Peacock Moustache - Inspired by mehndi (henna) pattern and rajasthan’s rich and colorful folk art. Buy it now for your living room, wear it on your t-shirts, carry it on a tote bag and flaunt it on your laptops and iPads.

You can buy this piece of art at society6‘s website and here is a sneak peak of products that you can have

Artwork in detail:

Credits
Product Blueprints (Society6) - http://society6.com

Buy this product -
http://society6.com/ParveenVerma/Mehndi-Peacock-Mustache_Print

Winston Churchill said that I am willing to meet my MAKER but whether my MAKER is willing to face the ordeal of meeting me is a different matter altogether…

Shehla Masood had the same belief and the same spirit, she lived by it and she died believing it, that I’ll do my job, so be it that I have to meet my MAKER, be it for environment, wild life conservation, RTI, Police high handedness, corruption and all such issues that plague Indian society and common people like you & I. And being close to her, I know for sure that her MAKER is having a tough time because she will, in her after life, will still be tenacious to ask probing questions to her MAKER…

She was threatened by one and all but she never conceded, she was harassed but she never lost her zeal, she was killed but her spirit lingers on and on…her relentlessness, her motivation, her self-belief is a beacon of hope for all those who want to carry on the flickering flame of justice for poor & downtrodden.

Zauq in one of his famous poems said that:

Laai Hayaat to aaye qaza le chali chaley,
Apni Khushi se na aaye na apni khushi chaley

Shehla could not be the master of her ‘hayat’ and her ‘qaza’ but she surely mastered her life in between the two by doing and dying for what she believed in…rare are those fellows who have the heart for following their heart and she is right on top of the list…

References
Rajat Kumar – http://in.linkedin.com/pub/rajat-kumar/24/55/130

Join the Shehla Masood Memorial
http://www.facebook.com/Shehla.Masood.Memorial

This is my first attempt to draw caricatures/comic to get some humor out. This work is based on a recent wikileak cable release titled as “Mayawati : Portrait of a Lady” where Mayawati sent her private jet (empty) to Mumbai to retrieve her preferred brand of sandals. Mr Assange offered her the finest British footwear when Mayawati offered him some space at the mental asylum in Agra.

References
Portrait of a Lady – WikiLeaks cable on Mayawati
Assange responde - Send me jet, I’ll bring you sandals: Assange to Mayawati
Artwork – Parveen Verma 

“Shalu Appi”, that’s how i have known her and that’s how some of us in our ‘little’ friend circle have known her. I have known her as a guide, mentor, a great friend and as an awesome cook in telephonic conversations with my friend Rajil when he used to cook for all of us almost every night and in every party. Man… those were the days.

We use to jump in and out, break things apart, argue, get into fights, crack jokes and cry with loud music in the background and we would be the most decent and adorable lads for two minutes when neighbors came to complain. And when we got hungry?, everyone in the room knew that it was the time to call our master chef “Shalu Appi” for her magical recipe, Mutton Korma. We would behave like good kids, wouldn’t make noise and would listen to her instructions carefully on speakerphone. We all would try and contribute as much as we could to cook it as soon as possible and would get slapped with “patience” through that speakerphone. Yupp, patience along with it’s ingredients and ‘khada masala’ is the key to Shalu Appi’s deliciously finger licking Mutton Korma. …and i guess you know rest of the story.

Appi..ek problem ho gayi hai….Appi yaar kuch paise chahiye.. Appi…zara der ke liye aapki gaadi le ja raha hu…Iss ek problem ka matlab kisi bhi tareh ki chhoti ya badi musibat hua karti thi..un kuch paise ka matlab kitne hi rupye mang liye jaate thae aur kuch der ka matlab kayi din bhi ho sakte thae…..Shalu Appi..bachpan se ye lafz mere liye ek behisab taqat …ek behad mazboot sahara raha hai….kal se khud ko iss baat ka yaqin dinlane ki koshish kar raha hu ki ab zindagi me na kabhi koi problem ayegi aur na hi paise ya gaadi ki zaroorat hogi…Appi ye kaise ho sakta hai ki ab ke baar me jab aapko pukarunga..koi jawab nahi ayega…….Shalu appi ne hamesha logo ki madad kari..logo ke liye ladti rahi..corrupt logo aur system ke khilaf…aur aksar hi aise logo ko jab rokna mushkil hota hai..to khamosh kar diya jata hai…dosto kal meri badi behen RIP shehla Masood ki awaaz hamesha ke liye band kar di gayi..unke liye duya karein..allah unhe maghfirat de… via Rajil Zaidy

