HarminderBoparai, who comes from a village in Punjab, has made a name for himself the world over by sculpting artwork from scrap pieces of wood and metal, among other materials. What would you do with a few bottle caps? Discard them, I presume. But 39-year-old Harminder Singh Boparai uses such discarded pieces to create stunning works of art. What’s unique is how each piece of art he has created has an inspiration and story behind it. His sculptures seamlessly integrate modern and traditional ideas. Despite being really good at art, not being academically sound attracted the ire of many and Harminder speaks about how he was often referred to as “trash”. Harminder crafts his works of art from scrap metal and discarded materials, and has won many national and international accolades and awards for his work both nationally and internationally. Being left partially paralysed at the age of 11 did not deter his artistic creativity in any way. If anything, he only worked harder to carve a niche for himself. Being at the centre he was able to display his work in countries like Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, and Brazil. He is also known for working with what is conventionally called ‘trash’ and turning them into pieces of art.