course assignment
poster : situational pun
The task was to craft a visual pun by repurposing well-known quotes, proverbs, songs, or movie lines, altering their context to convey humor, sarcasm, or profound messages.
size
A3, Landscape or Portrait
phrase chosen
Live as if you were to die tomorrow... ~ Mahatma Gandhi
typeface used
Courier Regular & Courier Bold.
process
At the outset, explored various concepts and taglines to determine the most fitting ones as captured below.
मुंबई शहर सपनों का शहर
The image portrays
a person sleeping on
a sidewalk, envisioning a small one-room home with a comfortable bed. It highlights the stark contrast between the commonly used phrase in reference to Mumbai and the harsh living conditions faced by many of its residents.
exploring tagline
Gandhiji's well-known quote about living each day to the fullest takes on a poignant meaning in this visual. It encapsulates the daily reality of a manual scavenger who goes to work, often without proper safety equipment, uncertain if it might be their last time doing so.
intention
Depicting how some live life one day at a time, not in a positive way. We often hear advice about making the most of each day as if there's no tomorrow, while never truly believing there may not be. For India's sewage cleaners, this harsh reality holds true literally; they live their lives without certainty of a tomorrow or access to a fulfilling life. Despite decades of independence, the curse of modern slavery persists, passing through generations.
why black & white
We opted for a black and white color palette to symbolize the absence of color in an undignified profession that involves cleaning the dirtiest corners of our environment.
चंदा रे चंदा रे
We explored what if beloved song lyrics came to life literally. It leaned on directness but lacked surprise.
black lives matter
The widely-discussed Black Lives Matter Movement in the United States resonates in our country, where systemic oppression persists. It's exemplified through the continued legality of manual scavenging in India. We adapted the slogan 'Black Lives Matter' to highlight the plight of Indian manual scavengers who endure a dark life, literally, while cleaning sewers. The visual also portrays the generational aspect, with characters spanning from infants to the elderly. However, we chose not to pursue this concept further, as the prevalent systemic oppression, similar in both countries, diluted its pun value.
composing the draf
final poster
