The Night We Marked 500 Mumbai Potholes with Question Marks

On the 1st of November 2016, more than ten media houses across Mumbai received the same anonymous email. No names. No organisation. No logos. Just a message from a group of frustrated young citizens asking two simple questions: why were Mumbai's roads in such terrible condition, and why had people accepted it as normal?

That same night, over 40 youngsters from different parts of the city stepped out carrying paint cans and brushes, moving across the Western Line marking potholes with giant white question marks. By sunrise, more than 500 potholes had been marked.

Every year, the same cycle repeated itself. Rains arrived, roads collapsed, accidents increased, outrage lasted for a few days, and then everything faded until the next monsoon. I kept wondering how people had become so used to inconvenience and danger that even giant craters on the roads barely shocked anyone anymore.

What made that night special was the sheer scale of collective effort. People from completely different backgrounds came together for something that had no commercial gain, no political backing, and honestly, no guarantee of impact. Everyone understood the risks involved, which is why anonymity became an important part of the campaign.

Over the next two weeks, the campaign unexpectedly snowballed. It was covered in multiple newspaper articles, discussed on radio shows, and widely shared online. Some roads were repaired soon after. But the bigger takeaway was seeing how strongly people connected with the act itself. Sometimes all it takes is one simple visual idea to make an entire city stop and pay attention.