Uber celebrated World Art Day by taking the joy of painting to its much-loved and made for India product, Uber Auto. Autorickshaws, across the country, symbolise resilient aspirers, and keeping with that spirit, Uber partnered with Aravani Art Project to paint autos around that theme at the popular Carter Road amphitheatre.
Uber invited artists from the Aravani Art Project, a transgender-led art collective, to paint three whitewashed Uber Autos with inspirational stories in the city, and invited Mumbaikars to join in the fun by trying their hand at painting autos themselves.
The initiative was organized as the second phase of Uber’s Resilient Aspirers campaign, which was launched in March 2023. The first leg of this campaign saw Uber partner with stand-up comedians such as Aakash Gupta, Prashasti Singh, and Aashish Solanki, to display some meme-worthy jokes and punchy one-liners on the autos. The Resilient Aspirers campaign aims to support and inspire the resilient spirit of people in India. Uber’s auto-rickshaws are a symbol of resilience for many drivers in India, who are able to earn their livelihoods safely and conveniently through this service.
Ameya Velankar, head of marketing, Uber India and South Asia, expressed his excitement about the event, saying, “We are thrilled to partner with the Aravani Art Project to celebrate World Art Day and showcase the spirit of resilience through inspiring stories on our Uber Autos. We hope that these stories will not only bring joy to our riders but also inspire them to pursue their dreams and aspirations.”
The Aravani Art Project is a transgender-led art collective that aims to create a space for transgender individuals to express themselves through art. The project has been involved in various social initiatives, including creating murals in public spaces to spread awareness about social issues. Here is what they said: “As an art collective for transgender people, being able to collaborate with a brand like Uber is very instrumental to us. An auto runs in every part of our country and a chance to paint on it gives us an opportunity to spread our art, message and reach the masses, while we change their perspectives about us.”
The campaign has been conceptualised by Uber’s digital agency, Dentsu Webchutney. Commenting on the campaign and the idea behind it, Akshit Salian and Ankit Mathur, creative director, from Dentsu Creative said, “Every time someone expresses themselves in any art form, the world becomes more interesting and more inspired. And that’s the journey Uber Auto is kicking off today”
