9ft*10ft

THE WALL

(Do check out the link, its an unlisted youtube video, so I couldnt post it here)

Early feb.
I'd promised Adu that I'd paint the wall in his new home quite for quite a while. Finally made a quick trip to Mangalore for four hot,, sweltering unventilated days of wall painting. Did I get a head rush from all the paint fumes? Yes, yes I did. But its turned out really beautifully and I'm so glad I took some time out to do this. First mural *YAY!*

Just to give you a feel, the White Tara is almost as big as me (5ft 4in, thank you very much) and the painted room is small enough for the painting to loom over it all! I still need to add some finishing flourishes, just waiting to get a few days off so I can do it.

Sorry about the shaky video, Adu's handywork. The boy does take brilliant pictures though! Go look!

Megha cycled for water!

Megha contacted me recently to very very quickly make an illustration for this wonderful initiative she's working on. Working with Milap she hopes to raise money to provide clean drinking water to villages in southern India, by participating in a cyclathon. It sounded like a really fun idea for a really great cause and I agreed to do the crash assignment.
Over an evening of giggles and tea, this is what I finally came up with.

Check out her page over at Milap, and if you're feeling generous enough, DONATE! (the donations work as a loan, so you get 100% of your money back, which I think is a much more dignified way of helping people out)

Why I love the beach...

After several restless weeks in a Bangalore that refused to let go of the wintery chill, a few of us decided a beach trip was due.
Ive never been to Gokarna, even though home town is just a few skips away. My first visit there and I'm in love.
And as is must of all trip-happy-hippy beach places, there was music on the beach.
Boy, leftmost on guitar along with two French gypsy jazz playing fellows made lovely music while I sat right next, sketching and trying to draw as much heat from the nearby bonfire.

And a customary sketch dump from the two wonderfully lazy days.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Hello lady!

She's been sitting in my computer, scanned from an old sketch, for a very very long time. One semi drunken evening, I decided to colour her.
She smiled, sang to me all kinds of wonderful, strength filled love letters, stroked my hair and then gave me one big push when I needed it the most. 

Ah! Technology...

working with clunky computers is no fun. :(

Hell hath no...

Nothing more ferocious than a pissed off woman, yes?
Unfortunately, I just had to face a kick-in-the-gut kind of heartache. Normally I'm one of the more peaceful people around and the women I draw are the gentle, flower wearing, beach loving kinds. But nothing like having someone scorn you to bring out the inner Kali faced-skull wearing-Imma eat soup from your severed head-breed of anger.

Im really enjoying this linocut esque style right now. Mostly because slowly scratching away all the lines and negative spaces while listening to Susheela Raman's version of 'Voodoo chile' is great, great catharsis for this sad heart.

And a film was born

Finally, as promised, my classroom project is up.

Ive been typing out the official synopsis of this film so often, that I dont feel like doing it again here. So all I'll say is that this is sorta my love letter to the sea.

Also I made this comic below during the last few days that I was finishing up my film (this was in April)

Click to enlarge please

And as cliched as I think the whole my-film-is my baby line is, making one from scratch sure felt like one. Though of course, my knowledge about birthing babies is limited to... well... that it happens!

I hope you enjoy and please do leave feedback!