Most of my schooling was at an institution that encouraged curricular geniuses as well as involvement in the arts.
In the eight years I spent there, I recall almost everyone I knew participated in at least one of the many in-school ‘competitions’ that were organized every year – music, dance, sketching, painting, flower arrangement, essay writing (in English and the regional languages), poetry, drama and many others. We took turns to fill up the notice boards in the corridors with a proverb for the day, national and international news, fascinating facts, jokes and puzzles.
An-hour-a-week Yoga classes were not only a relaxing break from the usual grind of science, social studies, math and the languages, but also promoted physical well-being at an early enough age. Well, Yoga is probably more a 'skill' than an 'art'. Nevertheless, I find practicing Yoga rejuvenates and balances our creative and logical sides.
All of us have pleasant memories associated with the arts – the first pictures you drew with your pink, green and blue crayons; the time your mom helped you build toy furniture with empty matchboxes; the summer holidays that dad has kept you busy practicing still-life sketching. Even as we go about our life today, we are bound to stop and smile at art that appeals to our senses.
This blog is an outlet for me when I feel an artistic impulse. I also hope it will serve as a medium to unleash the artists in you, the readers, too.
