Knowing Achyut Palav

Internationally acclaimed Calligrapher Achyut Palav speaks on how different life can be through Calligraphy.

Achyut Palav is among the greatest exponent of the art of calligraphy. He completed his education in Graphic Design from Sir J.J Institute of Applied Arts, Mumbai. He was also the ex-faculty member of the same college. He finished a research scholarship program from Ulka Advertising for a thesis on the Modi Script of the 15th to 17th century, in 1994.

Palav didn’t have much support from his family as they were skeptical about him making a career in Calligraphy. But he followed his heart and started focusing on calligraphy. Professor R K Joshi who is a designer, an artist, a teacher, a talented Calligrapher apart from a distinguished Poet who passionately contributed a lifetime of work towards Indian typography and type design inspired him to choose Calligraphy as a profession.

Achyut Palav started his career in Calligraphy in 1963. “When I was a child, I was not good in studies. Then one day my professor asked me to write on the backboard. Soon, I started to love writing. I kept telling myself that these thoughts in my mind were not just for me, but for others,” reveals Palav.

He started his career by making wedding cards and name plates. And after 25 years of his journey, he has now grown to become one of the finest calligraphers in the world.


Achyut Palav feels that letters are a symbol which turns matter into spirit, and that’s what Calligraphy does. It uses the energy within a person and manifesting it into text and script. “When a person takes a pen in his/her hand, he/she becomes a calligrapher. There are no age criteria or qualifications for Calligraphy. There is no hard and fast rule for calligraphy. Spontaneity is the soul of any work. It can depict everything that catches our mind. One must enjoy the beauty of letters and lines. When artist's creativity and vision go hand-in-hand, it can create wonders," asserts Palav.He believes two different arts can come together and create a wonderful fusion of art which is new yet encapsulates the good within both these art forms. “Music & other such performing arts have inspired me to be innovative by way of the bold and unique demonstrations that I have with other artistes like musicians, dancers, singers and the like. And I want to pass on the same enthusiasm to budding artists through my highly interactive and experimental demonstrations,” he adds.

Palav has expressively used the Devnagri & English scripts in his work over the years. But his true love has been delving and exploring the vast possibilities and depths of the Devnagri scripts, which he has taken all over India and around the world to spread awareness about this traditional and rich script.

He has held various workshops in India as well as in the World and has given demonstrations about the use of calligraphy in greeting cards and other gift items.

"Recently, I toured the country to promulgate calligraphy all over India. Since there is abundance of languages and fonts in India, I believe that the potential for calligraphy in our country I truly endless," explains Palav.
Apart from winning a National Award and many other awards and honours for his work, a gift by the German student which included a bunch of letters written in the Devnagari script remains the most memorable. Even in Russia, he has received a lot of appreciation for his artwork.

When asked about the peculiarity of Indian Calligraphy from those around the world, he said, “Indians are not even aware that Indian scripts can be used so artistically. They are resistant towards accepting a new form of art. In contrast, internationally, people are aware about calligraphy and especially about importance and uniqueness of their text. They are more thorough and detailed in their work and are receptive to the emerging art of Calligraphy. But one thing is for sure, Indian calligraphers are spontaneous and more creative. There is versatility in our work.”

The tools Palav uses for his work are unusual and ingenious. Along with brush rollers and pipe, he also makes use of toothbrushes, injection syringes, wooden flat spoons and kitchen platform cleaners to create his creations. He adds, "In the calligraphic work, the force, energy, pressure and the tool come together. The artist has to visualise the design and use imagination in selecting the correct tool.”

Palav also gives live demonstration of umbrella and body painting which is eye catching and has turned out to be a real hit. In minutes he can create painted designs on a model's body.

Recently Palav worked on a series of Titan watch promotional campaign which is soon be released in the market. He has also started a Calligraphic Movement Called ‘Urja’, the first movement of its kind in India for spreading awareness of Indian Calligraphy in India and the entire world.

He appeals to youngsters and everyone who is pessimistic and lack confidence about this art that the prospects and opportunities of Calligraphy are growing everyday. He wishes for the youths of today to put in some extra effort to master this art, which could ultimately prove to be a life changing experience.

25 Years in the world of Calligraphy

Though Palav has faced quite a number of challenges in his 25 year old career, he has enjoyed every moment of his calligraphic profession. Recently, he organised Callifest2008, a festival of calligraphy to celebrate his fascinating & successful years as a Calligrapher. The event which was held in JJ School of Arts (Mumbai) had many different activities, including workshops, Callishops and exhibitions. He also launched a book on calligraphy; ‘Calligraphy Roadways’ a program for taking calligraphy to students across India.“I wish to take my knowledge & experiences gathered in my quest for excellence in calligraphy to the youth of India & overseas. The lack of awareness about the art of calligraphy is the only thing which saddens me these days. And so I thought¸ the aesthetic and commercial value of calligraphy in Indian languages among the people who have great potential of becoming the next-gen artists of the modern world, and I am happy that I got started it,” expresses Achut Palav.


CALLIGRAPHY'S CREATIVE APPLICATIONS PLATFORMS:

Architecture
Product Calligraphy
Wedding
Artifacts
Jewelry
Post Cards, Greeting Cards
Body Painting
Fashion Accessories
Interiors
Logos
T-shirts
Stationary
Brochures
Book Jackets
Calendars


Some well-known Calligrapher in India:
Achyut Palav, Mumbai
Ram Kasturi, Dombivali
Manohar Desai and Ghyanshyam Erande, Pune
Anand Shende & Jalandar Palbinder, Chandigadh


Some Issues faced By Achyut Palav:
Lack of awareness about the Indian Calligraphy
The negative approach towards this art
Lack of visionary people
No school or organsiation which offers advanced courses in Calligraphy
Calligraphy has remained a subject in art institutions


His Vision/Challenge:
“Calligraphy is an art, which can also be used in commercial applications effectively. People says you are making calligraphy a lot more commercial, but I believe, if you make it commercial, it is then that you attain popularity.

