tribute to R K Narayan

This is a half-done copy of a Schiele painting which I am offering as a tribute to R K Narayan, whose birthday is on some date I have not been informed about. It is half-done because I have been trying oil paints and it takes days for the first layer to dry.

dog-man

This is the infamous dog-man, or man-dog as he is sometimes erroneously called. Your mother might have warned you about him when you wouldn't finish all the vegetables on your plate. His tail broke off while he was drying, so he has only half a tail now, which is a serious indignity for such an important animal. I painted him bright red as a small compensation. Actually, one of his legs fell off too, making him a little wobbly. Quite a terrible plight for a fearsome beast like the dog-man, or man-dog as some people prefer to call him.

Jain temple

Sometimes you are lucky and you have to go to some government office and you may have to wait hours for the government servant to show up. This is a great honor they do, to allow us to wait for them. Then you wander around the office examining the heaps of dusty files, no doubt in triplicate, looking out of windows, and what do you see outside the window? A Jain temple! Hurray! Lord Mahaveer saves the day.

Palm of Hand Book Cover

Mobile warriors

These are the universal mobile warriors, brave of spirit and quick of reflexes, who can text faster than the eye can see.

putty

Women, finally, are putty in my hands. This is a woman waiting for her beloved, perhaps under a tree. I did not make a tree because I ran out of putty. Perhaps she is singing 'Ab ke sawan ghar aaja'. Or 'ajahun aaye balama, sawan beeta jai'. But if she sits too long in the rain, all the putty will dissolve, and she will be one washed-up woman. It is better that she sits at my window instead. Maybe I can make a tree for her later. I will do anything for clay women, but not right now, maybe later.

Palm of Hand Sketch

Palm of Hand Sketch

This is the world-famous Modi Ganapati temple. But this is not as world-famous as the Dagdushet Ganapati temple. Who are these fellows Modi and Dagdushet who have Ganapatis named after them? I have no idea. If I had a lot of money, I would have a Shiva or two named after me.

Sleeping

This is the world-famous Sleeping Buddha.

There are three kinds of Buddhas - standing Buddhas, sitting Buddhas and sleeping Buddhas. You won't ever see a Buddha inclined at 45 degrees to the vertical. A Buddha at 45 degrees to the vertical keels over and turns into a sleeping Buddha. That's how there came to be so many sleeping Buddhas. This one was sleeping right from the beginning.