The ancients believed that everyone possessed hidden artistic talents. When these talents are unleashed, individuals willingly embrace challenges in pursuit of their artistic passions, diverging from conventional paths.
Creating art on tiny seeds like chickpeas, rice or mustard seeds, is a formidable task. Yet, there are individuals, like this famous artist from Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh, who paint Srinivasa Kalyanam on tamarind seeds, craft deity idols on rice grains and depict independent warriors in a remarkable display of skill and dedication.
Palli Chiranjeevi, a native of Tirumala, discovered his love for drawing at a young age. Impressed by Chiranjeevi’s artistic talents, his teacher offered words of encouragement, spurring his dedication to art. His aspiration was to incorporate medicine into his artistic creations. Consequently, he began crafting art on rice grains, achieving remarkable feats like inscribing about a hundred letters on a single grain. Since then, he has continued to create diverse forms of art on these tiny canvases.
Palli Chiranjeevi demonstrated his artistic prowess by painting portraits of Telugu poets, freedom fighters and political leaders on rice grains. His talent earned him a spot at the TTD Brahotsavam exhibition. There, he beautifully depicted Srinivasa’s Kalyanam, Vahana Sevakvam and various forms of Swami through his art on Tamarind seeds. He continued to participate in this prestigious event for 12 Brahmotsavams, leaving a lasting artistic legacy.
Inspired by the world of miniature art, another famous artist Rahul embarked on his artistic journey by attempting to carve a tiny parrot on a single grain of rice. His passion for micro art only grew from there, and Rahul’s repertoire expanded to include a wide range of subjects on rice grains. This encompassed flags of different nations, depictions of deities, freedom fighters, vehicles, animals, birds, fruits and musical instruments.
Notably, he crafted a piece featuring 75 freedom fighters on a peacock feather to commemorate the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. Additionally, his creations included ‘Srinivasa Kalyanam’ on a four-inch crow feather and a depiction of Gandhi on a quill. His extraordinary work, particularly the peacock feather with the freedom fighters, earned him the prestigious Kala Gaurav Samman, establishing his place as a remarkable micro artist.