Though of an age as tender as 14, yet this prodigy is all set to prove that she is matchless when it comes to creative talent. Having preferred to accomplish in a tough art like Harikathe that hardly impresses the present generation, little girl Srilalitha Uliyaaru has already left masses spellbound by her enchanting performances.

Hailing from a simple family residing at N.R. Mohalla in city, she is the lucky daughter of G. Vasudeva Uliyaaru and Veena, who are leaving no stone unturned to ensure that their child turns out to be a great achiever one day. Says Vasudev, an artist by profession, “Lalitha started learning and practicing Harikathe when she was a little girl of six. Impressed by the Harikatha’s of Harikatha Pitamaha of Karnataka, Gururajulu Naidu, she began showing immense interest in the art of story telling,”

Besides, Shrilalitha is not being formally trained by any and all she has in the form of her Harikatha teacher is a little tape recorder and loads of Harikatha cassettes. “She is not being trained by anyone. Whatever she has learnt so far is by listening to the cassettes, apart from me training her a little. I’m planning to get her trained by city based Harikatha exponent Beluru Vasantha Lakshmi shortly,” says her father. Harikatha by Gururajulu Naidu that she heard two years back became her first inspiration. The prodigy is gifted with such abilities that a one-and-a-half hour long Harikatha ‘Aadisuvaathana Aata’ that she once presented at a progamme was also practiced by listening to a cassette itself.

She has given several performances at various places across the State like Bangalore, Udupi, K.R. Nagar, Mandya and Mysore. The little one is a fearless and enchanting entertainer who not just excels in story telling but is also a good, singer, dancer, performer and orator. Ask her what she likes best and she says, “I love presenting Harikatha as it involves many stories, sub-stories and humour. I also love presenting speeches.” And unlike many others who wish to be doctors, engineers and scientists one day, this little one says she wants to be a famous ‘Harikatha dasa.’ She is also good at presenting Harikathas on the modern day life, which she makes interesting for listeners by interspersing with several humorous stories. The little one embraced the Haridasa Deekshe from Bhadragiri Achyutadas in city when she was of 8 years of age and a souvenir ‘Dasana Madiko Enna’ on Srilalitha’s achievements was also released on the occasion.

Says her proud father, “She is God’s gift to us. I thank him immensely for having blessed us with a daughter like her, for though interested, none in my family could achieve something that she has done. She started her stage performances in other disciplines when she was just a little child of three years. Hence, I want to encourage and help her to the best of my abilities.” “I feel happy to say that people even in this generation show great interest in an art from like Harikatha and come in hoards to listen to her. We have received great response from people so far,” he adds.

Till date, Srilaitha has given over 250 Harikatha performances at places in and outside the State including places like Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. She has also been extensively appreciated for her talent by heads of various religious institutions such as the Seer of Mantralaya, Pejawar Seer of Udupi, Veerendra Hegde of Dharmasthala, Shavaratri Deshikedra Swami of Suttur Mutt and Ravishankar Guruji of Art of Living, to name a few. Also, the child has presented shows in various televisions channels of both Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

However, currently, the girl has reduced her stage performances a bit to concentrate on her studies since she would be in class X next. Meanwhile, her four-year-old little brother Srihari V. Uliyaaru is following his sister’s foots.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / June 23rd, 2014

by R.G. Singh

Manish Verma is an artist who paints the face of the Buddha. Manish Verma, who was in Mysore recently on an assignment, is a well-known artist who has made Bangalore his base. His works had been exhibited at Kalaa Dhaaraa, a mega exhibition of contemporary art hosted by Ramsons Kala Pratishtana, Mysore. Incidentally, one of his paintings was the first one to be sold at the exhibition. He has also executed several works like large mural panels for various private individuals and private companies, including one in Mysore. He has held several solo shows and many of his works are in private collections.

Excerpts from an extended talk session…

R.G. Singh (RGS): Manish, Why do you paint only the face of the Buddha? Why not some other saint or savant?

