Shashwat is a confident 18-year-old, who loves to paint. His works were also displayed at the Kochi Biennale in the ‘Outsider’s Art’ section and were bought by singer Usha Uthup and her daughter Anjali.
Shashwat is a little different from the others. He is autistic, communicates in scattered words and finds it tough to articulate his thoughts. Yet, he does so with ease through his paintings and shares that he loves to paints microphones and Ganeshas with his favourite colours being orange, white and black.
“If people like Shashwat are encouraged in their endeavours and can earn a living by themselves, we can stop worrying for our child,” share his parents Malvika and Swapan Ghosh.
Shashwat studies in the special school -- Sense Kaleidoscope -- run by Akshayee Shetty who is an artist herself. According to Akshayee, “Some children are verbal while others are not. Different children choose different means to express themselves. I work with such children and use art. It is possible only if the child has an inclination towards art. Shashwat has it.”
One of Shashwat’s paintings ‘Rising sun’ was also chosen by his school for the yearly calendar when he was just four, beams his mother.
“Since childhood he leaned towards colours and experimented with different mediums and substances. He also intrigued us with his keen interest in drawing objects like cold drink cans (copying them to the last detail), head phones, mics etc. The depiction of a single theme in many different hues in various paintings was fascinating, especially to see that he could express his thought in many different ways,” adds Malvika.
Shashwat’s parents encouraged him to experiment with other forms like block printing, Mandalas and even tried to motivate him to be an entrepreneur by commercialising his art in the form of home décor.
These are posted on his Facebook page -- RAANG.
He is also keen in digital painting and has explored learning how to use technology.
For more on Shashwat go to https://www.facebook.com/shashwatraang
