This Lightning-Fast Mangaluru Artist Is Asia’s 1st Speed Painter, Finishes Painting In 3 Minutes
Painting is seen as one of most niche forms of art, but speed painting is a rare skill where an artefact is painted at a breathtaking pace. 35-year-old Vilas Nayak from Mangaluru is being hailed as Asia’s first speed painter who paints on stage in just 3 minutes.
Vilas is unique and so is his art. He had started painting when he was just 3. He began speed painting 2004.
“There was a point when I failed (in academics) and was not so confident. But when I concentrated on painting and fine arts my confidence and dedication started reflecting in academics as well. I was a rank holder in college,” smiles Vilas. “Parents often tell their children not to focus on anything else but concentrate on studies — I don’t believe in that personally. I feel your passion for anything helps you grow in every aspect,” Vilas told The New India Express..
Making your passion your profession is quite a decision as it brings many concerns including the financial ones and Vilas thinks one should always do it if he has a comfortable fall back option.
“I earn an average of one to two lakh rupees per show in India. If it’s outside the country I charge more. I do charity events for free though. When you follow your passion and work 24/7, you do have advantages too. Whatever I have earned in the last eight years, I wouldn’t have been able to earn the same at my corporate job,” he said.
Vilas had heard from someone about an artist who did the speed painting on stage 40 years ago and it triggered the hidden passion within Vilas.
“I followed it up with research over the internet and YouTube and I was inspired by Denny Dent, a US painter. I started with a small piece of paper, then moved to a bigger canvas. Facing the crowd was the biggest challenge as I grew up being an introvert kid. However, the confidence painting gives me is unexplainable,” he recalls.
He started it in 2004 and his first-speed paint took 15 minutes to get completed. But gradually, he bought his time in between three to six minutes to complete a painting.
Before he decided to breathe the art he loves every moment, Vilas was working as an HR executive in Bengaluru. He worked there for six years before quitting his job in 2011 to pursue his passion. “In 2010, I performed at a regional reality show in Karnataka, then waited one year to take part in India’s Got Talent in 2011. I was still working for IBM at that time. After the show, I waited for six more months before I finally quit my job. I wanted to see how it goes before I took such a massive step and start speed-painting full-time,” says Vilas.
Vilas was the finalist of the third season of India’s Got Talent and also the winner of ‘EC live quotient Most Innovative Act Award’ 2012 and he currently one of the known speed painting artists in the world. “After eight years of performing as a speed painter professionally, now the challenge is to come up with different themes and paintings for each show in a very short span of time. I am almost always travelling. It gives me extremely less time to ponder and come up with something unique every time,” he says, adding, “Every show is different too. What I paint at a college show it would not be the same as what it would be at a corporate event or a fundraiser. There’s a different crowd each time, they have separate vibes and that needs to be kept in mind while painting.”
For the budding artists and people who want to follow their passion, Vilas advised, “Take risks but calculated ones. You can’t just quit your job with no backup plan when you wish to do something ambitious. Follow your heart but use your brain too in the process. At the end of the day, you have to come back home and eat something to fill your stomach,” says Vilas. “I have seen a lot of aspiring artists just take to it because they have interest. One must have the right aptitude for it too. Thus, spend more time with yourself because that’s how you know what you are actually good at.”
source: http://www.indiatimes.com / IndiaTimes / Home> News> India / by Maninder Dabas / January 25th, 2019
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Cyclists create a Guinness World Record in Hubballi
1,235 of them pedal a 4-km stretch in a single line
As the nation celebrated the 70th Republic Day, hundreds of cyclists from across the country landed in Hubballi to pedal 4 km in a single line to set a new Guinness record and make the country proud.
In all, 1,500 cyclists from places such as Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka congregated in Hubballi on Saturday for the attempt. Finally, 1,235 of them made it to the Guinness World Records for “the longest single line bicycles parade”
The earlier record was in the name of Bangladesh, where 1,186 cyclists had pedalled in a single line for 3.2 km in 2016. Hubballi Bicycle Club (HBC), in association with cyclists from across the country and various organisations, had been planning meticulously for the last six months for the attempt and they succeeded on Saturday evening.
