Keshav Reddy

“I tried the tabla and gave it up. I tried the keyboard and gave that up too. Then, a friend gifted me a guitar, and I realised I was good at string instruments, but it felt like a lot, picking up a guitar after I came back home from work at nine or so. So, my friend gifted me a ukulele, and that stuck. It’s easy to play the uke, less technical, more forgiving, sounds beautiful, and you can take it wherever you go. I learnt to play acoustic versions of every song I love and added my own twist to the songs. I play for friends and family at get-togethers or for strangers at hostels on trips, but I always wait for them to be the right amount of drunk so they’ll enjoy it more. I can connect with people through music. I think I have something in common with everyone. I was on a trip with a friend and didn’t quite know the other four members who were travelling with us, but I became the DJ on that trip—the go-to person for any kind of music people wanted to listen to. I think I’m an average musician, but I could be a pretty cool DJ. Wouldn’t be such a bad idea.” – Medha Shubhangi, 27, on playing the ukulele and connecting with people over music. We, at Equal, believe that your identity goes way beyond your ID. While we manage the first two letters for you, welcome to a page where you can speak about the rest.

“In 2017, when I was between jobs, I took a short trip to Pushkar. I was at a cafe, and there was this blank red wall that just did something to me inside. I wanted to paint it. The cafe owner liked the idea. I went around Pushkar, doodled what I saw, showed it to the owner, who liked it, and I painted the red wall. Eventually, I started The Shttr Project as a nonprofit. I noticed that marketplaces which are so crowded during the day are ignored and often spat on at night. I spoke to some of the shopkeepers in Delhi, told them I wanted to clean their shutters and paint them. They were very open to it. The first time, I was nervous about whether I would even get volunteers, but there were art enthusiasts who wanted to selflessly beautify the spaces around them. That too on a Friday or Saturday night when they could go party instead. As we were working on our first project, the cops showed up. I told them we were painting, turning the space into something people would respect and treat like their own. You won’t believe it, the cops gave me their number. Said, ‘If there's any issue, give us a call.’ I had the phone number of a Delhi policeman! Fifteen minutes later, they returned and actually gave us bottles of water. Goosebumps! People have stood and watched us work. Two boys who were rappers even created a video while we were working. A man once came up and asked what we were up to. Then, in the morning, just about when we were done, he brought his kid to show him our work and the importance of doing something so selflessly. That was very touching. My personal goal, though, is to take an abandoned village and paint the entire place. Breathe life into it. Make it a place people will want to live in once again.” – Sharad Dhuliya, 30, on his favourite thing to do on the weekends, create street art. We, at Equal, believe that your identity goes way beyond your ID. While we manage the first two letters for you, welcome to a page where you can speak about the rest.