Malkangiri: The days have gone by when it was widely believed ‘No knowledge can be attained without a guru (teacher)’. Now there are various modes and mediums of learning with one of them being the YouTube channel. More and more youngsters are falling back on YouTube to increase their knowledge.
This 22-year-old girl from a backward area of Malkangiri district is a case in point. Meet Reba Biswas, daughter of Ganesh Chandra Biswas of MPV 7 village of Mandapalli panchayat under Kalimela block. She is doing her B Tech in civil engineering. Her father is a homoeopathy doctor and her mother, an Anganwadi worker.
Reba is acquiring fame as a painter across Malkangiri district. Her parents are happy that Reba is giving shape to her imagination on canvass. They are also surprised at Reba’s blossoming as an artist during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reba has the answer to this question. “I remember as a child I had a fascination for drawing sketches. But then there was hardly any scope for learning drawing or painting in a backward area like ours,” Reba informed.
“The ongoing COVID-19 forced us to remain confined to our home. I enjoyed the first few weeks of lockdown and shutdown. But then I started feeling bored. Then the idea of honing my suppressed drawing and painting skills surfaced. I turned to YouTube and learnt the basics of art,” she claimed.
Reba has now become an artist skilled enough to attend exhibitions. She paints various types of subjects ranging from landscape to figurine and cityscape to portrait. Once her paintings became viral on social media platforms, she gained fame and her name became well-known in the district.
Local residents have urged the administration to help Reba to achieve her dreams. They feel that if Reba is not supported a huge talent will go to waste.
PNN
