|
Snacks Vendor turned Painter
Ajay Kumar
 From
owning a snack shop in Hauz Khas Village, Ajay
Kumar is a satisfied painter today. Though he has not
gone through any formal training, his paintings are
touching and inspiring.This painter's grit and determination
to look for a satisfied life landed him in the world
of painting. As a C.A. intermediate he started his own
fast food restaurant at the Hauz Khas Village in 1993.
But Ajay's creative instincts could not be satisfied
with running a business."I was earning a lot
of money but there was no life. I was not satisfied
or happy," reminisces Ajay.
His artistic inclination was discovered in the neighborhood
of his shop. "Every night I would sit with the
an artist, Surinder whose studio is near my shop. And
he would insist painting karo (do painting).
So one night I painted aur woh kafi achi bani
(it turned out to be good). I painted on normal canvas
with acrylic paints. There was no theme. It was abstract
and the brush just flowed on the canvas," says
the nostalgic painter. That was the stepping stone in
his life. Since then the snack man has never looked
back and he got more and more immersed in his creations.
 Ajay
Kumar happens to be a very simple painter. His paintings
are a jumble of small pieces of colored paper depicting
the thoughts. He takes his inspiration from his moods.
His paintings are an extension of his thoughts at that
time. His ecstatic moods are represented by the bright
colours and the the low moods are represented by a collage
of dull colours. Most of his paintings are done through
the collage medium. In December 1997 Ajay held his maiden
exhibition in Calcutta at the Salt lake. The
theme was Ahsas (Feeling). The response was overwhelming
and LML Vespa bought his painting to print them
on the greeting card and the calendar. Currently Ajay
is busy with his new creation called the "Jugal
bandi".
- Avni Sood
|
