Meet Dali, the rescue pup painting her way across the country
From being abandoned as a pup to raising funds for strays, Hyderabad’s Labrador Dali is India’s most unconventional artist
On a lazy Hyderabad afternoon, jazz hums softly through an apartment filled with sunlight as the familiar smell of watercolours wafts through the rooms. She stands over her canvas, with the kind of focus only artists possess. She grips her brush gently between her jaws, lowers it to paper, and whooshes a confident streak of blue. Her tail wagging with joy and wonder, as she finishes her 39th artwork, titled Midnight in the Garden. Her humans, creative professionals Hoi and Snehangshu Debnath, witness this magic quietly.
Two-year-old Labrador Dali’s unique journey of creative exploration all started as a joke. “Maybe she wants to paint too, give her a brush,” one of the couple’s friends had remarked when Dali, then a seven-month-old tornado of fur and curiosity, kept stealing brushes from Snehangshu, who loves to paint as an escape from his corporate job.
They handed her one too, and she actually painted. “That moment is tattooed on our hearts,” Hoi laughs. “We thought she was being naughty, but it turns out she was trying to express herself.”
Soon, the couple built her dog-safe brushes in different sizes. The only training they gave her was how to hold the brush and apply it to a surface. For the rest, she was a natural. When she finally graduated to colours, her first piece, rich in blue and yellow strokes resembled a bird in flight.
“She only sees blue and yellow, maybe that’s why she was drawn to those colours,” says Hoi.
The rescue becomes the rescuer
Before their dog became the Dali of the canine world, the couple spent most of their waking hours plugged into their corporate jobs and personal creative pursuits. Hoi works as an HR manager, and Snehangshu is a UX/UI designer.
In June 2023, they were grieving the loss of Pablo, their beloved dog of 13 years. When a rescuer across the city posted a picture of a 45-day-old pup online, these two wounded hearts leapt a little.
“When we saw her face, we just knew,” says Hoi. “It felt like Pablo had sent her to us.”
They named her Dali, after Salvador Dalí, not knowing then that she’d grow into the name in more ways than one.
“We were just art nerds with a soft spot for strays. Our previous pet was named Pablo after Picasso,” Snehangshu adds.
When Dali went viral
Dali’s first painting (the bird taking flight) never made it to the ‘gram, but they posted her second painting online and the internet collectively lost its mind.
They were flooded with love and millions of views from around the world. Most felt her art gave them hope. Of course, some skeptics initially filed her work under ‘AI’, Hoi says, before eventually joining the fanbase too.
“That’s when we realised that Dali wasn’t just painting but also spreading positivity and kindness through her brushstrokes,” says Snehangshu.
Her colourful splashes feel like a playful Rorschach test reminding us that beauty lies beyond perfection and that true creativity is about expressing ourselves freely. Some of Dali’s crowd pullers are Grimm in Sunlight, much loved from around the globe; Lapis Lazuli’s bold strokes makes it a fan favourite. In fact, it was requested for purchase by an art collector, but it’s saved for an art exhibition of Dali in the future.
As Dali’s fame continued to grow, her parents decided to use the attention for good. They released Dali’s 2025 Calendar, featuring twelve of her paintings, raising ₹35,000 for two Hyderabad-based veterinary hospitals that treat rescued animals. Later, they sold some of her original works to fund surgeries for critically injured dogs. They now plan to exhibit and auction her art to fund more rescue initiatives.
In the meantime, the couple’s home has also transformed into a studio designed around Dali’s comfort. Carpeted flooring for a comfortable grip, a dedicated carpet for her painting sessions, and of course, some treats around the canvas for motivation.
Each painting session feels like playtime, not work. She paints when she likes, if she doesn’t, she stops. No force, no deadlines, no burnout—the couple guard Dali’s work-life balance.
The dog who changed her humans
Hoi and Snehangshu’s lives have two distinct phases: before Dali and after Dali.
They left corporate routines, and chose the freelancer life. She reminded them that joy doesn’t fit in spreadsheets. She doesn’t care about likes or sales. She paints because it’s fun. Watching her, they say, has made them more patient and fearless too.
Maintaining Labrador Dali’s social media is definitely a team effort. Hoi manages Dali’s storytelling and outreach, while Snehangshu handles camerawork, video editing, and design.
Recently, they have taken Dali’s art on the road. The family is travelling across India with Dali and her indie brother, Miro, by road, in their car. The paw-sters occupy the backseat while the couple is in the front. The idea is to travel across the country as Dali paints in every state of India. She has already painted in five states, including Goa’s beaches and Odisha’s temples. They have traveled almost 4,000 kms from Hyderabad to the mountains.
“Right now, we’re in the Himalayas,” says Hoi. “Watching her paint in tribal villages, surrounded by mountains, it feels like we’re living inside a Wes Anderson movie with a lot more drool.”
Dali is still the goofy, naughty, loving girl who loves stealing socks and cuddling between her humans.
Hoi says, “It’s poetic, isn’t it?” The dog who was once abandoned is now helping others get a second chance. We just hold the camera, she holds the magic.”
