Even polls don't change fortunes of these graffiti artists in Tamil Nadu

Come election time and graffiti artists across Tamil Nadu would be richer with loads of work, but those good old days are gone as far as the graffiti artists of the southern state are concerned this time.

John Samuel, a graffiti artist in Coimbatore, told IANS, "We used to get a lot of work during elections and that was the time when we settled all our financial commitments, but now we are short of work. There are two reasons behind this -- firstly, the technological advancement and use of social media, and secondly, the Model Code of Conduct in Tamil Nadu which prevents graffiti campaigns on walls in urban areas. We now have to scout for villages. It's less work and we are hard pressed."

Samuel (48) has been in the business of wall graffiti since the past 25 years and has a small studio at the Avinashi road in Coimbatore. However, he said that he is now slowly migrating to social media campaigns to survive in the industry.

The electoral officer of Tamil Nadu has banned wall paintings and graffitis in the urban centres of the state, leading to lesser work for the artists.

Muruganandan, a graffiti artist at Egmore, is also having a tough time. "We were expecting good work as lots of political parties are now in the fray, including the AIADMK, DMK, BJP, MNM, AMMK, DMDK and several other parties, but the work flow is less and its mainly owing to the Election Commission's order banning wall graffitis in the urban areas."

Muruganandan, however, said that he is going to the rural areas of Tamil Nadu along with his fellow workers where they have managed to get some small work which will help them survive the tide.

The graffiti artists used to charge anything from Rs 150-300 for drawing a symbol while full wall paintings cost much morer. Each artist used to earn anything between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 10 lakh, provided they got work during election time.

Muruganandan said, "It seems that the good times are over and this system will be in place in the coming years also. We have to shift to some other areas for survival. I am trying to come to terms with social media but its difficult at this point of time."

The Secretary of DMK's Kanyakumari unit, M.R. Velmurugan, told IANS, "Graffitis on walls gave a feel of elections and without these the elections are turning dull. Earlier, the popularity and presence of a candidate was measured by the number of walls booked and written in his name. But with changing times and new rules coming up, the political parties are also evolving and switching over to social media campaigns." (IANS)