Sunaina Anand, 48, Art Alive
Artists love Sunaina Anand, the affable and knowledgeable owner of Alive Art Gallery. Her elegant art shows, where champagne and artisanal cheeses are the norm, are attended by the who’s who of the art and social world. The lady with a saree collection as impeccable as the art she shows enjoys “what I do. It’s not your regular nine to five job”. Her shows are attended by Delhi’s eclectic mix of artists, writers, diplomats and patrons. The air is abuzz with conversation and the clink of champagne flutes. “Collaborating with like-minded, artistically evolved individuals of the city gives me the impetus to get back into action every time I am down,” she says. She has a bad cold.
Sunaina’s connection with art is visceral; as a painter, curator and prominent gallery owner. Her daily morning walk through the verdant Siri Fort Complex is a prized ritual when she collects her thoughts and plans her day. The golden light bathing lush green trees, the glissando of birdcalls, companionable joggers, worried little children running after the school bus, friendly newspaper hawkers cycling lazily from house to house and the melody of early morning prayers that swim in the wind are the little things that Sunaina loves about living in Delhi. Domestic time is morning walks with her husband, catching up on both personal and business matters. She is particular about walking and doing yoga. Delhi has great open spaces, the air fresh with oxygen in the city’s myriad parks. “I started yoga about six years ago and have seen a noticeable change in my personality. It helps me collect my thoughts well and I am able to select better projects and people to work with,” she says.
A Sai Baba devotee, Sunaina prefers to be called spiritual rather than religious. In art she finds the reflection of a higher power that guides her take the hairpin bends of life well. “Like Delhi found it true character after years and years of invasions, conquests, defeat and turmoil, I too become stronger after every test. If it seems rather difficult, visiting the Sai Baba temple near Lodi always helps” she says. God willing.
Biggest and hotselling shows: Those of S H Raza and Paresh Maity
The most difficult people to deal with: Wheeler dealers who pretend to be art experts
Idea of perfect happiness: Being focused and being able to follow one’s dreams
What is Delhi to you in a line: A city of opportunities, which is expanding beautifully