Written by: Mahnoor Fatima
Posted on: January 23, 2020 | 
| 中文
Mr. Hayat Khan Painting a Truck
Truck Art is Pakistan’s instantly recognizable symbol of art, color, poetry and vibrancy. Truck art is now seen as a respectable and professional art form, and products with truck art on them are sold and displayed in the biggest museums and shops of the world. But while the people of Pakistan have grown up reading the witty slogans and admiring the art at the back of trucks, the next generation of Pakistanis may see truck art as a tool for societal change and social awareness.
Ms. Samar Minallah is an anthropologist and a filmmaker, who uses her documentary films to promote social change, particularly regarding issues related to women and children. “As a filmmaker, I’ve always wanted my films to reach out to a wide audience, especially in the rural areas. But then, I realized that films do not have the same outreach [as I had hoped to achieve]. So I wanted to try something else to get the message across as far as I can.”
In 2005 she met Mr. Hayat Khan, a truck artist, during production on her first documentary on child marriages. Both came up with an idea to advertise the message of the film on the back of a truck, in the same iconic, vibrant design. It would serve as a billboard of sorts, but one which travels from one part of Pakistan to the other. While Mr. Khan was initially hesitant, he eventually agreed to painting the truck.
Ms. Samar Minallah and Mr. Hayat Khan
She forgot about the interaction, following the release of the documentary. But what she remembered was that huge image on the back of the truck, and how it blended with, and stood out from, the rest of the art. In 2017 she contacted Mr. Khan again, and assembled a team in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank, to promote legal literacy among women.
Forty trucks were carefully created, using feedback and suggestions from the community of truck artists, whom Mr. Khan introduced to Ms. Minallah. Some of the issues pointed out were those of child marriages, honor killings, corporal punishments, child molestation, and other ailments which plague society.
A Truck Artist Painting a Slogan Against Dowry
This new addition to the truck art portfolio is a significant a departure from traditional images of movie stars or famous figures, that have been part and parcel of truck art for decades. For Ms. Minallah, it was important to get the public used to non-sexualized images of girls who are happy and actively participating in sports or schoolwork. She encouraged truck artists to keep that same design and think of creative slogans, but devoting them to a new purpose. This way, the designs would fit in to the general truck art aesthetic, and would be more organic for truck artists to incorporate in the designs.
This project has gone on to win various accolades and collaborations domestically and internationally. Most Notably, the trucks won four lions at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in 2019. To celebrate Day of the Girl Child in 2019, Ms. Minallah collaborated with the Ministry of Human Rights under the EU program for the promotion of Human Rights in Pakistan, to paint 20 trucks with positive messages on children’s rights. The Secretary of the Ministry of Human Rights, Rabiya Javeri Agha said, “22.8 million children are out of school and 56 per cent of these are girls. Let’s change the statistics, let’s educate, empower and celebrate our daughters to be the best of everything they were born to be.”
(L to R) Ms. Samar Minallah, Rabiya Javeri Agha, Dr. Shireen Mazari, Androulla Kaminara, Mehwish Hayat
For her, the most important result of this project was to generate a conversation about these issues in people’s minds. When someone sees these messages on the backs of trucks, they can begin to think about the need to discuss these issues. And by putting a face to these issues (namely the children’s faces), these ideas become humanized and personalized. One can directly see the face of innocent children who are affected by the social injustices, which they cannot comprehend.
The dissemination of these ideas are particularly important for people in towns and villages away from major cities, who are unable to articulate their feelings on these causes, but nevertheless strongly oppose their effects on society’s most vulnerable members.
Let Me Participate and Let Me Be a Source of Pride for My Country
Ms. Minalllah was surprised to see such positive reactions from the truck artists. Many have been very excited to paint these new images, and there has not been a single incident of defacing the billboards. She believes that such an initiative gave truck artists an opportunity to see themselves as active participants in social change, who can fight for the rights of women and children too. “It allowed men to see themselves as change makers. I realized [during this project] that there are many men who want to stand up for their sisters and daughters.”
Some of her favorite ones include a little girl in her uniform saying, “Mujhe khelnay dou, mulq ka naam roushan kernay dou (Let me participate and let me be a source of pride for to my country)” and another that said, “Mein apnay baba ka fakhir hoon (I am my father’s pride).” One particularly moving piece of artwork for her was a truck, which resolutely stood in the deserts of Kohistan, saying, “Ilm roshni hai (Education is Illumination).”
Education is Illumination
“The more indigenous a project is, the longer lasting [its impact] will be. I have heard truck artists talk about this project like it is their baby. They believed in it with conviction and now they own it.”
A new round of trucks will be painted this February on a much bigger scale, and once more the Ministry for Human Rights will be involved. While Ms. Minallah hopes to send these trucks move forward to newer places in the country, she insists that any new slogan or idea will be properly discussed and authorized by community of the truck artists. For her, there’s no way for her message to resonate with people and bring about change than through a sensitive collaboration with, and active participation of the communities that will make and see the truck art.
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