Sounds from a box

It seems like a regular peppy song till we hear the lyrics Ive been told about temples and bridge at seabut not about demolitions and the bigotry are the lines that make us switch the tab back to where the music video of Mumbai musician Raghav Meattles recent release Onesided Stories is playing Were in for a pleasant surprise to see a vibrant matchbox with streams of text like MRP is trust GST and logos from different political parties turning into a rangoli subtle social statements put across in a tasteful manner which you can spot only if you look closerThe matchbox art in Meattles video frame subtle social messagesThe song talks about how we live in an echo chamber how you surround yourself with people who think in a particular way and if somebody disagrees you dont really have space for them in your life Which is why it gets even more dangerous when it comes to elections because you dont know whats happening outside of the bubble you live in Everything gets polarised Youre either a bhakt or a hater theres no middle ground Hence the title of the song because you only hear one side of the story says MeattleThe matchbox art in Meattles video done by Ayushi Rastogi frame subtle social messagesSo it was only fitting that he collaborated with another Mumbai resident 23yearold Mehek Malhotra who is also highlighting similar issues with her artworks for the music video The NIFT graduate and founder of Giggling Monkey design studio has been captivated by matchboxes since she was 11 as she lived across the country due to her fathers job in the Army Today she has 300 and runs a matchbox project I love local Indian graphics and they inspire my work They maintain the realness of what you would see in life I also realised that a matchbox is so ignored that if you put the worlds best kept secret on it people wont even notice My artworks are a catalyst to get people thinking about the bigger things that are happening around us she saysMehek Malhotras artworksMalhotra designed one which said Woke and horny as a reference to the MeTooAIB debacle and one about the power and privilege the blue tick gives to verified celebrities on social media with a huge following Speaking of her designs in Meattles videos she says Weve used 25 frames of matchboxes throughout the song It had to be subtle so that no one could send us to jailThe title for Meattles album Songs from a Matchbox too stems from a fascination for this crucial fire tool but it also points in the direction of another big problem in Mumbai the lack of space People would call my house a matchbox because it was that small and so when I put my album together it was literally that songs from a matchbox Meattle laughsMehek MalhotraHis next song City Life which releases in March continues the conversation about life in Mumbai It is about how big cities turn you into a soulless person and questions why we live in a cityRaghav MeattleIt has a line in these packed trains because I travel with my guitar in trains all the time and no one cares about how expensive the instrument is he says Can we expect a music video shot in the Mumbai local nextRohit MirdoddiMatchbox collectorAt 29 Rohit Mirdoddi is is the proud owner of 100 matchboxes It all started in 2016 when he was out for a smoke He had already been collecting stamps he has 500 coins 300 and small alcohol bottles 50 My friend and I saw observed how dishyfshyferent the matchboxes weshyre says the landscape arshychitect who was then travelling through villages for work There were wax ones and wooden ones We started collecting them and soon had enough to cover an entire wall in my 1BHK with them Mirdoddi informsHe can now look at a mashytchbox and tell which region it is from Some have words written in local languages But images like coconut sunflower or oranges mean its from South India If it has Char Minar its from Hyderabad says Mirdoddi who plans to make an instashyllation with matchboxesCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates