Stories from the neighbourhood

The innocence of village life, where people can be spotted doing their regular chores — a little girl playing with her kitty, men indulging in jallikattu, a cockfight in progress, the elite in the village at a dog fashion show — are what form the themes of artist P Saravanan’s ‘Neighbourhood Stories’. “I used to walk four kilometres to school when we lived in Virudhachalam.On the way to school, I used to observe a lot of things and my notebooks were full of these drawings,” laughs Saravanan, recalling his early years. The artist has always painted what he saw in his neighbourhood where he grew up. “The trees and creepers on them, the ripened fruits, street vendors, and farmers working in the field — I grew up capturing all of these in my mind. When we moved to Cuddalore, I saw a different habitat and I started to use those as my subjects. My style is raw like a child, and I always attempt to bring a purity of thought, reflecting a child’s brilliant mind, on the canvas. I love to capture emotions and bring them alive on the canvas. I like to create happy subjects. When someone looks at my work, it should bring a smile on their face,”
he adds.
— Purnima.Sah@timesgroup.com
Neighbourhood Stories, @ Kadambari Gallery, DakshinaChitra, East Coast Road, Muttukadu, from 10am to 6pm, till May 30