By Mohit M Rao
Bengaluru: Somewhere in U’s studio, a large, sophisticated machine laboriously cranks out a banner for Shri Ram Sene Hindustan, a fringe Hindu right-wing group in north Karnataka
“This year, Ganesh Chaturthi and Eid were on the same day. We are printing banners alternatively from these machines,” said U, a Muslim and self-taught designer.
“We print whatever our clients want. We can print Shivaji posters in one machine and Aurangzeb’s in another,” he said, laughing.
Seventeen years ago, his then-fledgling design studio was approached by a prominent local doctor to design a poster protesting the celebration of the demolition of Babri Masjid on 6 December 1992 as “Vijay Diwas”.
U chose the image of kar sevaks (Hindutva activists) climbing the dome of the 500-year-old mosque. Underneath, the caption read: “Our struggle for final and complete supremacy of Allah involves Babri Masjid too.”
U believed the caption served as a reminder to the kar sevaks that their actions would be judged by God.
The posters were plastered at bus stands and shops in Bijapur, a heritage town located some 200 km from U’s studio.
Quickly, Hindu right-wing organisations declared that this was the handiwork of the Student Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), a banned right-wing Islamic organisation.
This story was originally published in article-14.com. Read the full story here.