Official adjudicator of Guinness World Records Swapnil Dangarikar announced that a new record had been created and handed over the certificate to president of the HBC Shrikant Deshpande and other office-bearers as the cyclists and a large number of people cheered and applauded.
Although the record attempt began in the afternoon with 1,500 cyclists above the age of 15, the first attempt failed as the requisite distance between cyclists and speed was not maintained. Subsequently, several cyclists were dropped and the record attempt began with 1,235 cyclists, who then pedalled to glory by cycling the 4-km stretch between Oxford College on the outskirts of Hubballi to Kusugal on National Highway 218.
The record attempt was part of the Cyclotsava organised to mark the Republic Day with the message ‘Respect cyclists’. It was also aimed at creating awareness on the benefits of cycling on personal health and in reducing carbon footprint.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Hubballi – January 28th, 2019
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Mysuru chaiwala’s daughter makes city proud, marches at Republic Day parade
Chandana M R was the lone female participant from Mysuru district and was selected from a pool of 1,800 candidates under the Karnataka and Goa NCC Directorate after rigorous tests.
Mysuru :
It was a day of pride for tea vendor Rajendra Kumar when his daughter, a first-year diploma student, marched with the NCC contingent at the Republic Day parade at Rajpath in New Delhi on Saturday.
Chandana M R was the lone female participant from Mysuru district and was selected from a pool of 1,800 candidates under the Karnataka and Goa NCC Directorate after rigorous tests. “It was a proud moment for me sitting in the humble tea shop to say that my daughter marched for the country at the Republic Day parade,” said Rajendra, who runs Vani Tiffins, a small tea shop near Kuppanna Park in the city.
Chandana’s mother Pushpalatha was elated as she spoke about her daughter. “To have my daughter march in the parade was a great moment for me,” she added. According to Pushpalatha, it was her daughter’s determination that helped her achieve this feat. “Last year too she tried, but she could not clear it. This year, she worked hard and she made it,” the proud mother said.
Speaking to TNIE from New Delhi, Chandana said, “It was beyond what I had even dreamt of. Many people were cheering as we marched, we all cried out of joy after the march past. To have marched along with the heroes in our armed forces is a great achievement for me.”
Chandana, who wants to become an army officer, said the opportunity has given her more courage to pursue her dreams. “Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman herself came to our camp and encouraged us. We also attended a tea party at the Army Chief’s house. We will also attend a dinner party with our President. All this has affirmed my dream to become an officer in the Army,” added Chandana.
Apart from Chandana, two youths — Dharma and Manja — from the city also marched with the NCC contingent in the Republic Day parade. After the state-level trials, nine girls were selected for the parade to represent state and Goa.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Ajith M S / Express News Service / January 27th, 2019
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Yakshagana singer Agari Raghurama ‘bhagawatha’ passes away
Noted Yakshagana singer-cum-director ‘bhagawatha’ Agari Raghurama passed away here on Sunday. He was 83 and is survived by three sons and a daughter.
Mr. Raghurama, from Surathkal, died in a private hospital in the city at about 10.30 a.m., family sources said.
Hailing from a family of Yakshagana, his father, Agari Srinivasa, was also a well known ‘bhagawatha’ of olden days.
Mr. Raghurama had quit the government job after serving as a clerk in the Education Department for nine years to become a professional artiste. He worked as the ‘bhagawatha’ in the erstwhile Mahammayi Krupaposhita Yakshagana Mandali, Surathkal for three-and-half decades.
Mr. Raghurama had a typical style of singing which became popular as ‘agari shaili’. Some of the contemporary ‘bhagawathas’ in Tenku Thittu school of Yakshagana now sung in the same style to carry it forward.
