Vibrant paintings, kaleidoscopic symbols, ornamental designs and three-dimensional typography and sometimes even straight-up warnings like ‘buri nazar wale tera muh kaala’ to beat any nazar-induced misadventures on the journey are a common sight behind commercial trucks in India.
Spending 60% of their lives on the road, the truck is a canvas for truckers to express their feelings to their lover, pay respect to their deity, feel pride in a national symbol, show fandom for a movie star, and even remember their home.
Hand-painted truck art has been a tradition for generations of truck artists in India who are commissioned by truck owners but owing to the advent of cheap DIY stickers and pre-painted trucks, this art form and its artists are slowly fading into oblivion.
Seeing the plight of truck artists first-hand, drawing on the experiences of his grandfather, who ran a transport business, Farid Bawa founded All India Permit with the aim to preserve and promote the beautiful truck art of India. Reviving and promoting Indian truck art and culture and taking it to places like homes, offices, skateparks, bars, festivals, digital spaces and beyond, they collaborate with brands around the world to create everything from playlist art to hand-painted shoes and have worked with the likes of Vans and Levis.
They also created India’s first mobile art gallery that went on a 1000 km road trip from Nagpur to Mumbai in a truck loaded with truck art. This free mobile gallery on the back of a truck exhibited, promoted and educated people about the art form. Stopping at various cities in key spots including malls, dhabas, and design schools, the exhibition connected with a large and diverse audience.
Check them out here.
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