Mrs. M. S. Subbulakshmi, an Indian Carnatic singer who was the first lady to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian honour. But before all of that, she was an artist, not with brushes and paint like me but instead with her beautiful voice. Her passion intrigued me and her voice held a special place in my heart, just like it did to millions of her listeners. Her music remains nostalgic to me as it was a significant part of my childhood. While her soft voice caressed me, her high notes brought a certain high over me that pushed me harder to achieve anything and everything I desired. She made me feel empowered as an artist. As you might have guessed, the first encounter I had with her was at a cassette store, when cassettes were still a thing then. I saw a huge poster of her holding an instrument, displayed on one of the aisles. The picture held an aura of her personality and I really wanted to have one of her portraits in my room. Then the thought of painting it myself occurred which led to the fairly small, 8 x 8cm canvas I had painted of her in one of my previous projects, Art48.

This was one of the subjects I have been looking forward to work during my 100days Art project.

An unexpected stroll to Kew Gardens and a plethora of flora and brilliant landscape till the eye sight could see.

During the pandemic in 2020, these images kept my imagination fresh with memories of the lush green landscapes and led me to paint them in Gouache.

During the pandemic, I tried to utilise all the art supllies I had been hoarding for the longest time. fFew of them being a variety of Soft pastels brands, I didnt have a fixed theme or subject and hence the variety of subjects.

Growing up, my maternal grandmother would lovingly serve me Mutton Keema every time I visited her. It quickly became my favorite dish, and I proudly declared my love for it for years. But here’s the twist—I also absolutely adore animals, especially goats!

I’ve tried (and failed) countless times to give up meat. You’d think that with my stubbornness in other aspects of life, I’d stick to it—but nope, my love for Keema always wins. So here I am, caught between my love for animals and my love for food… and let’s be honest, it’s mostly just my guilt talking!

I rarely get the time to fill my sketchbook, but this was one of those rare moments when I could. After completing a 100-day art project in 2019 and again during the 2020 lockdown, personal projects took a backseat.

One morning, on a whim, I decided to start sketching daily as soon as I reached my studio. It quickly became a routine—one sketch every morning. This was a time of change for me, as I experimented with new approaches in my work and embraced new ideas. Looking back, these sketches mark a significant phase of growth and exploration in my artistic journey.