''Yantr'' is a

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

ous

graffiti artist Graffiti (singular ''graffiti'', or ''graffito'' only in Graffito (archaeology), graffiti archeology) is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple writte ...

from

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

, India. ''Yantr'' is a

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

word that literally means "machine".

Early life

Yantr's real identity is not known. He was raised in

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

where his father owned a garage. He is an Indian artist and designer who introduced contemporary mural art and

street art Street art is visual art created in public locations for public visibility. It has been associated with the terms "independent art", "post-graffiti", "neo-graffiti" and guerrilla art. Street art has evolved from the early forms of defiant gr ...

to India. He is an alumnus of Department of Fine Arts, from The

Maharaja Sayajirao University Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, formerly Baroda College, is a public university in the city of Vadodara, Gujarat, India. Originally established as a college in 1881, it became a public university on April 30, 1949 and was renamed after ...

Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is a city situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district. The city is named for its abundance of banyan ...

. Before starting the street art movement, he worked nearly 10 years as an art director in advertising where he worked on global and Indian brands. He has spread the mural art movement all over India such as in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

Kochi Kochi ( , ), List of renamed Indian cities and states#Kerala, formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the Ernakulam district, district of Ernakulam in the ...

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

and

Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

Career

Yantr was introduced to street art in 2006 and started working in 2008–09. He has traveled across India to paints murals in various cities including Delhi,

Guwahati Guwahati () the largest city of the Indian state of Assam, and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the seat of the Government of Assam. Th ...

, and Mumbai. He

stencil Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object. The holes allow the pigment to reach only some parts of the surface creatin ...

ed ''a man with notes'' at different places in Delhi overnight in 2011 to protest against

black money A black market is a clandestine market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality, or is not compliant with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the set of goods and services whose production and distributi ...

. He created ''Parmanu Muskan'', the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was ...

wearing a mechanical mask, for creating awareness of environmental issues. He also created an art Heart exchange with Sé Cordeiro in

Hauz Khas Hauz Khas is a neighborhood in South Delhi, its heart being the historic Hauz Khas Complex. Well known in medieval times, the Hauz Khas village has buildings built around the reservoir. There are remnants of Islamic architecture roughly color ...

during 2014 street art festival. He painted a bleeding rhino near Assam Zoo to highlight illegal poaching of rhinos for its horns. He participated in St+Art Mumbai. At Kochi Muziris Biennale, he painted a mechanical giant whale. He also created massive bird by arranging fodder on ground near village in Delhi. During street art festival in 2014, he created a mural of large drone with an eye on the side of five-story building in Shahpur Jat area of Delhi. He aims to bring complex topics to the general public through street art. His work combines machinery and natural forms, utilizing his unique style. He was also a part of St+art Delhi 2014 and the first Street Art exhibition in India - "This is Not Street Art". He also participated in 18 Degrees Festival in October 2014 and painted murals in

Shillong Shillong (, ) is a hill station and the capital of Meghalaya, a Indian state, state in northeastern India. It is the headquarters of the East Khasi Hills district. Shillong is the list of most populous cities in India, 330th most populous city ...

. During street art festival in Mumbai, Ranjit Dahiya and he partnered to paint India’s largest mural, depicting the father of Indian cinema,

Dadasaheb Phalke Dhundiraj Govind Phalke (Pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, ̪ʱuɳɖiɾaːd͡ʒ pʰaːɭke, popularly known as Dadasaheb Phalke (30 April 1870 – 16 February 1944), was an Indian producer-director-screenwriter, known as "the Father of Indian ...

. He also painted a simple wall with a window into a dream sequence which later featured in home and design trends magazine. In 2015, he created promotional wall arts for

Cadbury Cadbury, formerly Cadbury's and Cadbury Schweppes, is a British multinational confectionery company owned by Mondelez International (spun off from Kraft Foods) since 2010. It is the second-largest confectionery brand in the world, after Mars. ...

Oreo biscuits in Delhi. In 2016, he painted India’s tallest mural, 115 feet high water tank, depicting the wildlife conservation named ''Mission Leopard'', in National Capital Region

Gurgaon Gurgaon (), officially named Gurugram (), is a satellite city of Delhi and administrative headquarters of Gurgaon district, located in the northern Indian state of Haryana. It is situated near the Delhi–Haryana border, about southwest ...

(Now Gurugram). In September 2016, he painted India’s first ever fire station in

, depicting the courage and spirit of firemen.

Style

Yantr's style is influenced by his childhood experiences in his father's garage and work in field of arts. His works are an amalgamation of machines, organic forms and art, sometimes called bio-mechanicals, with eclectic themes.

References

{{Street Art Living people Indian graffiti artists Pseudonymous artists Indian political artists Artists from Delhi Year of birth missing (living people) Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda alumni Anonymous artists