Mumbai’s skyline transferred on your canvas shoes

Savia Jane Pinto and Zeenat Nagree can turn modest white canvas shoes into funky works of pop or goth art that will add a spring to your feet, writes Dhvani Solani

Lazy Shubert's life was quite uneventful, till one day, mutant mosquitoes got a whiff of his feet and chomped off his toes. Poor Shubert was inconsolable, till suddenly, an epiphany drew him to stop hiding his weird toes, and armed with paints and brushes, he went on to saving people's lives and their toes. Before you think we are going cuckoo, this is how Zeenat Nagree describes her venture, Shubert, on her Facebook profile. A tad quirky and unusual. Just like the shoes she paints.

"Shubert is like my alter-ego, a person who does all the painting and communication," says Zeenat, whose Shubert is inspired by the idiosyncratic Dilbert from the popular comic strip. And so, nothing on Shubert's facebook page would make you think a petite 21-year-old is behind all the mayhem.

Drawing inspiration from the her own persona, Zeenat's sketches are all about how she sees the world a curly-haired petite lass in the nude graces many of her creations. "I like her to be in her natural element," she says.

You are also bound to find a lot of snakes, suns and moons. "I prefer black-and-white and am fascinated with extremely divergent stuff," she says, though the splash of bright colours on many of her painted shoes is equally distinct.

Many of her creations are also interpretations of some of the literary and artistic works that Zeenat herself enjoys. City Spaces, the series that she is currently painting, has been inspired by TS Eliot's Preludes, which talks about modernisation.

Savia Jane Pinto, 24 years

Brand: Shoefu

Shifu from Kung Fu Panda was a master of his art. In a bizarre amalgamation of words, Shoefu seems to be a master in painting varied styles on shoes. So whether you are a fan of the gloomy donkey Eeyore from Pooh's circle of friends, like flights of fancy with butterflies or would like to play it safe with checkers, Savia Pinto of Shoefu will paint it for you.

"It's a happy feeling to see people carry their passions on their feet," says Savia. "I may not be painting something that interests me, but when people seem to like it anyway, it makes me feel really good that I could help them relate to their favourite fantasy in real life."

Savia started painting a pair for herself two years ago, just on a whim, with a little help from a basic footwear design course she had done. She wore the pair to a friend's party and soon was flooded with requests. Though Savia has worked on custom-made pairs till now, she has now come out with her first non-commissioned collection, which pays tribute to Michael Jackson through its black-and-white designs. You can also check out a redux of Che Guevara, a flaming pair and Spidey's webs on her blog (shoefu.wordpress.com). No wonder then that she's been able to bring happiness to a middle-aged lady who wanted to "psych up" her walking shoes, or a three-year-old whose passion for dancing comes alive through a moonwalk, painted pretty all over her shoes.

Your foot can get funkier

Perfect for: Spunky teens, those obsessed with comic/cartoon characters, Goths, design nerds and those who'd like a custom-made touch.

What it is: Zeenat is more into gothic art. If you seem to enjoy her quirky designs and colour combinations, she can personalise them to suit your tastes, though she wouldn't do imitations of already existing characters.

Savia can put your imagination in technicolour, and can also mould existing themes and characters you prefer and give them a uniquely cool look. Both use acrylic colours and usually paint on Bata's canvas shoes, though they would gladly paint on some other pair you'd prefer.

How it works: You can either buy a pair of shoes and hand it over to the girls or let them buy it for you. You can mail or call them to discuss ideas you would like to work around. If genius doesn't strike you, have them come up with ideas by describing your choices and tastes. Discuss the colour combinations, have a look at the rough sketches and if you give the go-ahead, your feet would start catching attention after a month.

Price: Rs 1,000 onwards, including shoes. The more detailed or complicated the design, the higher the cost.
To buy a pair: Send an email to order.shubert@gmail.com or shoefu4me@gmail.com