A man and his plants

Pictured is Zaheer Chhatriwala

A conversation with Zaheer Chhatriwala

We were in the middle of a 15 hour, 3 day long, tattoo session, when Zaheer, my brilliant tattoo artist, started telling me about his plants. I had already noticed the range of numerous vibrant plants, placed beautifully on his window sill, so it was a delight to hear the story behind them.

Infact, this simple conversation turned so interesting, that I decided to go back to investigate this unique relationship a bit more. Everyone knows Zaheer as an exceptional tattoo artist, but I wanted to uncover what else also lies underneath.

What I discovered was something truly mesmerizing. A food for thought if you may.

Here is an excerpt from my conversation with him-

“Honestly? It all started with phudina (mint). I’ve always loved making cocktails for my friends–mint was amongst the favorite ingredients, so I thought, why not try growing my own? Simple enough right?

Well, it wasn’t.

In the beginning, I started with little to no knowledge. Even thought I’d get away with it, how complicated could it be?

But then the plants started dying. And I cared a lot more than I thought I would. It became a goal to take better care of them.

By the time the pandemic kicked in, I had already started my research. Which plants could I grow? How much sunlight do they need? What about water? I studied the entire process from planting seeds to learning about fertilisers. I got hooked pretty quickly.

Ofcourse, the lockdown presented new challenges— I couldn’t buy plants, so I had to explore my immediate surroundings. I went on a quest throughout my apartment complex, collecting pieces of other plants that I could propagate. The world slowing down gave me time for a new hobby. This became mine.

I’ve become a plant man. It’s so fulfilling. What I never expected though, was seeing myself growing with my plants.

I used to sleep very late and wake up even later. Beginning to lose any sort of routine with the pandemic, made matters worse. But as I got more serious with my plants, they kept me in check.

It takes at least an hour to water all the plants I am currently looking after. I have to wake up early, I have to be disciplined. And I thought I was doing it just for them, but it’s become my me time. Just me and my plants.

For that hour or two, I’m just getting my hands dirty, putting in the work. It’s really therapeutic.

The best part? Each new leaf is my reward, it makes it worth it.

Ofcourse it’s not always easy– taking care of and growing plants takes alot of responsibility and insect infections have taught me to focus on not only growing but also protecting the greens. But I love every bit of it.

It’s something I’ll probably do life-long–I have this dream of having a large piece of land where I can cultivate plants.

And now that I’ve been working again, they’ve lent themselves to my art, too–I always lean towards flowers and leaves to inspire my work now. They’re a part of me.

It’s crazy how taking care of nature brought me closer to myself.

My wife recently told me that she sees the change in me, too. She says I used to be irked all the time. But I’m somehow calmer and more patient now.

I have a feeling my plants have everything to do with that!”