The sight of a burnt car abandoned on the service road leading to her apartment in Kukatpally worried Ayushi Sharma. The fact that the road is dark and without street lights also added to her anxiety. Though it was not a direct obstruction, it did occupy a fair amount space on the busy road. What if someone crashes into that car at night?
“I noticed the car as soon I moved into the area. It was corroding; there was nothing left inside, it was just a dilapidated metal structure,” she explains.
Would she call it an eyesore? “To some extent, yes. However, I was more concerned about the safety. Hyderabad is such a beautiful city, but we often see abandoned things on the road which nobody takes ownership of. This was one such metal heap,” says Ayushi.
Ayushi painting the abandoned car
The car is an old Zen and though she asked people in her locality about it, no one seemed to know what had happened to it, how it got burnt or why it was left there. “Well, I could have called up some helpline and get it towed off the road. That would have been a smart and effortless idea. Instead, I decided to add some colour to the gloom and turn the abandoned car into a pretty sight.”
Without wasting much time she got the car cleaned, gave it a good water wash and began to think of how to make it look attractive. At that time, Ayushi was taking time off from her work with a radio station to explore her creative side and do something innovative.
“I have a small creative business called Card kart so colouring something up to make it look attractive was my first instinct.” The young self-taught artist got ready to bring out her paint brushes to create more than made-to-order handmade cards, wall hangings and decorative pieces that she had been doing until then.
The transformation
“I started painting the burnt car with a few cans of outdoor colours. I selected bright happy colours to give the car a new look, for whatever it is worth,” says Ayushi who took about a year to complete colouring the car.
For the facelift, she chose to paint an owl on the hood, some abstract drawing on the side of the car facing the road and a mandala drawing at the bunk. She also added radium stickers to alert motorists. Apart from the compliments for reducing the danger for motorists, passerbys who saw her paint thanked her and appreciated her effort. Soon the car became a hot spot for selfie takers. At the end of the car painting project Ayushi was most thrilled to get compliments from cab drivers. “They were extremely happy that the car that posed a threat is now visible at night. Some drivers also told me of other abandoned cars and vehicles than can be painted and made beautiful,” she shares.
Next on her to do list: “I will start a campaign calling in for scrap that need to be painted. Lets spread happiness through ‘Little Things.’
