GREEN - MY interpretations.....

A not so recent sketch

I am Back .. I hope :)

Its been a pretty long time since I posted ,it makes me really guilty.. cause I have a feeling that small as my readership might be they are very important to me for they give me importance by just coming down here to read what I have to say , paint , read , write :).
I have read some really interesting books in the past 2 months - being -

1. The Good Thief - HannahTinti
2. Water
3. Luka and the fire- Salman Rushdie
4. Anne Frank - Diary of a young girl
5. Reading - Man and his symbols by Dr.Carl G. Jung

All are good books . While two of them are pretty popular , 2 others are masterpieces and well 1 of them - i just have to find out more about it .
I hope to post their book reviews soon .
But right now i would like to post a painting i just made . The temples of Vrindavan and Mathura inspired me to make it , but there is a  lot more to it than the inspiration for work on it has been on for about 4 months , I mean I didnt  paint it continuosly for 4 months , what I mean is that it has been done in parts , depending on my moods , tell me about it , what you feel , your interpretation .. everything . I love to hear from you lot . .:)

"Active" Retreat at the Lodi Gardens

Continuing with my expedition of the beautiful historic places in Delhi , my recent trip was to the "Lodi Gardens "
It was an enjoyable experience but was a little dampened by the arrival of an entire school ( or rather 4 to 6th Standards ) .. for picnic . The children drove me a little mad , but they were cute all the same . Enough of that . The Gardens provide a whole myriad of monuments for one to sketch , I found myself totally confused on which one to choose first , it was a child who came to my rescue .He says " Paint anyone bhaiya , you can come and paint the rest the next time you come " . Cute ain't he ?Hehehe.. Anyways I ended up with two things a oil sketch of Sheesh Gumbad and a warning - either come and sit at the gardens at 4am or check the schedule of all the schools around for picnic .

Sketching At Safdarjung's Tomb - Invigorating

Today, I had a revelation , I experienced something so awesome that I find myself short of words  it hard to describe it in words. On a whim I went to Safdarjung tomb and Lodi Gardens to sketch , little did I know that I would enjoy it as much as I did . The place was so epic , the peace and creativity that i felt in that historic place is beyond words . I went there with just a sketch book and some charcoal . The Safdarjung's tomb is a delight for anyone looking for some solitude , photography , painting and the combination of all of these . With the birds chirping in typical bollywood fashion , beautiful trees , freshly cut grass , and the scent of old walls , simply terrific . I intend to go to Lodi Gardens next . I will write more about the entire visit i.e I will elaborate later , but for now have a look at my sketch . Though I try to be modest the final product was much more often than the amateur photo of the sketch that I have taken ... .

Dont let go of what you have

I have noticed that many a times we run after the things we don't have , there is nothing wrong in it so long as you do not forget what you have . I for instance have been neglecting my art work for some while so as to be in the upper ranks of the social heirachy that exists even between friends ( unfortunate as it is ) . And so I truly did understand this entire thing . It is human tendency to look in the neighbor's garden always assuming that the grass is greener on the other side , in this process of ogling the other's garden , one forgets the weeds that have started to grow and so, ruins what one had without gaining anything that can be called substantial. So what is the solution ? what can we do to keep ourselves grounded to what we have ? Well a pessimist and idealist might say that if you are not automatically grounded then your passion was never enough , i as always have different opinions on the matter .
 I am thinking of making this article more of a discussion , so that instead of writing a bulk of my own views .. we can have an interactive session , I would appreciate .. it if my readers comment and give their own views for the same

TO Be or NOT to Be

This article is dedicated to every Engineer who ever thought or still thinks of another artistic career that will some how cross paths on the road to  the engineering degree or perhaps if not that ,then en-route the post grad one . Since I am pretty fresh from my 1st semester , I do not have sufficient experience to claim or declaim the promises of competitions that supposedly keep our artistic passions alive irrespective I am definite,  that even if there were such competitions , the regret of not having been able to become  a novelist , artist or sculptor etc does not fade away by competing in contests . But then again , what to choose? stability or passion ? It all comes to -which road are you willing to take - the one less traveled by or the one that has ,on it faded footsteps of known-unknown alike .Engineers are problem solvers and so a sense of practicality and logic is inherent in most of their decisions , but what happens when this practicality is fused together with the eccentricity of an artist . The combination can turn out to be at once disastrous and spectacular depending on the way you view it . I am of the belief that one can have the best of both worlds , you can be at once an engineer and a novelist ( or the like )  , all it requires is perseverance , dedication  and passion .As with every failure , we blame ours on destiny , or perhaps will of God but that is simply stating - cowardice , if you couldn't succeed in  making the two things work together , then blame yourself and know that- maybe you never  were as dedicated as the next guy .Situations do play an important role , but situations do not  make your life , you make your life by acting in the right or wrong way in such situations . As hard as all of this sounds , it isn't , for there are innumerous examples , personalities and lives that can inspire and motivate us every day . For instance “Arundhati Roy” - author of acclaimed novel "God of small things" is also an architect , “Chetan Bhagat” is not only an author but also a consultant/engineer , “Karan Bajaj “- author of "Johnny Gone Down" is also part of this group ,”Heddy Larner” was a  Hollywood actress who made significant contributions to engineering , there are many fashion designer that were initially doctors, engineer turned models etc  . Just look in the right places and you will find your own personal flame of hope , warming  and inspiring you  always . I hope all of you get to this destination and figure out whether " To be or Not to be”.