Noida-based veteran mesmerises audience at Red Fort with live sand art

Chhibber, a 67-year-old war veteran, was performing live sand art at the Army House on the occasion of Army Day.

City-based sand artist Colonel (retired) Ronnie Chhibber mesmerised the jam-packed audience at Red Fort on Monday evening by narrating stories of valour of the Indian Army using sand as his canvas.

Chhibber narrated stories of valour of the Indian Army in wars and recent surgical strikes.

Chhibber, a 67-year-old war veteran, was performing live sand art at the Army House on the occasion of Army Day. He performed in the presence of President Ram Nath Kovind, Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan and the chiefs of the Army, Air Force and Navy.

“Through sand and light work, I managed to narrate stories of valour of the Indian Army in various wars, including the recent surgical strike along the Line of Control. I also showed a missile launch of ISRO and displayed the Indian soldiers guarding our borders, on foot and on a camel. My main motive was to show that for an Indian soldier, the honour of his country comes first, then the safety of his comrades and lastly, his own life,” Col (retd) Chhibber said.

A decorated army veteran, Chhibber served in the Indian Army for 30 years and in 2001, he took voluntary retirement. For the last nine years, he has been a sand artist, having performed in over 350 events across India.

He also shared an anecdote that inspired him to practice sand art. “I never took formal training for sand art. When I was flying helicopters for the Indian Army, I used to draw caricatures on the windscreen of the army vehicles and choppers when dust used to get settled on them. That gave me an idea to pursue sand art,” he said.

“Moreover, when I noticed that the sand art cannot be displayed prominently in the night time, I started using a glass sheet underneath the sand surface and installed colourful lights to show effects. Now, I prominently use colourful lights to portray different landscapes, such as black for a mountain, blue for sky and water, gold for sand and so on,” he said.

Col (retd) Chibber has become a prominent name in India when it comes to live sand art. He said that he can even perform this art form blindfolded.

He said that he had managed to impress President Kovind with his artwork on Monday night and he wishes to perform at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. “The President was impressed by my work and he has also invited me to perform at the Rashtrapati Bhawan,” Col (retd) Chhibber said.