‘My life as an auto-rickshaw driver is the inspiration for my artworks’

Kolkata-based artist, Bapi Das, is just as well-acquainted with paint brushes, colour palettes and canvases as he is with autometer fares, petrol inflation and the narrow by-lanes of North Kolkata. That’s because, this creatively stubborn and dedicated artist was an auto-rickshaw driver for almost 19 years. “My life as an auto-rickshaw driver has taught me and inspired me a lot and most of my artworks are based around this theme,” says Bapi, whose exhibition ‘A Needle, A stitch & Many Tales’ was unveiled at a city art gallery recently. Hyderabad Times caught up with him for a candid chat.

Living with his 59-year-old ailing mother in a one-room apartment in the squalid lanes of Narkeldanga in North Kolkata, Bapi has seen some of the harshest realities of life, but that did not deter him from creating several charming art pieces. “I used to love painting in school but due to financial constraints, I had to quit school in eighth grade. I worked at a stainless steel factory, making wardrobes, and then started driving an auto-rickshaw to make ends meet. But I never gave up on my love for art — be it an intricately designed steel wardrobe or a simple etching on the side of my auto,” says the 39-year old, who is also a self-taught embroidery artist.
Using fine needles and even finer threads to embroider stories on circular cloth frames, he brings vivid imageries to life. “I had never even sewn a button in my life, but when I saw some pictures of the thread painting exhibition at an art gallery in Darjeeling, I instantly fell in love with the unique style and wanted to try it myself, and there began my tryst with embroidery art,” says the artist. Bapi’s first threadwork was a simple lotus leaf but soon he began sewing exquisite needle-work pictures, recreating memories from his journey through the streets of Kolkata as an

auto driver

— the windshield splattered with rain, the deserted road at night, the scrupulous recreation of a worn-out wallet with a picture of him and his mother and so on — with his threadwork .

“I have always had the hunger for doing something unique. My mother, Kalpana Das, wasn’t too happy when I started embroidery art because the work is normally associated with women, but I continued with it,” says Bapi, who believes that his mentor, Kolkata-based artist Avijit Dutta, has had a huge role to play in making him an artist. “I wanted to bring in finesse to my art and was looking for a teacher, and that’s when I came across Avijit, who has been a blessing in disguise for me. From teaching me what to wear for an art event to introducing me to new forms of art every day, he has made me what I am today,” says an emotional Bapi.

Bapi believes in leading a simple life and that is evident in his works. “I don’t know how to read or speak English, so I don’t even read the descriptions that accompany my artworks, but I hope people understand the emotions behind them.” His art pieces are so minutely detailed that one has to use a magnifying glass to understand them. “This began with my recent exhibition at

Kochi-Muziris Biennale

. While working on my pieces, I use a magnifying glass to zoom in because the threads are very fine and the detailings, very intricate. Therefore, I thought it’d be best to provide the audience with a magnifying glass as well, to understand my work better,” says Bapi, who recently sold a couple of his artworks to a French patron .