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What’s more permanent: Tattoos or Judgements?
Unearthing the deeply personal stories of getting inked, and the societal scrutiny that often accompanies them, through the lives of four diverse Kochi people.
When we sat down to discuss the ‘Tattoo’ issue of The Leap, as is good practice, we started the conversation at home - among ourselves. Despite being a group of art lovers and creatives, only half of us had body art, despite its growing popularity and seemingly wider acceptance. For this writer who hails from a conservative community, tattoos are a battle that she has decided isn’t worth the fight, at least for now. For our editor who loves art deeply, making the commitment to one specific design on her body seemed too taxing a commitment. For someone else in our fold, minimal tattoos were the extent of the commitment they could make, to perhaps avoid the judgment that comes with tattoos. But beyond pedestrian health concerns, the typical judgey ‘uncle’ comments, and the far more complex nuances of community restrictions, our conversation around tattoos got us thinking of the ‘why’ of it all.
Why do people who get tattoos do it?
Do the judgements around tattoos leave an indelible mark as well? Even more importantly, does bearing the judgment or sociopolitical conundrums surrounding tattoos prove to be worthwhile to those who have made their body into canvases?
In talking canvasses, we realized the perfect way to get our questions answered was to gather tattoo-ed individuals from various walks of life and present them with these questions. Afterall, lived experience trumps theory and research anyday.
“Does bearing the judgment or sociopolitical conundrums surrounding tattoos prove to be worthwhile to those who have made their body into canvases?”
So on a breezy summer day in Fort Kochi, we gathered at the beautiful art cafe Lila with four passionate tattoo enthusiasts. With its brutalist architecture, speckled with gorgeous original art and founded by a tattoo-enthusiast with a fore-arm tattoo depicting the same cafe, it set the perfect tone to have conversations on tattoos that are anything but skin-deep.
What emerged for us much more than answers to our probing questions. The conversations provided a new-found, deeper understanding of both tattoo culture and community.
Ashwathy Biswas: Of Expression, Transformation and Healing
Ashwathy Biswas, a 34-year-old product designer, embodies the expressive power of tattoos. Her journey began with a butterfly tattoo, which symbolized a transformative time in her life, and her metamorphosis from being a sheltered NRI kid to being someone living a liberated life in India. "The butterfly represents transformation and the whole cocoon phase. It's pretty as well, short-lived, but also lovely," she reflected, while in conversation with The Leap. This tattoo marked a significant phase in her life and her personal growth. But tattoos are also an expression of her emotions or a depiction of a time that left a mark on her. As someone who works in mental health as well, Ashwathy looks at tattoos as a means to express emotions of pain or anger. With each design, she captures an emotion or a moment that has shaped her; From the pink dolphin that she was kissed by, whose sound that puts her to sleep, to more butterfly tattoos that depict varying moments in her personal story.
Her neck tattoo - a line with a dot, is one of the recent additions to her inks that is a declaration and reminder of focus. She mentioned how this tattoo serves as a daily reminder of her strength and clarity amidst chaos. "The line tattoo tells me no matter how blurry the world gets around me, I will always have clarity.” But as someone who is generally silent, but vocal when pushed, Ashwathy mentioned, “The dot represents the throat chakra for me, symbolizing voice and expression."
However, societal reactions to her neck tattoo have been mixed. From the innocent curiosity of a child tracing the tattoo with a finger to the invasive and inappropriate questions from adults, Ashwathy's experience highlights the spectrum of responses tattoos can elicit. Despite this, she remains unfazed and considers that those who approach her from a place of curiosity are easily decipherable. But for those who ask questions with the wrong intentions, Ashwathy follows the old Malayalam adage of ‘Mounam Vidhwanu Bhushanam’ and chooses to stay quiet in the face of them. She ended our conversation with a statement that spoke volumes - "Those that ask me questions about my tattoos with the wrong intentions don’t get a response from me. They don't deserve it, really."
Amal Martin: A Canvas For Culture and The Self
Amal Martin, a 25-year-old tattoo artist from Maradu, blends cultural heritage with personal expression through his tattoos. His first tattoo was one that he got when he was still quite young by a friend and has been covered up since. But his right leg sleeve is adorned with traditional Kerala elements like Garudanthookkam and Mohiniyattam, which showcase his roots, and the artistry of the tattoo artists who did it. In contrast, his left leg is entirely blacked out, a bold and unconventional choice that often raises eyebrows. But as someone who practices the style of ‘ornamental dot-work’, this tattoo is a design similar to his personal style, and one he hopes to add on to.
