Ugly Indians, anonymously yours

Turning this ugly picture upside down were the Ugly Indians, a group of anonymous Bangaloreans, working hard to give a facelift to the City. Thanks to their efforts, Church Street today has flower pots with decorative plants in corners that once were garbage dumps. Walls sport a fresh look, painted by these anonymous soldiers of cleanliness.

This is a kind of a silent revolution engineered by some concerned individuals, expecting nothing in return. Besides Church Street, the Ugly Indians have taken up other unkempt streets to make a transformation.

Since the Ugly Indians aren’t keen on publicity, it was tough to trace them. An email address was the only source to trace them and then an anonymous member replied to the queries.

He refused to call it a campaign. “There has been no attempt to recruit volunteers or seek publicity. This is just a few people who decided to go and 'do' things rather than talk about them. And others who saw them / heard about them are doing the same. It's as simple as that,” said the member.

The group takes time off during weekends to clean up the City’s mess. Recently the group cleaned the rear wall of an important office building, where waste food was thrown on the road. Two members of the group painted the wall of the building and installed flower pots by spending Rs 400. Instead of employing workers, the volunteers do the cleaning job on their own.

The strategy seems to have worked wonders as the traders on Church Street realised their responsibility. They now pack the garbage in a bag and keep it at a corner, so that the Palike personnel can easily collect it the next morning. The group member said they chose MG Road and its surrounding areas since these are of high impact. “If Bangalore cannot keep even MG Road clean, then what is the point? There is so much at stake here - Brand Bangalore. And it’s also good for business,” the member said.