Young Fathima paints the tale of Ramayana

Fathima is on an ambitious mission to present the events from the Ramayana through a series of illustrations.

Ramayana through a series of illustrations.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Religious art is not always about faith, rather, it’s about finding joy in the craft itself. This has been brilliantly proven by Fathima Siya P, a Class VIII student of Sreekrishnapuram Higher Secondary School in Palakkad.

Fathima is on an ambitious mission to present the events from the Ramayana through a series of illustrations. This ‘Rekha Ramayana’ series was initiated on the first day of the Malayalam month, Karkidakam, under the guidance of the school’s art teacher, T K Vibin Nath.

Vibin elaborates on the importance of the project. “It is not about religion because all epic heroes — be it the Prophet, Christ, or Rama — have all shared the same messages. We have chosen the Ramayana illustration as part of the Karkidakam month celebration. We have held similar programmes before,” he explains.

Fathima is no stranger to success in arts, he adds. She has previously secured first place in various art competitions. In addition to her talents in drawing, she has proved her skills in cartoons, poetry writing, and quizzes. She says her family, including her father P Shamsudheen, a chess arbiter, her mother Laila, and her brother Siyan, is the biggest pillar of support in her artistic journey.

“Vibin sir suggested this project to me, and I was very excited about it. I was initially unaware of the story, but sir narrated the whole Ramayana to me. And I also watched some videos about it on YouTube. This helped me gain knowledge about the epic. The first illustration I drew was of Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana going to exile, which I chose as a picture narrating the story of sacrifice,” said Fathima.

Her father says her family recognised her talents from a young age. Being a chess arbiter, he always had a chessboard at home, and Fathima learned to arrange it when she was only two. “I used to buy her drawing books, and she would colour them. Gradually, she started sketching. Participating in and winning competitions after joining school has motivated her. We try to support her as much as we can, from buying drawing materials to encouraging her to reach new heights,” he says.

Regarding the Ramayana project, Shamshudeen adds, “When she started this project under Vibin’s guidance, we were not concerned because we believe art has no religion, and I believe, twisting it into something else is unnecessary.”

Fathima’s artistic journey is also marked by her self-taught skill in Arabic calligraphy, which she picked up from watching YouTube videos. She shines not only in art and quizzing but also in her studies, having earned scholarships like LSS and USS.

After the series is done, Vibin says they are planning to release the series as a book with introductions by famous artists from Kerala. Also, the completed illustrations will be showcased in an exhibition and a digital display at the school.

“The characters are drawn by preserving their essence without losing their unique identity. When these illustrations reach the public, we want them to be a reinterpretation of Ramayana, especially in the illustration format. It won’t take as much time as reading, yet the ideas can still be understood. That is the intention,” he says.