Hanif Kureshi | |
|---|---|
 Kureshi in 2023 | |
| Born | 12 October 1982 |
| Died | 22 September 2024 (aged 41) Goa, India |
| Alma mater | Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda |
| Known for | Street typography St+art India Foundation Guerrilla Art & Design |
| Notable work | HandpaintedType Time Changes Everything |
| Style | Street art |
Hanif Kureshi (12 October 1982 – 22 September 2024), also known by the graffiti name Daku, was an Indian artist, designer, and advertising professional. Kureshi was a pioneering figure in India's street art movement, helping to transform urban spaces into public canvases and bringing art out of the museums to the wider public in India. Kureshi's early childhood experiences with hand-painted signage led to his lifelong interest in typography and street art, with his first apprenticeship with local painters creating hand-painted license plates. He studied art at Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, later pursuing a career in advertising.
He started working as a graffiti artist in the late 2000s, moving on to large scale street art and murals, often collaborating with artists from around the world. After seeing the impact of modern digital design and printing replacing the local artists of his youth, he started the HandpaintedType project as an attempt to preserve typographic practices and styles unique to Indian street sign painters and provide them with an income stream. Kureshi went on to co-found the St+art India Foundation to help popularize street art throughout the country, with notable work produced in the Lodhi Art District in Delhi, the Sassoon Dock art project in Mumbai, and the Bangalore Metro.