Nritya Prakriti

Indian classical dance has always intrigued me right from childhood. Even though I never had any dance lessons, I loved watching the Indian classical dance programs aired on Doordarshan during my childhood. I am always amazed by the expressiveness, grace, and elegance of these dance forms. 

This series started back in September 2018. The House of Illustration now known as Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration came up with a challenge ‘Drawing 1 x 1 inch. The challenge was inspired by John Vernon Lord who, in 2016, drew for every day of the year. Each one is just one inch squared and made with pen and ink on paper. For this challenge, I made a 1 x 1inch square on a sticky note and drew inside it.

After brainstorming what theme to take up for this series, I zeroed in on Indian classical dance. My goal was to draw something easily readable in a small space. For that, I referenced dance poses and drew them in the simplest form, with the fewest detailing. Also, while going through Pinterest, I came across works of Illustrator and Tattoo artist David Hale. I loved how he drew little detailing around the central element in his work.

Later on, I thought of making a product with my illustration pieces. So I made Calendar for 2023 with some selected artworks from this series. 

Right from finding the suitable vendor for printing, to laying out the pages of the calendar, I handled all. This was a dream come true moment for me.

Here is a flip-through of the calendar series of Nritya.