on the display window of a pani poori stall in Khirki Extension. “The response was surprisingly very positive. This made us realise that given a chance everyone is very receptive to ideas no matter how complex or radical,” says Pandey, remembering how a rickshaw-walla came up to read the sticker and remarked: “ Kavi ne dil ki awaaz kagaz pe utari hai ” (The poet has penned on paper the voice of his heart).
Passion project
With that, Sticklit became a passion project, an initiative that hopes to be the world’s largest repository of good art and literature in unconventional public spaces. The audience is everyone on the street: from office-goers to daily labours, those who can’t
Legends on T-shirts
afford to buy a book or don’t have the time to read one, says Kundathil. Reading is an elite activity and the people behind #Sticklit want to break down the walls and democratise it. Or, more simply, “to give people a moment to get away from the rut of roti, kapda and makaan,” as Pandey puts it.
What began as a two-man operation has grown into a collective of about 120 artists and writers spread across Europe, India, the U.S. and Australia over the last one year. Famous writers like Salman Rushdie and Shashi Tharoor endorsing the project has helped create a buzz.
How does Sticklit work? First, a range of literary quotes in a variety of languages and themes are curated by the team. These are picked keeping in mind the context of space and region they will travel to. Poems work best for bustling places such as railway stations, for example, where they can be read quickly before boarding a train. Next, the sticker is designed in the studio. “We choose neon colours that will pop up in public places and keep the sticker largely typographical in bold font for easy readability,” explains Kundathil.
Free world
The size and shape of the sticker, poster and murals vary depending on the space they will inhabit — walls, pillars, display windows, postboxes, even locks hanging on doors. The team has also designed T-shirts with quotes and distributed them. One of the more popular stickers which has adorned walls in Delhi, Mumbai, Darjeeling, Bengaluru quotes Shashi Tharoor: “Gandhi saw the misery of partition and broke his vow of silence. He wept.”
To go one step beyond, the Sticklit team is working on cross-fitting genres and spaces, such as reviving prison literature in prisons and creating educational models. However, using public spaces to try and create social impact comes with many roadblocks such as having to deal with the police and space-owners. “The idea of public space is an illusion. Properties are either owned by real-estate people, private players or the government. And it’s a tough game to get permissions. People are either reluctant to give space or ask for money. We have no funding. This project runs on sheer blood and passion,” says Pandey, who recently published a collection of short stories, The Legacy of Nothing , which is imbued with what the streets have taught him.
Even while creating a “free-world for writers and readers” and bringing together disparate worlds, Sticklit also works as a platform for aspiring artists and writers by putting their work out in the public. Anyone is free to download stickers available on their website and be a part of the initiative. Do they believe the project can inspire more people to read? “That’s the dream. Especially in a society that’s not a reading one,” says Pandey hopefully.
The writer is a Delhi-based freelance journalist.
