Acid attack survivors hone artistic skills, to support other survivors

To empower other acid attack survivors, an exhibition in the city highlights the creative skills of survivors turned artists.

Aman Gaur, a 21-year-old artist sits and paints with full focus, unleashing her creativity. Her focus might be on the art, but an onlooker sees her grit and determination to create new things while battling the challenges life has given her. “I’m a self-taught artist, I’ve been painting since my childhood,” says Gaur, an acid attack survivor. She is one of the many artists who have come together to present their works for an exhibition, Mitti Handprints.

“Making designs on mitti (mud) products was a unique experience for me. The idea of this exhibition is to help the survivors, and it was a wonderful experience to be part of this initiative. I primarily taught and painted plates and learnt so much,” adds Gaur.

The mud artefacts at the exhibition were painted in bring hues.

Organised by an NGO, The Laxmi Foundation, this exhibition aims to empower the acid attack survivors by highlighting their creative sides. Laxmi Agarwal, founder of the NGO says, “Many survivors are going through financial crisis in the pandemic. They are struggling much and we have no rehabilitation programs running for the acid attack survivors in our country. With this new project, we aim to rehabilitate and help them financially, mentally, and psychologically. In the exhibition, we have mud products painted and designed beautifully by acid attack survivors and our volunteers.”

Author tweets @ruchikagarg271

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