Currently, it has been my wish to promote my art in all these areas. All the efforts are aimed at popularizing the use of Indian scripts. This art of calligraphy has tremendous potential & there are very few people involved in this field. I want to create and prepare new artists in the world of Calligraphy and towards this aim I want to establish a School of Calligraphy in Mumbai. And to make this possible, I need the support from the students and sponsors alike,” he expresses.

Source: Mumbai Mirror Online

Last Day of Kala Ghoda 2009 -- A Glimpse

Hey Guys. I attended the last day of the legendary Kala Ghoda festival, and I wanted to share with you some of the moments of that day. At the end there was still the regret of missing much of this great festival. But next year will be different. CIAO

P.S.: Please pardon the bad photography. It's an art that I am not naturally endowed with.

Valentines Day for All

Valentine's Day Festival has been associated with lovers since long but in present times the scope of the festival has grown beyond lovers to encompass just anyone and everyone we love. These days, people buy cards, flowers and gifts for their friends, spouse, parents, children, teachers or anyone they find dear and express their love and affection for them.

Those who can only link Valentine's Day with romantic couples will be surprised to know that children under the age of 11 are the biggest consumer of Valentine's Day greeting cards. Survey also reveal that maximum number of Valentine's Day cards sold are given to teachers followed by children, mothers, wives and last of all sweethearts.

Valentine's Day Celebrations Beyond Lovers


In some countries including Canada and US several schools organize classroom get together on Valentine's Day where children gift cards to their friends. Skits and concerts are also organized by children to mark the day. Senior children usually organize Valentine's Day dance parties where they freak out with their friends.

In some families children are encouraged to show love and affection to siblings and other family members on Valentine's Day. People say ‘I love you' to family members with flowers and other gifts. Such rituals help to generate positive feelings for each other and create happiness in family.

Singles who feel depressed on Valentine's Day for not having a partner to celebrate the romantic festival in much popularized manner must strive to make the most of the occasion by celebrating the day with friends or family members. They can express gratitude and affection to friends, colleagues and dear ones for their wonderful presence and support. Organizing single's party and inviting other friends who are single can be another great way of celebrating Valentine's Day beyond lovers.

Some people also like to celebrate Valentine's Day in a constructive manner by performing acts of charity. One can visit orphanage, old age home and hospitals and spend time with those who crave for attention and affection.

Days of our Lives

There are days that stay and days that go,
Some fails to fade but slowly grow.

Some moments wither and leaves a blemish,
And some that get richer and you'll always cherish.

Some days brings anguish and others bring ecstasy,
While others that turn sheer nightmares into pure fantasy.

Some days are a symbol of death, anguish and destruction,
While others celebrate life and give reasons for celebration.

Some days you want to forget and others you want to stay,
And days you want to revisit and want to return everyday.

If only you knew what the day could bring,
You would have prepared for almost anything.

It is the uncertainty that gives you reasons for sanguinity,
Takes away the gloom and help your retain your sanity.

So treasure the days that come and hope for the best,
Or you'll end up making it as bad and distasteful as the rest.

So go ahead and live the day the best that you can,
Don’t hold yourself back cos of any god or a religious mad man.

Happy Valentines Day

Lessons from Iran Missile Launch

The launch of a satellite into orbit by Iran, arguably the greatest enemy of the US is among the numerous bad news that the US has been rocked with in the recent past. This is another bad news the US could have done without and another headache the new Obama administration didn’t need. This launch also highlights one of the many failures of the Bush administrating which grossly miscalculated the engineering and aeronautical capability of the Shia dominant Iran. (Recently the US had raised a lot of hue and cry about the possible fake missile launch by Iran). I'll bet my bottom paisa of the ever-appreciating rupee that the US is praying that this launch turns out to be fake as well.

Another point that this launch has brought to attention is the fact that Bush and his 'Henchmen' would have been better-off plotting against Iran than Iraq who didn’t have a missile, at least with a rocket that could take to air. Alas! Here is Iran reaching for Space. I wonder Mr. Bush, Mr. Rumsfeld, Mr. Cheney Mr. Powell and Ms. Rice might be thinking. I am sure they regretting the billion of dollars that went into waging a war in Iraq when their biggest threat came from Iran, who spend the same time honing their ballistic and rocket technology.

In the end, 'The Axis of Evil' very much remains a reality, only this time the US after having deposed of Iraq, if you believe what the US has been saying about the threat of Iraq been nullified, in reality the US has in effect only managed to add a couple of more vertexes to the triangle and gave birth to, at least a list of competitors resembling the shape of a parallelogram, if not a pentagon or a hexagon? Pardon my stinking geometry.

A casing point towards this fact is North Korea recently rendering all peace instruments with South Korea void and has henceforth resorting to what could be loosely termed as aggressive posturing. But, the point remains that the threat or rather the competitors of US has only grown. Venezuela and Libya, the old enemy Cuba and Russia seem to discovered a greater voice after its relative economic boom, and seem to pose the biggest threat for the US, if not militarily then politically, challenging US policies and strategic maneuvering wherever it can. The Missile Shield Program of the US is certain to create some tensions in the future.

Mr. Bush, who you might have guessed by now I am not the greatest fan of has left President Obama with a whale of task and my only hope is that he Mr. Barack Obama spends more time in winning hearts and minds than wars unlike his predecessor!!! All the best Mr. Obama.