Meet Rani Meesaqun Nabi, Tral’s 21-year-old young calligrapher
Tral, 7 October: Calligraphy is an ancient art and its origins can be traced back to the very beginning of written language itself. Having grown in stature in the recent past, calligraphy’s importance is finally being recognized in our valley also. Young people are showing interest in this art, fueled by the passion that enables them to create and share this art.
Hailing from a small village in Tral district, 21 yr old Rani Meesaqun Nabi’s love for calligraphy began at a young age, watching her naturally talented father who had a good hand at calligraphy and hand art.
A self-taught calligrapher, Meesaqun is a student of BUMS in Srinagar, who developed an interest in this art while she was growing.
Meesaqun while remembering her father said, “Apart from being a teacher, my father was an artist, poet, and good at hand art such as calligraphy and papier machie. After his death a few years back, I felt an urge to explore his art through his works. While going through his calligraphy works, I felt inspired and an urge to stand up to the legacy of my father. I pledged that I will not let his art die with him. So, I decided to take up his style of calligraphy art. That’s how it all started in the first place,” she said.
The young girl has never received any formal training in calligraphy, however, over a period of time gained experience by working on several projects where she got the opportunity of expressing her love for this art. .
‘I haven’t had any formal training in calligraphy, it was sheer inspiration from the wonderful art of my father. Time and rigorous practice allowed me to nurture my skill and interestingly my journey kicked off. Apart from calligraphy, she likes to do painting and crafting.
Talking about her recent calligraphy project, Meesaqun said that she has recently completed few on-demand calligraphy orders, like Customised papier machie cup with inscribed names in calligraphy.
‘While as youth are choosing to express themselves artistically on the Internet, I too have been posting my work on social media channels. People have been requesting me to make custom artworks for them and I consequently decided to take up some limited orders. Also, I am working on a few other works such as the ‘Chaar Qul’, Sand Calligraphy which are yet to be completed,” she replied.
When asked about the most interesting calligraphy project she has worked with, Meesaqun said, “I would say my work on Surah Fateha has been the most interesting.”
She said that she has produced a number of works with a wide range of customized writings, on-demand writings, calligraphy on papier machie works, personal gift calligraphy works, etc.
She further said that she has produced numerous works on the Qur’an too and added all her works on the Quran have been the most interesting in general.
According to her the most challenging project so far has been the art of calligraphy inscribed on paper machie , “I have tried a new cocktail of art, calligraphy on papier machie, which has been a real challenge so far,” said Meesaqun.
“Traditional calligraphy on plane surfaces is challenging, but the rules are regular. When calligraphy is done on papier machie, it becomes more challenging as there is no regular surface or curvature. One has to be very imaginative of the limits of the surface being worked on,” Meesaqun believes.
“There’s no space for an error as one wrong stroke with a brush might result in wasting a full Papier machie art-piece. It is also very difficult to sense the boundaries of the workable area”
The young calligrapher said that she has never affected her studies because of her passion for art and this is because of the learnings that Meesaqun received through her father.
She said that she would continue this work in the future.Her message to the aspiring calligraphy artists is that they must be very patient and explore the treasure trove that this art holds.’ We must unfold this art that we have inherited. It can take us to new heights and serve our interests also Meesaqun said.’
Lastly, Meesaqun wants that artists working in multi-disciplines should be encouraged, both by parents , educators and govt.
“Art helps a person to discover their inner self, and explore their latent dimensions which one is seldom aware of. If art is promoted, it would help in the development of a person individually and the society as a whole,” Meesaqun concluded.
