Visual artiste Zain Hayat talks about the new profession

When ex-president APJ Abdul Kalam said that youngsters will be tomorrow’s masters, people didn’t quite realise how true he was. What he said has come true indeed, what with so many youngsters vying for attention for good reasons too.

One such talent from our city who is making news or rather ‘noise’ is Zain Hayat, aruguably the youngest visual artiste in our country.
The 20-year-old has given light to the profession of visual artistes in discotheques and pubs. Alongside loud music, playing interesting visuals that merge with it is the job of a visual artiste.

“My interest for art and photography began right from the time I was in school. I wanted to take my passion to the next level and that’s how I decided to become a visual artiste,” says the architecture student.

Describing his work, he says, “When a DJ is playing, I choose the visual loops and play it according to the beats and the music. I also believe in the fact that what you see is what you feel. So, instead of choosing the usual trance visuals, I opt for visuals that are bound to connect with the crowd.”

According to Zain, choosing the right visual loops is the work of an artiste. “It could be about colours, lines or cutouts from music videos or even photographs. I do my homework before finalising the visuals according to a theme,” he explains.

Zain started off by playing in small events and gradually started playing alongside DJ Nash at various parties. “I would consider my biggest break to be the time when I played with the Romanian band Akcent that visited Bangalore recently. It was Nash who suggested I do the visuals. I’m glad I got the opportunity to work with a big name!” he says cheerfully. But, would he consider this as a full-time profession? “I am not sure if this will work out as a full-time career option in a country like ours. If there is enough scope, I would love to take it up full time though,” he signs off.