That’s how i have known shalu Appi, brings smile on my face and takes me back in times.

In every friend circle there is always one that rest of us or most of us like to adore and admire, being it’s a girl or boy, brother or sister. …So what’s the point?

The point is, we don’t really realize the fact that how strongly we want to BE with that person or how much we love and care unless we miss that person, unless we don’t get to see enough of that person. The point is when you get to know that you will not be able to see that person for rest of your life, the person you wanted to BE with now rests in our memories, few photos in some photo albums and in a photo frame hung up on a wall.

AND the point is when that person is none other than “SHEHLA MASOOD”, who devoted her life for social causes. she was an activist working on primarily on wildlife conservation, and also supported other causes like good governance, [RTI Act], Police reforms, environment, women’s rights & issues, transparency and sexual minorities rights. She had recently sat on a fast in support of Anna Hazare’sIndia Against Corruption campaign. She was actively involved in raising issues related to the deaths of tigers in the various sanctuaries of Madhya Pradesh.

And the point is, she was shot dead from point blank on August 16, 2011 in her car, in front of her house in Bhopal and the irony is no one heard anything and on one saw nothing.

Candle Lite at India Gate, September 4, 2011 – Remembering Shehla Masood

We ran all roads, all day to seek police permission to lite candles at India Gate to pay our tribute and to remember Shalu Appi. People gathered at India Gate to lite a candle and to pray for her.

Everyone got together, made a human shield against wind and rain to keep the candles glowing.

References
Rajil Zaidy – http://www.facebook.com/rajilzaidy
Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shehla_Masood
Photography – Parveen Verma 

Join the Shehla Masood Memorial
http://www.facebook.com/Shehla.Masood.Memorial

I came across Prabal’s artwork on Facebook through a friend’s comment on it and i ended up browsing his entire artwork catalogue and we ended up being friends for life. He is an engineer by profession, a drumist by heart and an artist by soul. It is indeed an honor to write about Prabal, his take on arts and journey so far as an artist, ohh sorry, as a painter rather (this is what he would like to be called).

1. So, who is Prabal Mallick and where is he from?

Everyday I discover a little about who Prabal Mallick really is. But one thing for sure you give him a little love and you get back a whole lot of it. Prabal was born and brought up in different parts of Orissa (now Odisha). His formative years were spent at RIMC (Rashtriya Indian Military College), Dehradun. Then he went on to do his engineering at IIT, Kharagpur. From there he came to Bangalore to stand on his own two feet and is just about managing till now (He works as a engineer). By the way someone told me that he also played drums for a local (Bangalore) Fusion/Rock band for sometime and just swears by watercolors.

2. Do you always wanted to be an artist or there is a story behind it?

Well I do not consider myself as an artist, though I think I am somewhat of a painter. I started painting when I was a child. I don’t really remember when. And since then I have been on and off it. About three years back there was a sudden surge of inspiration and since then I have been just into it. And probably there is a realization there somewhere in my subconscious now that this is what I always wanted to be doing (for a living or otherwise).

3. When did you first paint and what was it?

As I said I really don’t remember. But what I remember is that I used to keep drawing on floor and walls and then one day my father bought me some paints and brushes and as they say, rest is history.

4. What is Art to Prabal Mallick?

I read an art quote somewhere. ‘Life beats down and crushes the soul and art reminds that you have one’. I think this quote more or less expresses what I feel about art in the context of society. And in an artist’s context I think its a path of self discovery.

