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Once upon a time…, no, not a king story, but there were melas, i.e., local fairs, even in big cities of Bangladesh, including Dhaka. The cities had a festive image year-round, from Baishakhi mela to Eid mela to Durga puja mela, and the culture around these used to make Dhaka more colourful than Generation Alpha could ever imagine. To be fair, even Generation Z has a vague memory about this. However, this seems oddly (still, rightfully so) unbelievable when you're dwelling in the 2020s.
Even in these dull lives in cities, people do come across wonderfully coloured flyovers, ramps, and walls and feel the artistic authenticity of our country. One of those wonderful creations is this year's Mohakhali Flyover's traditional street art. Whenever people pass this mesmerising artwork, they feel welcome to the city on a level they are not used to.
Homayra Mahzabin Ankita, a student at the University of Dhaka, says, "I've been living in Dhaka for more than 2 years now. But just recently, I saw the graffiti on the flyovers, and I was mesmerized. It was so colorful and eye-catching."
Even people who did not see this work in person have seen it in Instagram reels or Facebook posts. People admire these works even without seeing them in person. In the end, these works demonstrate our culture, soothe our minds, and distract us from the colourless struggles of everyday Dhaka, such as traffic jams.
Homayra Mahzabin continues about her experience, "Before seeing it with my own eyes, I saw multiple reels of the paintings, which intrigued me, but seeing it in real life was much more than that. I was stunned. Appearance-wise, Dhaka has never been my favorite place as I spent most of my life in a city like Rajshahi, but this is one of those parts of Dhaka that makes me like it."
Even in the middle of a traffic jam, passengers feel an unbelievable peace seeing these beautiful artworks; for a second, they lose track of the harsh reality and find themselves amid the beauty of the city they've always read in Bengali poetry. In March, Dhaka North unveiled its newest venture of painting murals on flyovers, dustbin depots, free walls, and spaces to make city streets look vibrant and colourful. This vividly coloured folk art is made of over-the-top graffiti, which passersby often praise.
Even before these works, DNCC had another project last year: Moghbazar flyover graffiti, which Dhaka University artists painted. The graffiti, with its literal language, was against the posters on pillars, but it has also been an example of phenomenal artwork for Dhaka.
Rudra Sarker, a Dhaka University student living in Khilgaon, often passes the Moghbazar flyover on his way. He says about his experience, "Actually, it's like looking at the painting sometimes gives me a way to leave reality, forget how horrible the environment of Dhaka is, and think how life can sometimes be just beautiful despite its flaws."
"Life sometimes is colorless, and I tend to forget that dull part of life when I look at these amazing combinations of different vibrant colors on roads, be it walls, be it flyovers, or be it a lamppost," Rudra continues. This is how most city dwellers find themselves at peace when they stare at those artworks.
Another Dhaka dweller, Saiyara Hossain, says, "I've noticed paintings on multiple flyovers in Dhaka. Those are amazing! The colours and the designs really brighten up the city. It's truly impressive to see how talented artists can transform such ordinary structures into something so beautiful." Speaking of artists, Saiyara is a graphic designer, and these works charm her in a way that maybe most of us won't relate to. Perhaps that's why she finds herself enchanted by the design.
Still, many Dhaka dwellers don't see the point of these graffiti and paintings; rather, they find them a 'waste of budget' or something like that. As practical as they might sound to themselves, they also enjoy these works from the bottom of their hearts when they finally understand the beauty in their mundane lives, sitting on a window seat for hours, waiting for the traffic to end.
Since the earliest era, Bengali poets have talked about the country's beauty, culture, and whatnot, which we, the city dwellers, often find unbelievable. This is where Dhaka's graffiti works make our dreams come true, showing us what the poets have been talking about all their lives. This is where city-dwellers finally see the culture of the country painted out all over the city.