Their presence is increasingly being felt on the citys walls,underneath flyovers and outside decrepit compounds. Most of them function under pseudonyms like Tyler or Daku to hide their identity as they sneak out in the dead of the night,armed with spray cans and stencils. A documentary-film called Projekt Tyler attempts to chronicle this underground phenomenon,letting us peep into the world of a graffiti artist. A project by Akshay Parab,which is also his assignment at Whistling Woods International,not only follows the eponymous street-artist (Tyler) and tells his side of the story,but also tries to look at the growing sub-culture from a neutral perspective. The intention was not to be biased and open up horizons for a discussion about graffiti art. Hence,we thought it is important to take opinions of other people like ordinary residents,pedestrians,or shopkeepers who regularly come in contact with graffiti art, says Parab,a final year student of the institute. The film opens with a psychiatrist analysing the mind of a graffiti artist,as a loner,possibly bit of a social misfit who lives his fantasies on the citys walls. For a large part,though,it follows the nocturnal adventures of Tyler,giving the viewers a peek into his work process. The camera tags along as he drives his car in the night on his way to his destination. It gives a rare view of the graffiti artist at work; from his workstation replete with giant sized stencil sheets to the risky evasion from the cops eyes. It doesnt reveal his face though,which,most of the time,is cleverly hidden behind a hood. Instead of making it a constricted conversation with Tyler,it attempts to take a larger view of the graffiti art scene in the city,and the country at large. We shot in guerrilla style,with people posted at various junctions watching our back and warning us beforehand if cops were around, says Parab. Parab and his team of four people shot the film across South Mumbai,Bandra,Andheri: places where most of citys graffiti art is visible. The 16 minute-long film can be viewed on Youtube. Parab,who is pursuing a Producers course at the institute,hopes to send it to documentary film festivals in India and abroad.