While he got a few questions from his family when he initially got tattoos, over the years the conversations have shifted. His tattoos, particularly the blacked-out leg, invite curiosity but rarely judgment within his artistic community. "People definitely give me weird looks, but it's not something we have to be mindful about. It's something we're doing out of our wish and our interest," Amal explained. But the encouraging comments about the realism and artistry of the Kerala Culture inspired tattoo highlight a shifting mindset, even among those who are older. Amal is someone whose journey underscores the importance of personal satisfaction and the freedom to explore artistic boundaries without fear of judgment.
Parvathy Menon:
Challenging Misconceptions
Parvathy Menon, a 31-year-old restaurateur from Kochi, has always been fascinated by tattoos. Even as a child, she recalls being fascinated by the temporary hand-blocked tattoos that she’d see in temples. “When I was small when we’d go to temples, I’d watch them do the temporary one and always knew I wanted it.” As soon as she started earning, Parvathy got herself a minimal koi fish tattoo to depict her Piscean identity.
Over the years, she has added twelve minimal tattoos and one full sleeve to her collection. Her tattoos are a reflection of her love for body art and a testament to her resilience. The sleeve tattoo behind her leg was done over two days, as she became a canvas for a tattoo convention in Kolkata. With two artists working simultaneously to complete them, the sleeve is her personal favorite. She mentions, “The journey of getting this tattoo itself makes it special. I sat through the process and it's something that I thought I wouldn’t be able to do. But I think it also speaks a lot about me as a person as well.”
While the sleeve tattoo is bold in scale and design and features macabre elements, Parvathy has not really faced harsh judgments. "I've not received any harsh comments really. But there's always an uncle or a relative who looks at it and asks, 'Why do you do this to yourself?' or 'Don't you think it'll affect your blood?'". But the worst, and funniest question that she has heard is whether she has felt ‘dark energy’ after getting this tattoo with demonic elements - she shared with a laugh. But she also mentioned how it feels like these questions stem from misconceptions rather than malice.
Parvathy's response to such inquiries is simple yet profound: "It's just art, body art, and I love it." Her tattoos challenge societal norms and invite people to see beyond stereotypes, and misconceptions, and to appreciate the artistry and significance behind each tattoo design.
“But the worst, and funniest question that she has heard is whether she has felt ‘dark energy’ after getting this tattoo with demonic elements” - she shared with a laugh.
Sanal Karollil: Navigating Professionalism and Expression
Sanal Karollil, a 39-year-old Kerala high court lawyer, navigates the delicate balance between professional decorum and personal expression through his tattoo. Initially terrified of needles, Sanal was inspired by his tattoo-enthusiast partner, and the fast-growing popularity of tattoos as his reason to get inked. The sole tattoo of the athletic lawyer is the character Groot wearing Sanal’s Jersey Number 13, on his forearm.
"When I got the tattoo on my arm, people started asking me all these questions, and I'd keep making up different stories," he chuckles and then confessed that one could call him “someone who got a tattoo just to spark conversations.” This playful approach allowed him to engage with societal perceptions of tattoos on a deeper level. However, as a lawyer, Sanal is acutely aware of the judgment that tattoos can attract. "Only after I got a tattoo did I start seeing the politics of it. How people are looked at with judgment, and how some have to cover it up. Just like coloring hair or getting piercings."
In his professional life, Sanal's tattoo remains hidden beneath his coat and gown, shielding him from direct judgment. However, he empathizes with those who face scrutiny for their tattoos, especially being married to a law professor, who has been at the receiving end of unwarranted comments about her tattoos. "While the current generation doesn't judge people about tattoos, many from the past generation take on the seemingly well-meaning uncle/aunty role and pass judgemental comments," he observes. But Sanal holds onto hopes of a future where personal expression is met with understanding rather than prejudice.
How Expression Reigns Supreme Over Judgement
The journey of Ashwathy, Amal, Parvathy, and Sanal, different individuals tied together only by their love for tattoos, effectively reminded us of how art can be different things to different people. For Parvathy, it is simply ink on skin, and art, but for Ashwathy, it is “an expression of pain and anger.” For Amal with his multiple tattoo sleeves on his limbs and torso, each design is an expression of culture and creativity; while for Sanal his solitary tattoo was a way to spark conversations.
Despite their many differences, there is one thought that each of the tattoo enthusiasts mentioned - that people will always find a reason to judge you. As those in the creative industry, this writer has been no judgment for taking an unconventional career path. But ultimately for these individuals, and perhaps many of us who are fretting about the external noise of judgment, the answer is simple. The question to tattoo, or not to, shouldn’t be shaped by the potential judgment for/against it. External judgments, much like validation, are merely transient. But the artistry and meaning of tattoos will always be much closer, if you do choose to get tattooed.
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Written by Fathima Abdul Kader
Art Direction and Edit by Atheena Wilson
Photography by Jithin
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