He was the contemporary of doyens of Yakshagana late Sheni Gopalakrishna Bhat, late Malpe Shankaranarayana Samaga, late Tekkatte Ananda Master and late Puttur Narayana Hegde.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Mangaluru – January 27th, 2019
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Tree cheers to the forest man of Mysuru
Ramesh, a 42-year-old resident of Chandagalu, has undertaken the Herculean task of converting Karighatta Hill, located in the reserve forest area near Srirangapatna, into a huge green patch.
Mysuru :
Unperturbed by the scorching sun, balancing a 20-litre water container on his shoulder and carrying another one in his hand, Y Ramesh walks uphill every day — to water saplings in the forest.
Ramesh, a 42-year-old resident of Chandagalu, has undertaken the Herculean task of converting Karighatta Hill, located in the reserve forest area near Srirangapatna, into a huge green patch. Right from filling the cans with water to sprinkling it on the saplings, Ramesh, who runs a business of delivering water containers to customers, does all the work by himself.
He follows the same daily routine from December to the monsoon season, carrying the unusable or broken containers in his goods vehicle (Tata Ace Zip), and going to the bottom of the Karighatta Hill, where river Cauvery flows. He fills 25 containers with water, and transports them uphill, spending 3-4 hours to water the plants. Ramesh waters 80-100 saplings a day. He has also placed placards at several places on the hill, which carry messages to conserve forest, wildlife and environment.
Now hailed as a local hero, Ramesh, however, had to endure sniggers as well as scepticism from others. “People, including my family members, laughed at me for lifting water from the canal and carrying it to water the plants,” he says. “Some said I was behaving abnormally, while some others asked me to be careful of the burning sun, as I may suffer health issues. Now, things have changed. Many people voluntarily come forward and plant trees here.”
Among his ardent supporters now is his wife, Anupama. “I used to discourage him earlier, but over the years I have started to love to accompany him in my free time. I help him in writing slogans, and loading empty containers in the vehicle,” she says. “He motivates villagers to plant trees on special occasions, and give saplings instead of other gift items during functions.”
Ramesh has devised his own ways to employ the method of drip irrigation on the hill. He cuts the 20-litre water can, with its lid screwed on, into two parts, and drills holes in them to use them to water multiple saplings. He even makes use of 1-litre and 2-litre water bottles discarded by tourists for drip irrigation.
Besides planting saplings, he also cleans the surrounding areas so that growth of vegetation is stimulated. He grows plants with herbal and medicinal value, which increase the green cover, keep the place moist and boost the water table. Ramesh collects the saplings from the forest department, and maintains them for a year. Some of the saplings planted by him a few years ago are now fully-grown trees, towering to even 10-feet height.
Ramesh has also placed a small container on the hillside to feed birds.His daily routine began years ago as a bid to oppose the traditional practice among villagers in Srirangapatna to torch the forest near the hill every February. It was a part of their ritual, where they pray to Lord Sri Venkateswara for prosperity, and ask him to bless them with children, wealth and health. It’s because of this practice that the hill got its name, Karighatta (kari means black and ghatta means hill in Kannada).
“The blind belief has been, Neena Betta Suttu Kappu Maduthivi (We torch your hill and make it black),” says Ramesh, talking about how he decided to educate villagers and put an end to the practice. “I was deeply moved to see small animals, such as snakes, cats, squirrels and birds, getting burnt to ashes in the man-made forest fire in 2011. I first started planting trees and later decided to visit the villages and educate people about the importance of the forest. Later, I started asking them not to burn the forest area. I request them to make a small plot and perform their rituals without harming the jungle.”
The villagers now join forces with him in the initiative. “Ramesh is bringing together students, social activists and other like-minded people to plant saplings and educate others not to burn the forest,” says B Somnathpura, a village head. “Some of them are voluntarily joining him in his endeavour. For the last four years, he has been visiting the villages in January, making announcements on loudspeakers, asking people not to set the forest on fire, and educating them about the importance of trees,” he adds.
Ramesh also urges tourists to maintain cleanliness in the region and not to spoil it by throwing garbage. “My only aim is to continue planting the forest for the rest of my life and increase the greenery,”he says.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by K. Rathna / Express News Service / January 27th, 2019