A ceremony was organised by Global Art India at the Presidency Club to felicitate S Monish from K K Nagar, who was declared the champion of the the Global Art International Competition at Cambodia.
The hall was filled with children who participated in the competition, and their parents. The crowd had their eyes glued to the screen, on which a video depicting the achievements of yesteryear cine actor, artist and litterateur Siva Kumar were played. He was the chief guest of the event.
Siva Kumar said that during his childhood, the platforms for children to develop and showcase their artistic skills were limited. He said that he identified his talent when he was just 16 years old.
“When I came to the city, painting and art was something that everyone frowned upon. I have done over 5,000 sketches till date, but haven’t had the chance to showcase them. Children should make use of these platforms. The appreciation and recognition that they get is a much-needed boost for them at this young age,” he shared.
“I practiced hard for three months to win the competition,” said Monish. Sharing her thoughts on the win, Monish’s mother said that an Indian winning an international competition between 300 children from 12 nations including Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, China, Vietnam, Philippines, Myanmar, Australia and Cambodia instilled a sense of patriotism.
Sangeetha, who was instrumental in Monish’s success, said that he was the first student under her mentorship to have won both the national and international level competitions. “He is a hard working student, sincere, and ambitious. He has made all of us proud,” she shared.
Six other children from the city were announced as runners up in their respective categories. Iniyavel, the third runner up of the event shared his experience during the course of the competition. “The event gave me good exposure and I learnt a lot from my fellow participants. My mentors have been extremely supportive and I credit this opportunity to global art India,” he said.
“It was a proud moment for all Indians there and I am glad his hard work paid off,” she said. The two-time national champion Monish shared that he was always ambitious about setting foot into the international arena and winning the national-level competition gave him a boost towards his goal.
“The topic, ‘love’ at the competition was challenging, but I gave it my best,” said the 14-year-old.