Here we have the one and only "Desi Road, Desi Khana". A creation from Hitesh Rana Ji and Mrs. Rana, we were introduced by or mutual friends from the Taste of India Festival - Vraj and Rinku Ji. Another point worth noting was this project also introduced me to the incredible brains behind Hive Design Studio - many of their projects you will find on here.
The concept behind Desi Road was to appeal to Hitesh's taste of modern, graffiti-style art and simultaneously acknowledge the large presence of Punjabi diaspora (and Canadian born) in the surrounding area.
It can also be noted that Hitesh and Mrs. Rana are the owner's of the DaalRoti franchise that spans across Ontario.
Desi Road was painted in a very street-style fashion while featuring
both a Punjabi Bride and a Turbaned Sikh
Next let's have a look at the initial mock ups I sent to Hitesh. Turbaned Sardar Ji and Ganesh were requirements, but I knew a well executed Punjabi bride would steal the show. After all, they are mesmerizing.
Design B was the one Hitesh Ji chose to go with
As you can see, the final mural stayed nearly identical to Design B. I chose to keep the bride toward the bottom of the wall since lights tend to shine downward in shops and miss a few feet of the top portion. Given that the bride's outfit would be adorned with faux jewels and gold, you want it to reflect as much as possible back to the viewer (damn near blind them if I can).
Sardar Ji dekho bohut Fly hai
An example of how elaborate and ornate a Punjabi Bride's outfit is
Eventually as the project progressed, I was repeatedly called back to tackle new walls and recreate the graffiti/street vibe across the top of the restaurant.
As you know I like to keep it short, (I personally don't read long articles and prefer a more bullet point and picture format for consuming information) and can't think of more to say about Desi Road.
Until we meet again,