Prabal also has a great sense of humor, a light hearted man and a firm believer in Karma. This is what he said when i called him ‘The Man’ on accepting to write for this interview on such a short notice.

No no please dont call me the MAN.. Just joking.. Actually I was reminded of this movie ‘School of Rock’ where jack Black says these famous lines…
‘The Man. Oh, you don’t the Man? The Man is everywhere. In the White House, down the hall, MRS. MULLINS, she’s the Man. And the Man ruined the ozone, and he’s burning down the Amazon, and he kidnapped Shamu and put her in a chlorine tank! And there used to be a way to stick it to The Man. It was called rock ‘n’ roll. But guess what. Oh, no. The Man ruined that too with a little thing called MTV!”

5. What do you feel when you paint, can you explain that feeling in detail?

Elation, Peace, despair, anger, hope, thrill, disappointment, hope again. elation all over again….. It is like a roller coaster ride, happening in a different world to which I am transported when I paint.

6. How do you start your paintings, the process, preparations till finished artwork?

Nothing fixed really. Sometimes I prepare by making line sketches, then tonal sketches, then color sketches before starting the final painting. Sometimes I just pick my brushes and directly work on my painting. Depends on what I am painting and my state of mind.

7. What is the most challenging or difficult part of the process?

I think it is belief. Every child is an artist. A child may draw a circle to represent a boat, but he believes in it. His heart is pure and he sees and interprets the world in his own way. And without getting judgmental he believes in it. As we grow up we may develop the skill set which the child did not have, but lose the innocence. We start becoming judgmental and lose the belief. Even with this knowledge it takes a long, really long time to get that belief.

8. I see you paint with watercolors, why?

I used to paint with oils before. I started doing watercolors only three years back and never gone back to oils since. The more I paint with watercolors the more I believe that this is a medium which suits my personality. There are some areas where watercolors personality matches with mine and some areas where it does not. There is love and there is fight too. And for both these reasons I think it suits my temperament.

9. Does the nature inspire you to paint? i see a lot of your artwork on nature.

Nature without failing has inspired every painter. And I am no exception. Along with nature, people, music, life and so many other things it is the act of painting, the act of creating something out on a blank paper that inspires most of all to paint.

10. How easy/difficult it is to find buyer for your artwork in the Indian market? You think you get a reasonable price?

I really don’t have much idea about the market in India in a broad sense. But with whatever experience I have had, it is difficult to get a good pool of buyers. And it is especially so for watercolors as it is perceived to be an inferior medium, though it is not at all so. My paintings are priced very reasonably and are easily affordable. What I have seen is people do not really have reservations about the prices I ask for.

11. Any major turning point in your career that has made you more passionate about your craft?

I think it is the act of painting itself. The more I paint, the less I know from before. And hence more eager to explore, more eager to know, more eager to learn and thus more passionate.

12. What are your own favorite paintings?

This is tough.. But anyway I’ll list some of them. And the reasons are purely emotional.

1. My mom’s portrait

2. Indian Ocean

3. Parked

4. The three cows

5. Five down memories

6. Fresh start

13. Where do you see yourself five years from now?

FIVE YEARS.. I cant even tell you where I’ll be five weeks from now.

14. Do you follow another artists, maybe someone who has been your inspiration?

So many of them actually. But I would like to mention some names only with due respect to the others. Van Gogh for bringing heaven down to earth. Milind Mulick, whose paintings have inspired me to start with watercolors. Indian Ocean (I am taking liberty to include artists from other fields too) for tremendous self belief and integrity.

15. Any message or word of advice to aspiring artists or people who have their interest in arts?

I do not think I have the experince or position to really give any advice. But for whatever it is worth my advise will be to practice and to reflect. Practice will polish one’s skills. And through introspection one will reach a stage where the painting finally will become a part of one’s personality.

Thank you Prabal for the interview and sharing your views with the world.
You can find more information about Prabal here and don’t forget to checkout his latest artwork