Hyderabad| Aasutosh Panigrahi paints with conjoined middle fingers to create unique art

Aasutosh Panigrahi paints with conjoined middle fingers to create unique art. His show Dream - An Ode to Those Who Dare To Dream is at Anantyam Qalaa art gallery in Hyderabad

Dream — An Ode to Those Who Dare To Dream at Anantyam Qalaa art gallery in Hyderabad symbolically represents artist Aasutosh Panigrahi’s life. Over 25 of his works on the theme of dreams are displayed as part of his solo show at the gallery — proof of his ability to convert a disability into strength, and a testament to his power of perseverance and flight of imagination.

Born with syndactyly, a condition with conjoined/fused middle fingers in both hands, Aasutosh works as a government fine arts lecturer in Delhi and is also a Guinness World Record holder for World’s largest indoor mural (2005 and 2018). .

Aasutosh celebrates Nature in his works. In fact, Nature has been his muse for 35 years of his artistic career. “Nature se badhke beauty duniya mein kuch bhi nahin hai (“There is nothing more beautiful than Nature),” he says. The compositions in a vibrant colour palette depict the natural world with birds and animals, as well as a few abstract forms and female figures.

The 48-year-old artist’s creative process is spontaneous and he uses oil and acrylic paints to fill textures on canvas. He later paints forms instinctively using a brush on this textured background. “When I demonstrate my work, people feel I am doing magic; whatever be the size of canvas, I can fill textures in just 20 minutes,” says the expert who knows which movements of the hand can create a specific texture.

Growing up in Kamakhyanagar in Odisha, Aasutosh recalls being ridiculed by his relatives for his condition. “Their taunts about my life being useless or that I should run a grocery store used to hurt me a lot,” says the artist. The turning point came when Aasutosh was in class VI in 1986 when he won a Lalit Kala Akademi prize for art. The award boosted his morale and helped him develop a positive mindset. “I could turn a limitation into strength and use my hands to create unique art which cannot be copied by anyone else, including me.”

Versatility is Aasutosh’s forte; He also paints rangolis on the floor and is a theatre actor and director. Founder of Spirit of India, a theatre group for children in Delhi (also his banner for social service), Aasutosh has performed in as many as 600 plays till date. Balancing his work and passion, he hopes to continue to create unique art. “Yeh haath yunhi chalta rahe (Let my hands keep working).”

Dream, a solo show by Aasutosh Panigrahi is on at Anantyam Qalaa art gallery till Feburary 2.