Carving the charity out
LIFESTYLE ARTICLE
Posted in 2013

Among scores of employees working in Corporate, few stand out. They strike a perfect balance between their professional life and personal interests which is most important for everybody. Mr. Rahul is of the same breed. Thanks to his heart, he is so generous on the grounds of art.

Meet Rahul D from the national capital, New Delhi.... a software engineer by profession... and a charcoal artist by passion.

As a famous study by Teresa Amabile claimed, people are most creative when they care about their work and stretch their skills. Take Rahul. Those words perfectly hold good with him.

Rahul’s strokes speak a lot. They sense a purpose; tell stories and above all a renewed sense of belonging. In Rahul’s drawings and calenders, one can see the impressive images laden with expressions trying to speak something. Grace and feelings pour out of each of the faces. Picture of girls and women staring with a ray of hope, maybe a face shaded by despair, a girl enchanted, and at times, a look that’s just lost in introspection. They speak to the observer, each explaining a saga or a situation.

And the most noteworthy part is his innovative approach to support Non-Profit Organizations through his art and wit. Every year, he makes a desktop calendar during the 'Month of Giving' and auctions the merchandise to raise big money for the noble cause.

In 2011, his efforts were aimed at spreading awareness and to raise funds for a Bangalore based NGO Vimochana, meaning ‘liberation’, that strives against violence on women and thereby creating a violence-free world for all, especially for the more marginalized and vulnerable communities. The NGO was initiated in 1979 to defend the human rights of women, whenever and wherever they are violated. 

The beautiful calendars etched by Rahul are also sold externally. They were marketed in several corporate companies every year including Microsoft, Accenture, and General Motors. 

Rahul’s art reaped more in the year 2012. His calendar for the year in support of Vimochana was widely accepted and the sales crossed the mark of 2500 copies, within the first month of its launch. With his initiatives, Rahul is also connected to many NGOs in India like Dream a Dream, SnehaNilaya and Asha Niketan.

Rahul strikes the healthy balance between his work and art life, no matter how locked he is at his job. Admiring the same, Rahul was invited to be a speaker at the renowned TED, to share his thoughts on his successful journey with art and work.

It was way back in 2005 that he has stepped into his career. All along his profession, he has been extending equally hard work for the profession and at the same time he didn’t let his interest go away. Rahul used to hit the art books, magazines, websites and various workshops. He never had any formal art training. He was always self-motivated and self-directed in his practice.

Every winner perhaps has a role model behind him. In Rahul’s case his work has been greatly influenced by artists belonging to Medieval and Renaissance periods such as Leonardo da Vinci and at the same time that of Modern Surrealists such as Salvador Dalí.

At the end of the day of profession, we all are human beings. We should never forget our hobbies and interests, as earning gratification is equally important to earning money.