L'art du tatouage; or, the art of tattooing

Tattoo making is a popular art form. Around the 19th century, the Ramnami community got Ram engraved all over their bodies as an act of rebellion. They challenged the orthodoxy of upper caste people who denied entry to Ramnami community in temples. Even Pre-Christian Germanic, Celtic and other central and northern European tribes were often heavily tattooed. The practice of tattooing can be found in 2nd millennium BC as mummies bearing tattoos have been discovered. In South India, the art of tattoo making is termed as pachakutharathu, while in parts of North India it is popularly known as godna.

Today, tattoos have been popularised once again. Many celebs can be seen as flaunting their tattoos these days across the world. As a result, this has increased the number of youths going under the needle to get engraved designs same as their favourite celebrities. A tattoo can also symbolise love and affection of a person towards the other. At present, the tattoo industry is at steep rise in India. But with this flourishing industry many alarming issues have been raised.

In many countries famous brands such as Intenze, Kuro Sumi etc. have recalled their products from European countries. A report issued by the Chief Health Officer, New South Wales has listed six recalled products containing phenylenediamines (including Colourking and Dragon Tattoo Ink), which are thus illegal in NSW unless authorised by exception. Products with particular batch numbers have been recalled or banned in these countries. But the same products are available in India and the main supplier here is Tattoo Gizmo. It is very likely that the adulterated products supply in India is very high, as the government of New South Wales has advised consumers to avoid getting tattoos particularly in Asian countries.

“Cancer-causing tattoo ink on sale in Britain”, a blog written by Andrew Penman featured in the UK-based Mirror, states that despite being banned throughout Europe, cancer-causing tattoo inks were still selling in Britain, particularly ink with carcinogenic particles. Penman stated that celebrities like David Beckham, Harry Styles, Cara Delevingne, Justin Bieber and Cheryl Cole sport tattoos made with the same dangerous ink, and are therefore a bad influence on their fans. He adds, “The EU has set a maximum legal PAH concentration in tattoo inks at 0.5mg per kg”, and he bought ink which contained PAH concentration of over 20mg per kg, almost 40 times the permitted level.

Many small tattoo shops are using cheap ink which can be highly toxic for the body. A tattoo artist, in condition of anonymity, said that many studios refill branded bottles of ink with local products as branded ink is very costly. He has been working for over five years in the tattoo industry. One oz of a particular colour can cost from INR 600 to 3000. The same tattoo artist further informed us that none of the studios can be said to be maintaining proper hygiene in India, whereas salons with tattoo studio facilities are worse when it comes to hygiene.

Chennai-based Dr. V. Nambi states that even if studios maintain 100% hygiene, there are still chances of infection. No studio in Chennai makes its customers sign an indemnity form, even though it is an essential part of the process; it informs the customer about possible infections and medical conditions in which a person should not get a tattoo. They do not verbally inform the customers about those medical conditions in which they should not get tattoos. Tattoo studios in Chennai are not using indemnity forms, “CONSENT TO TATTOO PROCEDURE” which help customers make an informed decision. There are no regulatory bodies on the tattoo studios to ensure that all rules and regulations are followed.

There is no level of awareness among people. To confirm this, we interviewed some students from the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ) with tattoos. The notable students, who we have interviewed through video, are: Tanay, Anoona, Justin and Suyash. They said that they were never asked to fill any sort of indemnity form. The owner of Yantra Tattoos said, “The indemnity form scares our customers which we cannot afford.” Many kinds of malpractices are prevalent in the tattoo industry. At most times, the tattoo artists do not bother to remove hair which is essential. We ourselves witnessed an artist engraving a name on a man’s chest without removing the hair.

A dermatologist, who did not wish to be identified, said that tattoo making is a form of surgery where one has to remove hair before engraving a tattoo. He further elaborates that tattoo is definitely a popular form to express one’s feelings, but at times it becomes nuisance for those aged around 17-20 years, as they do not think or ponder before getting a tattoo/engraving name of their lovers. Most of the time they pay 10 times more to get it removed through laser treatment. But laser is not a solution as the marks still remain throughout life. He explained, “The method of tattooing is like a small surgery where the body part needs to be cleaned properly by removing hair and using antiseptics.” The dermatologist added, “these young ones do not realise the value of a tattoo or the culture where our society lives in. they are hardly sixteen or seventeen when they get a tattoo and then hardly a year or two later end up visiting clinic to get them removed. Not only the cost of getting a tattoo removed is ten times higher than getting one it also traumatizes their psychology and puts their families into jeopardy”. The tattoo artists are blamed and forced to redo the tattoo without pay as told by one of the artist. “Sometimes they are in such a hurry to show off their tattoos to their friends that they click pictures and upload it on Facebook and twitter keeping the given instructions at bay.” He further added, “The art of tattoo making is not a rocket science, if done with proper equipments and precautions”.

Numerous scholars and experts have given varying opinions on tattoos and their level of necessity: Margo DeMello said in Bodies of Inscription: A Cultural History of the Modern Tattoo Community in 2000, “The tattoo attracts and also repels precisely because it is different.” Joanne McCubrey said in the article "Walking Art: Tattoos," at the Mountain Democrat Weekend magazine in February 1990, "There is no "underground" community, no dark den of drunken sailors initiating themselves into manhood via cheap, ill-conceived exercises in bodily perforation; it’s just a group of people who delight in using their bodies as billboards."

