BENGALURU : If your New Year resolution was to get the better of the pandemic or to keep fit, here is D Kumaresh, whose resolution every year is to distribute New Year calendars and greeting cards. Mind you, this is not like any other regular calendar or greeting card.
It is a game of arithmetic with some brain-teasers and some titbits that appear informative and surprising. However, this year Kumaresh, who works in the Income Tax department in Bengaluru, has dedicated his eight-page creative to music maestro Ilaiyaraaja and the COVID warriors.
To celebrate the year 2022, the New Year greetings also consist of the 22 popular islands of Andaman and 22 interesting facts about the number 22. For someone who has been working on different sets and designs of greeting cards and calendars since 1993, working on this piece took just 30 minutes.
"It was very monotonous and boring to see the same set of greeting cards and calendars every year. I love mathematics and I decided to give the New Year greeting cards a twist with the play of numbers. I have worked on different themes every year, including a 2014 calendar dedicated to Sachin Tendulkar after his retirement in 2013," says Kumaresh, adding, "I do this as a hobby. I do not want to commercialise my creatives. So far, I have printed 1,000 copies of the 2022 greetings and calendars which I am distributing to close one."
Kumaresh starts work on this at the end of the year. As a tribute to Ilaiyaraaja this year, he has dedicated the calendar to the music maestro. Titled Maestro For All Moments, the calendar consists of dates that denote 31 different achievements and facts about Ilaiyaraaja.
"I have grown up listening to Raja sir's songs. I am a big fan of his keeravani raaga composition. I hope to visit him soon in Chennai and give him this piece," says the 57-year-old, who has created 100 calendars even going upto the year 2100. "The trick is to get the first and the last day of every month correct. The rest will automatically fall in place," he adds.
'The small intestine is about 22-feet long'; 'Dec 22, 1887 - Birth of Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan'; 'Sikkim became the 22nd state in 1975' - here are 22 interesting facts about the number '22' that are printed on his New Year greeting cards. Not just that, inspired by his visit to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Kumaresh has also listed the 22 popular islands of Andaman.
"The greeting card is a dedication to the COVID-19 warriors and also a tribute to Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra and the late Gen Bipin Rawat," says Kumaresh, adding, "I start collecting moments that make news in November. My purpose is to spread awareness on many social and scientific information that can educate the society at large."
Interesting facts about the number 22
The atomic number of Titanium is 22
April 22 1970 : The first Earth Day is celebrated
Aug 22 1987: Madras was founded
Feb 22, 1732: George Washington, the first US President was born
Nov 22, 1963: American President John F Kennedy was assassinated