SHILLONG: The life-size wall mural of Bollywood icon, Mithun Chakraborty painted on a government building was defaced by miscreants on Friday.
The mural was ink-brushed by Ranjeet, a renowned international artist from Mumbai depicting Mithun in his typical Bollywood Disco Dancer move.
When The Shillong Times contacted Sanjib Roy a.k.a Yantr, the organiser and founder of the Shillong Street Art Festival (SSAF), he said, “It is a sad situation. We cannot help it. We are artistes and we don’t have any religion or anything. We only express our art and make people smile while some people don’t understand.” Stating that he had organised the SSAF to showcase the talented artistes in the state, he expressed uncertainty on whether the festival would continue. “We were going to continue the festival but right now I don’t know the future.”“It is very painful because we are artistes but I don’t blame anyone for this,” Roy added.
Meanwhile, SP (City), S.A Rynjah said he has sought a report on the matter.
It may be mentioned that SSAF, which started on March 8, was seen as a platform for upcoming artistes to display their talent in street art.
The street art is a mix of graffiti styles and murals signifying women’s empowerment, education, flora and fauna, traditional and modern day Khasi populace and bio-mechanical art.
