Mysuru has brought together its residents in more ways than one. Talk to anyone from the city and they will tell you how it is a silent rule to go to Chamundi Betta (Chamundi Hill) to celebrate birthdays. Likewise, it is a very Mysuru thing to bond over the smallest of things in and around the city.
Dr Lakshmi Krishnan, an oral pathologist with a keen interest in cancer research and public health, currently working as a Senior Clinical Research Scientist at Niramai Health Analytix, Bengaluru, has given the city’s residents something new to bond over.
Artist Lakshmi Krishnan | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Born in Mysuru and having lived in the city for many years, Lakshmi’s fondness for her hometown never diminished even after she moved to Bengaluru. To give form to this fondness, she started a project, ‘Mysore Days with Kruthi’.
In a candid phone conversation with The Hindu, Lakshmi, 37, said she wanted to raise a toast to the city she was born, by etching 37 of her Mysuru memories in water colours.
“I was not a professional painter, although I used to dabble with art now and then,” she says with a laugh. “Having stayed in Mysuru for such a long time, it took a while to get used to the fact that I don’t stay there anymore. But my love for the city never lessened. I felt the need to do something for the city that I love deeply.”
Each of the paintings of the city’s relatable and famous landmarks, are accompanied by anecdotes, thus invoking similar feelings of nostalgia among Mysuru’s current and former residents.
Art by Lakshmi Krishnan | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“I did not think my paintings would receive this kind of attention on social media. It turns out that many people feel the same.”
Starting with Mysuru Banthu (Mysuru is here), Lakshmi’s very first painting is of the Varuna Canal near the city. “For most non-resident Mysurians, Varuna Canal is of the first views of ‘home’ after many days.”
“A decade ago, when I first moved out for my post-graduation, this was a sight I longed to see on most Saturday afternoons. It was a sign that home was now not far away. This, I felt, was the perfect start for my project.”
She has also painted Chikka Gadiyara, Chamundi Betta, Rajkamal Theatre, Devaraja Market, Mylari Dose, and a Churmuri Gaadi (Churmuri is a preparation of puffed rice seasoned with onions, spices, pepper, which sold on customised carts across the city) among others.
“Churmuri always remained my true love. I have painted the famous Ballal Circle churmuri gaadi, and it is representative of what I feel for churmuri and the city,” she says.
All of her paintings can be viewed here.