American novelist Herman Melville quoted in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale (1851), "And this tattooing had been the work of a departed prophet and seer of his island, who, by those hieroglyphic marks, had written out on his body a complete theory of the heavens and the earth, and a mystical treatise on the art of attaining truth; so that Queequeg in his own proper person was a riddle to unfold; a wondrous work in one volume; but whose mysteries not even himself could read, though his own live heart beat against them; and these mysteries were therefore destined in the end to moulder away with the living parchment whereon they were inscribed, and so be unsolved to the last."

In 2013, Dr. Andrew Timming, a professor at St Andrew’s University School of Management, conducted a series of interviews with employers about perceptions of body art. Most of the interviewees – who were managers of hotels, banks, city councils, prisons, or universities – said that tattoos carried a clear “stigma” for employers, with several expressing strong views on the subject. Timming told The Telegraph, “Respondents expressed concern that visibly tattooed workers may be perceived by customers to be ‘abhorrent’, ‘repugnant’, ‘unsavoury’ and ‘untidy’ […] It was surmised that customers might project a negative service experience based on stereotypes that tattooed people are thugs and druggies.”

Some people may assume that because people sport tattoos, their chances of being employed or accepted in official situations will be affected, due to the human trait of judging a book by its cover. However, consulting firm CEO John Challenger told Forbes in 2013 that most contemporary employers would agree that a person’s appearance is nowhere near as important as his or her professional skills. “Even in this tight job market, most companies aren’t going to view tattoos too harshly. Companies have a vested interest in hiring the most qualified candidate.” Bank of America spokeswoman Ferris Morrison said that the company has no restrictions when it comes to inked corporate employees, “because we value our differences and recognize that diversity and inclusion are good for our business and make our company stronger”.

Hogenakkal Falls: From Finesse to Filth

I visited the district of Hogenakkal in January 2015, and I was shocked to see how the Hogenakkal falls (India’s answer to the United States’ Niagara falls) was being treated by the locals. Though there were many sign boards requesting the clean maintenance of the Kaveri river, which meant no bathing there, no washing clothes, no discarding waste material and so on, the locals seemed not to care, and even in the presence of police officers, continued their activities. There were also a few unattended clothes in the river, meaning that those who washed their clothes there may have lost them.

I crossed a bridge there, but saw that the concrete base holding its ropes was heavily vandalised with graffiti. The climate of the place was good though­ -neither too cold nor too hot- and was very scenic. An officer from Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC) said, ”We have been doing our jobs at Hogenakkal, but maintaining the condition of the falls is not our responsibility, but that of the local police and the district level authorities.”

The officer also added that discarding plastic cups in the open is illegal, but due to lack of seriousness among the people there, it persistently occurs. When asked if the language of the signboards was a barrier to the cleanliness campaign, he said, “Even Tamil sign boards exist, yet they are disregarded by the locals and tourists.”

There exists a basic rule there that plastic should not be sold in these areas. But still, vendors and salesmen continue selling fruits in plastic cups. Rather than plastic, they could be using paper cups. If people continue to throw these plastic cups around excessively over a long period of time, it will definitely create severe problems. It could eventually lead to the area becoming like that of Earth in the film Wall-E, i.e. a situation so polluted and trashed that would make it uninhabitable for anyone.

There was also a very successful measure introduced by the district’s former collector, who posted a sub-inspector beside the hanging bridge. He would confiscate all bottles or cups and break them on the spot, so they would not pollute the area surrounding the falls. This measure however has been discontinued after the collector was transferred.

Unregulated tourism is the main factor that threatens to degrade the environment at Hogenakkal falls. Though there is a forest check post at the entrance of the falls, 10 kilometres downhill, the area is full of plastics and liquor bottles. Cooking fish is also common, while hawkers and masseurs too spoil the surroundings. It is a disgrace that such a beautiful location has been littered so much.

According to the Forest Department, the hanging bridge was closed to prevent people from accessing the Cine Falls that was unsafe. It was also to prevent the people from littering the place. But for those who can afford coracle rides, access to the same areas is allowed. As the litter piles up destroying the beauty of the water falls, the monkeys that are part of the forest ecosystem are also forced to endure such misery.

Today, the place has degraded a lot from what it was years ago, and rather than improving, continues to deteriorate. The cause is predominantly pollution and negligence. The maddening crowd, irresponsible administration and the “not-so-aware” villagers are least bothered about the place being endangered. The waterfall which once basked in its glory now is filled with plastic waste and stagnant dirt. One can see people performing last rituals (pinda) right beside the bathing place, while many others washing clothes just beside that. Floating shops in parisals are a major attraction but nobody bothers to collect the plastic waste thrown into the river because of these shops. Hogenakkal claims to have a “plastic free” environment, but the reality is quite different. This place is full of plastic and waste. The government collects about Rs. 30 from each vehicle for entrance and parking but seems to do little about the cleanliness and facilities here. If this continues, Hogenakkal's pride and glory may one day become history.