By Manish kumar
Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, Feb 2: The news of the passing away of India’s ‘common man’ cartoonist RK Laxman saw legions of his fans logging on to social media to pay tributes and share some of his famous cartoons. City resident Kalyani Sahoo, however, chose to pay her respects to the departed soul in her own personal way – by painting his portrait.
The 48-year-old homemaker said she was greatly inspired by Laxman’s work and wanted to pay her tribute to him in her own special way.
“At around midnight, I took out my canvas, paints and brushes and began to paint. I was done with the portrait in half-an-hour and I’m finding a frame for it. I will put it up in my drawing room so that he continues to inspire me even after his death,” Kalyani said.
Known among her circles as Sai Kalyani, the budding painter has over the years perfected her skills with dedication. She often makes portraits of people around her but what fascinates her most is painting portraits of celebrities. Despite not meeting any of her subjects personally, she has managed to paint stunning likenesses of the celebrities in all of her paintings.
“I’m content with painting for myself. It is hugely relaxing and is a window to explore my creativity,” said Kalyani.
In her vast body of work are portraits of Mother Teresa, Madhuri Dikshit, MS Dhoni, Colonel Munindra Nath Rai (who was killed recently in a gunfight with militants in Kashmir), and many others.
“I often see many celebrities on the television or on the internet. Most of the time, I make a mental an impression of them and try to depict it on canvas entirely from memory. However, I love to experiment by depicting them in clothes and jewellery that they usually do not wear. However, several times I also attempt to depict some real-life events by depicting some of their historic moments,”
Kayani said.
Kalyani has filled a big cabinet with her paintings, which she has been working on ever since she got married at the age of 21. “I was married at the young age of 21. Although painting was my passion, I was initially hesitant to pursue it wondering if my husband and in-laws would encourage it or not as it is a time-consuming hobby. But my husband allayed all my fears. I found him to be more than supportive of my passion and has always encouraged and motivated me to pursue my passion. He often brings painting material for me while coming home from office. I’m indeed lucky to have a husband like him,” Kalyani said.
Though she has not found an opportunity to display her works at a painting exhibition, she says she is definitely open to the idea of organising an exhibition soon in order to showcase her works to a bigger audience. “Initially, I had reservations about showcasing my work in public as I wasn’t sure if my work was good enough. But my friends and relatives encouraged me a lot and inspired me to go beyond the four walls of my home. If everything goes well, I’ll surely organise a painting exhibition soon,” said Kalyani.
Her husband Ram Chandra Sahoo, a senior finance manager in the city, said he came to know of her painting talent soon after the marriage. “Although I was never good at paintings, I liked her work a lot. I’ve tried my best to give her the best possible opportunity and resources so that she can sharpen her skills. I pray she achieves whatever she wants,” Sahoo said.
