Why I Chose Tattooing Over Graphic Design

Like most kids growing up in the '90s, I was obsessed with superheroes.

He-Man, Superman, Wolverine — these weren’t just characters to me. They were identities. Every day I imagined myself saving the world, one adventure at a time.

While other kids outgrew cartoons, I went deeper. The animation, the storytelling, the fantasy — it all lit something up inside me. By the time I was 18, I had accepted that I couldn’t be a superhero..

But I realized I could create them.

That’s when I turned to graphics and animation. I discovered tools like Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and eventually 3D Max and Maya. I pirated Gnomon Workshop tutorials off torrent sites because I couldn’t afford classes. I’d sit for 16 hours a day, practicing obsessively trying to match the quality of the best in the world.

I was broke, but I was passionate.

Eventually, my brother helped me get into a top animation institute in India. It felt like a dream come true. I couldn’t sleep for days — finally, I was doing what I loved. But it didn’t take long for reality to hit.

The Indian animation industry at the time was in bad shape. The pay was terrible. The work was boring. Most of the creative decisions were made abroad — in India, we were doing clean-up jobs, frame-by-frame edits, and rotoscoping.

I didn’t want to clean someone else’s art.

I wanted to create my own.

I persisted — working on side projects, building my skills, trying to move into better roles. But nothing changed. I felt invisible. Eventually, I had to drop out due to financial issues and jumped into a call center job just to survive.

After a while, I found a little more stability doing graphic design and visualizing.

I worked with clients, built logos, brand identities, album covers — and truthfully, I loved it.

I’ve always loved working with people.

I loved creating visuals that meant something to them.

But something was still missing. I had creativity. I had the skill. But I didn’t have the freedom, the space, or the demand I wanted.

In India, graphic designers were often undervalued. Projects were underpaid. Artists were replaceable. And creativity was usually dictated by client feedback, not by vision.

I wanted something more.

That’s when I stumbled upon the fastest growing art career in India: tattooing.

The moment that changed everything

A friend of mine was getting his first tattoo, and I tagged along.

Watching the artist tattoo in real time — hand steady, lines flowing, art turning into skin — it felt like the future.

This wasn’t just design. This was emotion, story, and art that lived forever.

And then I saw the invoice/bill. In just a few hours, that artist had made more than I made in a month as a designer.

That moment shifted something in me.

What if I brought everything I had — graphics, illustration, vision — into tattooing?

I bought my first tattoo kit.

Tattooed myself. Then my friends. Then strangers. Then collectors.

And within a short time, my signature style — Indian mythological realism — started drawing attention.

Tattooing gave me what no other creative career could:

• Freedom to set my own direction

• Creative control over the work I wanted to create

• Massive demand, from people who were proud to wear my art permanently

It combined all of my creative abilities with a level of purpose and power I never found in graphic design.

That one decision — to shift my canvas from screen to skin — changed everything.

Let me introduce myself

My name is Sunny Bhanushali, and that journey led me to build what would later become Aliens Tattoo — now one of the most recognized tattoo brands in India.

Through years of persistence and love for my craft, I became one of the most respected tattoo artists in the country — not just as an artist, but as an entrepreneur and mentor.

But none of it was planned. It was simply the result of choosing a career that finally gave me the freedom, space, and identity I was always looking for.

Today, I’m proud to say:

• I am India’s most expensive tattoo artist, with bookings that run years in advance

• I’m one of the very few millionaire artists in India across all art forms

• I’ve been featured in Forbes, tattooed celebrities, won international awards, and built a personal brand known across the globe

• And beyond the art, I’ve built Aliens Tattoo into one of India’s most respected creative brands — with 18+ studios and hundreds of artists working under one roof

But none of this was ever just about success.

It was about finding a platform that let me be fully myself.

And that’s exactly why I created Aliens Tattoo School

I knew that if tattooing could change my life, it could change thousands more.

That’s why I launched Aliens Tattoo School — a one-of-its-kind institute designed to help aspiring artists build real careers in tattooing. While it’s not a government-recognized degree program, it is proudly listed under the Start-up India community — a recognition of how we’re shaping a new industry.

We’ve trained over 2000+ students in the last 3 years, many of whom are now full-time artists, entrepreneurs, or working in top studios across India and abroad.

If you’re wondering whether you’re the type of person who could actually do this —

Stop guessing. Take this 2-minute quiz to find out if tattooing is your calling

So why did I choose tattooing over graphic design?

Not because I didn’t love design.

Not because it didn’t have value.

But because tattooing gave me more:

• Creative independence

• Financial freedom

• Global recognition

• A canvas that moved — and moved people

Graphic design gave me a start.

Tattooing gave me a life.

If you’re an artist, or a dreamer, or someone stuck in a creative job that doesn’t feel right —

Maybe the problem isn’t your art.

Maybe it’s where you’re putting it.

I switched my canvas.

I followed the demand, not just the dream.

And it changed everything.

Tattooing isn’t just ink on skin — it’s a movement. And it might be the one you’ve been waiting for.