The Loudest Firecracker

My illustrations for The Loudest Firecracker by Arun Krishnan have been published by Tranquebar Press (January 2009). This will be the fourth book to be published with my illustrations.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Dabbawalla. 2004. Pen and Ink.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Disco Ganapathi. Pen and Ink. 2004.
Aditi Raychoudhury. Twilight Zone. Pen and Ink. 2004.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Man-Lion. Pen and Ink. 2004.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Ebb and Flow. Pen and Ink. 2004.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Death By Fire. Pen and Ink. 2004.

Synopsis:
It’s India versus Pakistan and as the excitement soars in the final over of a memorable cricket match, ten-year-old Siddharth sets off a firecracker. The blast that follows will change his life.Siddharth discovers that growing up isn’t easy: he has to handle a tragic death, his best friend is gravitating to a rightwing political party, and his film-maker father has troubles of his own as he shifts away from the commercial but lucrative world of Hindi movies. And Poona is nothing at all like Bombay.

Will tennis matches help, or can his mother’s beautifully retold myths do the trick? Will instant noodles come to Siddharth’s rescue, or will it be his old elocution standby, The Charge of the Light Brigade? In this touching, poignant and often hilarious debut novel, Arun Krishnan has created a world we all recognize, one that will appeal equally to young adults and a more mature audience.

From the Author:

“Please disregard the message on Amazon that says Ships within 1-2 months. It ships instantly, like any other order. I am working with Amazon to get this message removed.

The novel is excellent reading for friends and family, so don’t feel scared to order more than one copy. (I think the Surgeon General recommends 4).

If those friends and family, turn against you, you can use specific portions in Chapter 4 and 9 that can be read out aloud as a form of retribution (recommended by the Government as an effective alternative to waterboarding).”

Study for “Portrait of Vincent Van Gogh (with Candles)”

Detail: Study For “Portrait of Vincent Van Gogh (with Candles)”. 2008. Chalk Pastels and Charcoal on Newsprint. 18″ x 24″.

Study for “Portrait of Vincent Van Gogh (with Candles)”. 2008. Chalk Pastels and Charcoal on Newsprint. 18″ x 24″.

Total Time: 2 hrs

Study for Primitive: Dance, Mon Petit Singe, Dance

Aditi Raychoudhury. Head Study For Primitive Series: “Dance, Mon Petit Singe, Dance”. 2008. Charcoal on Tracing Paper. 14″ X 20″.

Total Time: 2 hrs

Forbidden Portent: Studies

It was not the best day. She had been stripped of her womanhood. Shrivelled up inside this unfamiliar androgyny, she felt too debased to dare this world of wondrous, demeaning, and fragile promises. Debarred from tasting such tantalizing portents, she fumbled for a pencil, and touched color to paper for the first time in nearly 20 years.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Forbidden Portent (Study 3), 2006. 14" x 17", Chalk Pastels on Vellum.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Forbidden Portent (Study 2), 2006. 14" x 17", Chalk Pastels on Charcoal Paper.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Forbidden Portent (Study 1), 2006. 14" x 17", Charcoal on Charcoal Paper.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Forbidden Portent (Working Sketch), 2006. 8 1/2" x 11", Colored Pencils on Xerox Paper.

Aditi Raychoudhury. Forbidden Portent (First Sketch), 2006. 8 1/2" x 11", Colored Pencils on Xerox Paper.

Vincent and Theo

Robert Altman. Vincent and Theo. Movie. 1990.

“Vincent and Theo (1990)“, is a “must-watch“, even for those who may not care about Van Gogh’s art. Robert Altman, brilliantly pulls together the turbulent, tender, and unbreakable love story between Vincent, and his brother, Theo, without whose financial and emotional support, the world would have never experienced Vincent’s art.

The Final Seal?

Ingmar Bergman. The Seventh Seal. Movie. 1957.

It has been seven years since I watched “The Seventh Seal“. The UC Theater in Berkeley, which closed in 2001, offered a veritable feast of movies I had been starved of in India – a different ‘art’ movie every night. “The Seventh Seal” was one such movie that I had waited many years to watch.