Do you have an inkling?

Mona

Life’s is all about expressions and currently trending on is the semi-colon. Yes, the semi-colon that’s used by a writer where she/he could have ended the sentence. Going much beyond a punctuation mark #semicolon today is the mark of continuation. A choice people made, people who were almost defeated by addiction or depression but didn’t put a full stop to the precious gift that life is but moved on.

Social media is abuzz with pictures of people who have this special tattoo that talks of the choices they had made – of not giving up. Tattoos are no longer meaningless motifs inscribed on skin on an impulse but markers of deep faith and or ideology.

We look at the Tricity tribe to see what they love to flaunt on their skin.

Couple of designs

While fathers bearing their children’s names is a global trend aced by David Beckham and Akshay Kumar alike, it was rather refreshing to see this young mother getting her kids for rides and their names—Akira and Rihan—peeping out of her halter top at Elante.

For this doctor, tattoos are the ultimate style statement. While her first was a butterfly on the nape, her hubby Vikas’s name followed on her wrist, followed by kids’ inked on her shoulder.

“Look when you are into some skin show, you must give watchers something to distract too,” giggles Dr Sawapana Singla, citing how her father asked her to get some ‘drawing’ done on her lower back when low-waist jeans trended the fashion trail a decade back.” She loves carrying her family members’ names on her body as much as she likes the butterfly. “I love colourful things in life and also want to fly, so a butterfly just fits the bill.”

Her hubby Dr Vikas Singla chose eagle to be his first and Pegasus, the flying horse from Greek mythology, next. Swapna talks on her hubby’s behalf, “I guess he is into flying…he loves to listen to I believe I can fly/ I believe I can touch the sky.” Vikas adds, “Look, tattoo is a permanent thing. Logic can change over a period of time, but what you feel from the heart remains true forever. Eagle and Pegasus are my choices.”

The happy duo is spending time in the gym more often to get body ready to be beautified with more tattoos!

Gunning for art

This engineer chose to follow his passion, and now he runs 23GunsTattoo studio at sector 15, Chandigarh. His body is an art work and he loves inking others, getting them paint their dreams.

“In this city, names remain the number one choice for tattoos. Names of parents, beloved and those who are obsessed with self love, love to get their own names inscribed,” opens up Gourav Mahajan, who trained from Devilz Tattooz, Delhi. “I inked this seventy-year-old man who wanted his grandson’s name on him.” As for himself, he has family members’ names, a star, some Buddhist figures and flowers.

“Everything stands for a special meaning for me,” shares the enthusiastic lad, who has one full arm dedicated to his icon Marilyn Monroe. “I first came to know her when I was in the seventh standard. I have been reading about her ever since, so fascinated I am by this pop icon that I have her with me all the times,” he winks. For his clients he has done it all right from a prophetic skull to Geisha to a ship in the storm.

Waiting for the right one

While most of the tattoo tribe remains young and restless who often end up getting them erased or changed few years later, there are others who wait for a long time to get one.

Amit Sharma, who mans a chemist shop got his first, a dragon post his marriage and kids. “While growing up, I wasn’t sure if my parents would like it or not. Post college, as they say, life happened. It was only three years back that I finally got my childhood wish fulfilled,” shares Amit, who went all the way to Delhi on a friend’s recommendation to get his dream ‘dragon’ inked.

Eternal ink

Rishabh is another engineer-turned-tattoo artist. Life changed for him post watching LA Ink. “I always wanted to do something creative but didn’t know what. LA Ink gave me the direction.” Now, Rishabh runs Immortal Tattoos in Chandigarh.

This artist is out to achieve more. There have been causes that are close to his heart, promoting girl child being one of them. “I once had this client who came from Patiala whose wife was expecting. He expressed that he would want the portrait if it’s a boy, and the name if a girl. I refused point blank, told him it had to be a portrait, irrespective of the gender. And he did come after his daughter was born, to get a portrait and was a happy man at the end of inductive session.” Even when Dr Swapna showed up at his door, Rishabh insisted on having daughter Akira’s name on top though son Rihan is the first born.

“Girls always come first,” he insists. His body is an artist’s wall too, he particularly likes one that’s been given to him by famous singer Bohemia. “I inked an Aquarius sign on him and he made me one in return. He asked me what I wanted, I left it to him...he wrote ‘One love’ on my right wrist.”

Life goes on

Back to the semi-colon, the trend had caught on in the city too. Gourav recently inked a young boy with an inscription ‘life goes on’ added to it. Rishabh too did for two different clients. They did share their heart breaking stories while the lengthy inking process was on but Rishabh would only tell, ‘It was a new start for both of them’. Well, yes, life is a journey that continues…

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