Manish Verma (MV): Perhaps, maybe, the answer lies in my home town which is Bilaspur in Bihar. Bodh-gaya (which is closer to my native) is a place I have often visited. The birthplace of the Buddha and the place of His enlightenment have had a very positive effect on me. The face of the Buddha conveys immense peace. The plagues of the world do not touch him. He is tranquil in the midst of action. This is what attracted me when I saw stone sculptures of his image. That is when I discovered that painting the Buddha’s face was a part of my own pilgrimage. I felt that I was destined to paint him.

RGS: What is your link to Bihar?

MV: I was born in a Bilaspur in 1973; after my early schooling, joined the College of Arts and Crafts in Patna. In 1996 I left for Delhi and worked as a freelance painter for several companies. Still restless I made my way to Uttar Pradesh then Haryana and still down to Andhra Pradesh. I rarely stayed in these places for more than a few months, the wanderlust driving me further and further to see new places and meet people, know their culture, language and cuisine. I have made many friends in these places and we keep in touch.

RGS: Finally Bangalore? Why? What brought you to this city?

MV: I came to Bangalore in 2004 and took up the first job that I could find and it was only in 2011 that I quit to become a full-time painter. Why Bangalore? Well, because it is a city that is very accepting of newcomers. I felt and soon realised that I could make my presence felt as an artist here and make my living as an artist.

RGS: What inspired you to become a painter?

MV: Frequent visits to Bodh-Gaya in my teens and the urge to seek the real meaning of my life. The lifestyle of the younger generation, even my generation is frantic. No one seems to have time or the space for one another. My early scribbling and doodling, and the discovery that I could make a line become a figure led me to recreate on canvas the peace of the Buddha… the message of the Buddha that is one of compassion for one’s fellowmen.

RGS: So the Buddha is the focus of all your work?

MV: Yes, certainly. But I have a series planned that will illustrate the life of the Buddha from the days when he was Prince Siddhartha to his becoming the Buddha and finally his attainment of Nirvana. I will be using the Jataka stories for reference. The story of the Buddha is timeless. It is for all time.

RGS: Is there a particular technique you follow?

MV: I used the ‘wash technique’ which is pale colours in my earlier paintings. But I have begun experimenting with bright colours and feel that I have gained a certain amount of success using this new, call it, the ‘Manish Verma technique’ (he giggles).

RGS: You have done some work of an entirely different kind in Mysore?

MV: I have done large rural-tribal murals for a few private establishments in Bangalore and one huge Mysore style based mural in Mysore. These were commissioned works. An exact brief was given, what was expected of me and so on. It was within this framework that I created these larger than life murals.

RGS: Tell me, who is Manish Verma?

MV: I do not know… (ponders for a long time) I feel I am a very simple person. I do not claim to know answers. I find this difficult to express. Maybe one of my future paintings will help me find the answer. I live in the present, in the ‘now’ and that is enough for me … for the present.

RGS: Is there anything at all that you do apart from painting?

MV: I love gardening. I love nature. My parents inculcated in me a love for nature. I also love classical music and Sugam Sangeeth. I cannot work unless there is music being played in the background. I travel a lot. I meet new people. And every such chance meeting gives me a new insight into myself. Sometimes I have tried to create Mysore style of paintings but feel I have a long way to go in that field. As I said, I live in the present, I do not know what the future holds and it is the peace of the Buddha that keeps me rooted.

RGS: Finally, do you have a wish-list?

MV: Not really… but I hope that there will be an artists’ village, an Arts Centre in various places in Karnataka where artists could spend time rejuvenating themselves in terms of their art; where there is no such thing as senior artist, well-known artist or any other classification… just artists united by their art.

The brief interaction ends. It is late evening, the sacred Chamundi hill is a dark outline, the small owl seated on the electric pole calls out softly and below the yellow lamp, Manish pushes his motorcycle off the stands and straddles it. “It is now 9 pm and I should be in Bangalore by midnight,” he smiles and kick-starts the bike and rides off.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / June 22nd, 2014