Dwarka: It was the pre ‘Choti Diwali’ night and our society, Rama Apartments, Sector 11, Dwarka had organised a Diwali Mela in society lawns. The mela had everything that a compact lawn could accommodate: a Swing, a Chat Papri & Sweet Corn stall, Ladies Suits, Diwali Gift items, Cakes and lots of street food item stalls. There was one stall which displayed paintings & sketches as well. That’s very unusual. The mela is a yearly ritual in our society and provides an opportunity for residents to meet and greet each other while spending some fun time at the mela. Mela also provides an opportunity for someone to showcase his products and display his/her hidden talent.
I usually don’t visit these Melas but that day, I somehow thought that I should go. While moving around the mela & visiting every stall, I was asking myself ‘why have I come here? Nothing is of interest to me’ when suddenly my eyes glazed through a sketch on display in one of the stalls. It was a Black & White sketch of an old lady displaying some intense emotions. Sketch captured every wrinkle of her face and hands. What stood out in that sketch was how well the artist had captured a very intense emotion of an old lady and even a wrinkle on her thumb was captured very beautifully. I stood there for a minute looking at that sketch not aware about what’s happening around me.
(2).png)
Suddenly, I heard a familiar voice ‘Hello Bhayia’. I said ‘O Hi, How are you? Is this your stall? ‘Yes Bhayia’.
It was Deepti, my next door neighbor whom I had known for more than 10 years now. I never knew that she is such a good sketcher and a painter. She had displayed more than 20 paintings and sketches on her stall and every picture was worth seeing and praising. I never knew that she’s such a great ‘Hidden Talent’.
While I was going through her work, I thought that we stay next door but it’s very ironic that we hardly know each other. This modern lifestyle has compartmentalised our lives and put us into our shells. We don’t know our next door neighbors well. It’s time that we come out of our shells and appreciate the beauty and the hidden talents that lie near us. In our daily routines we had no time to look at them. Today we network but we don’t socialise. It’s time that we look into our vicinities. Who knows that the next Virat or Hussain or Sanjeev Kapoor might be staying next door.
This story has been written by Gaurav Bhatia, a resident of Sector 11, Dwarka.
%20(3).png)
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article above are his own and CitySpidey does not endorse them in anyway.
