KOZHIKODE: Two years ago, Jahan Joby’s paintings were part of an exhibition at a top-notch art gallery. Though prolific for a seven-year-old, neither little Jahan nor his parents would have imagined that his artwork would feature in one of the most discussed presentations of the land -- the budget.
His work depicting a man rowing a boat through tidal waves was included on the back cover of the English translation of the state budget presented by Finance Minister T M Thomas Isaac on Friday. Isaac himself had revealed this in a Facebook post saying that poems and paintings by children would feature in the budget presentation.
The son of Joby Joseph, who works in advertising, and Arya Gopi, a poet and assistant professor of English with the Zamorin’s Guruvayurappan College in Kozhikode, Jahan was amused when his name was mentioned by the FM.
“We see fishermen sailing in the sea. I thought it would be interesting to draw a picture of a fisherman from a bird’s view,” he said of the ‘budget’ painting.
The Class II student of Vedavyasa Vidyalayam, Malaparamba, is used to appreciation, thanks to exhibitions. When he was five, 40 paintings were exhibited at the Lalit Kala Akademi Art Gallery in Kozhikode. During the lockdown, he did an exhibition online featuring more than 100 paintings.
“I started making crayon paintings and later shifted to acrylic colours,” said Jahan, yet to receive formal training. Whatever he draws comes from his own imagination and effort, with little patience to listen to others’ opinion, said his mother.