A Computer Engineer Who Chose The Path Of Art
Her SHEROES Profile is full of Mandala Art and paintings done by her in free time, but now she is moving towards making it a career in the long run! She is, in fact, a star of the Art Craft and Photography Community at SHEROES.
This time we got you to meet the 25-year-old Narayanee Sai from Chennai, whose Mandala Art Stall added rainbow colours and so much visual joy to the recently held SHEROES Summit, 2018 in Chennai.
I had a detailed chat with this youngster who began opening about her Mandala Art journey.
"My very first inspiration was my co-stall mate Anushya, whom I met at the Chennai SHEROES Summit in 2018. Till then I used to do only paintings and fabric artwork. I saw her Mandala art, that was the very first time I came across this art form. I decided to give it a try and learn it online. I realised we don't need any special skills to do Mandala art. All it takes is more passion, a lot of dedication and patience to excel. These days besides painting I now try my hand at Mandala Arts, Embroidery, Paper Quilling and Silk Thread Jewellery making as well."
She informs that she had joined SHEROES much before she was introduced to Mandala Art. "Soon after I joined SHEROES, I shared Saree and Fabric paintings in Art Craft and Photography Community. I got a great response.
One day, I got a call from Yashmita Singh saying my fabric paintings had been selected to be showcased at the Chennai's SHEROES SUMMIT, 2018. Since then I haven't looked back!" Chuckles a now-very-confident Narayanee.
And here Narayanee shares a heart-warming experience she had at the SHEROES CHENNAI Summit, 2018.
"You know not just art-wise, but life-wise SHEROES Summit was a big turning point in my life. I found a friend for life in Tanvi D at this Summit. She is a transgender photographer. She is the most kind-hearted soul that I have ever met in life, the most supportive friend, a fighter in life and what not. I had met transgender people before but never had the chance to speak to any. Meeting Tanvi and being friends with her has only made me a better person. It taught me, how not to judge people by their choices in life. They have equal rights to express their emotion to raise their voice and explore their talents in any field they are interested in. And, they must be respected for who they are! I feel blessed to have Tanvi in my life. You have interviewed her before me, and you know it better, right?"
Such wise thoughts and beautiful artwork at such a young age. Narayanee says nothing came easy. Here at this juncture, Narayanee shares a little dark side of her story. A turn in her life that changed it completely.
"Studying to be an engineer, to be in the field was the choice of my parents who wanted a stable career for me. They aren't wrong. But, then it wasn't my calling. My peer group was either getting married or was busy settling in their career. In a way, I was heading no where and I sunk into depression. This was exactly the time when I was introduced to Mandala Art. It takes a lot of time to finish one art piece and this would keep me engaged and happy. I not only improved my concentration I also improved my multi-tasking skills. It gave me a purpose in life," Narayanee shares all this in a single breath.
But dodging her career as a Computer Engineer invited her brickbats from society. She informs, "Mahima, it takes 8 to 15 hours to complete just one Mandala. People used to tell me I am wasting my time since no one buys my art as of now. Though I do manage to sell my fabric art through word of mouth, yet I am determined to make my career in the artwork. Since I am a self-taught artist, I am working on improving my art skills as well as learning how to market the same through Digital Media. Soon I will report you my first big sale." She smiles with confidence.
She informs how her family is now supporting her choice and how her younger brother who is studying Mechanical Engineering, gives her innovative ideas for design.
It is time for her to go back and practice more of Mandala Art. Narayanee leaves us with this message:
"Whatever you do, do it from your heart. We have this one golden life so rather than thinking about what could go wrong just focus on what could go right. There is no point in living a life without a passionate career. It’s like a body without a soul. Do what you love and just do that from your heart and make each and every second of your life count."
We are sure that Narayanee Sai's journey in our ongoing #MeetTheSheroes Series has left you motivated. So don't forget to share it and leave love for her in the comments below. You can follow Narayanee on SHEROES.
