Spending time indoors has increased our intimacy with our homes, and objects that populate it. A few days into the lockdown, Sameer Kulavoor, country’s beloved illustrator and artist languishing in self-isolation started deliberating over the objects in his house when a thought struck him. “It made me think about what kind of things other people hoard in their homes,” he says. Curiousity turned into an art project, and he sent a message to a randomly selected group of people on Instagram.
Very soon, his inbox had 20-25 images and Sameer drew these in over a day (yes, literally at God speed). Blogger and influencer Scherezade Shroff noticed the artworks and approached Sameer with proposal to collaborate.
A nationwide lockdown was announced on a four-hour notice leaving the daily wagers and under privileged stranded without any means of survival. Scherezade and Pri Shewakramani, a marketing consultant, united to create Quarancharity and raise funds for the migrant workers caught in the unexpected lockdown. “I thought of creating virtual learning sessions, and using those sessions to get money for charity,” says Pri. Five days after the lockdown, Quarancharity had its first seminar with Mumbai-based baker Pooja Dhingra. To attend the one-hour masterclass, a donation of Rs 2000 had to be made towards the NGO Goonj. It was followed by an hour-long yoga class by Tanvi Mehta the next day. Since then, more chefs, counselors, content creators and designers have conducted virtual sessions, and the funds raised have have been dedicated towards caring for the migrant workers.
Scherezade has been an admirer of Sameer’s work and wanted him to conduct a virtual art workshop. “But we realized that it will be very difficult to teach that skill in one hour, so instead he is doing ten artwork,” says Pri. First ten people who donated Rs 10,000 towards Goonj, could get one image or object painted by Sameer. It was an unbelievable deal for fans of Sameer’s work, with the goodness of karma of donating for a cause. Sameer is busy painting the ten images, which include furry pets, water pets, lamps and such. “We reached our target last night and it has been a great feeling,” Sameer says. As soon as the lockdown is lifted, the lucky and generous donators will receive the original Sameer Kulavoor.
Quarancharity has raised more than 11 lakh rupees and is still raising money for the most vulnerable of the society.
Here are a few artworks that Sameer made as part of his personal project before collaborating with Quarancharity.
