Art connoisseurs throng Chitra Santhe in droves

Hundreds of artists, not only from Karnataka, but also from neighbouring Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh had displayed their works on Vinobha Road, near Metropole Circle in Mysuru, at Chitra Santhe, organised as part of Dasara celebrations on Sunday.

The whole stretch of Vinobha Road was splashed with colours, drawing attention of art lovers of the city. The art expo, popularly known as Chitra Santhe, had been organised by Vishwamanava Vidyarthi Yuva Vedike, to encourage artists and also to provide an opportunity for Mysureans to find a piece of art close to their heart.

The expo included paintings, photographs, sketches and others and were available right from Rs 10 to Rs 3 lakh, to suit the pocket of the buyer.

K Anuradha, an artist from Bengaluru, who is speech and hearing impaired, had displayed paintings of boutique prints and also painted greeting cards. She conveyed to Deccan Herald that she had an opportunity to display her art at Bahrain and Singapore during the Kannada Sahitya Sammelan. She was participating in the expo for the fifth time.

Bhavani Shekar, also from Bengaluru, had displayed paintings made of coffee powder. She had also had paintings that also made use of coconut fronds and castor leaves.
Anasuya Rangaswamy, Mysuru, had displayed tribal worli paintings, Kanakaraj of Kannur, Kerala, had displayed his paintings of Deepa Sundari, which highlights a balance between light and shadow.

While paintings of Mahatma Gandhi and Lord Buddha were commonly seen, a couple of paintings of cricketer Sachin Tendulkar were a surprise. As every year, paintings of Kathakali, an art of Kerala, was the favourite of many, who were seen clicking pictures of them with their mobile phones.

Paintings of tiger, lion, herd of elephants, nature, beautiful women, gods and goddesses, tribal art were also on display. However, artists, who were making spot sketches were in demand. Many were seen posing for the sketches by paying Rs 150.

According to the organisers, there was good response for the paintings and some of the artists had made a business of Rs 25,000 up to 3 pm. Earlier, District in-charge Minister V Srinivas Prasad, MLA Vasu and others inaugurated the expo at 10 am.