Shame Shame

HI ALL!
Before I even wrote out this entry, I knew the title was going to be this. Because of my lack of shame for not having updated blog dearest in the longest time. ALSO MY BLOG TURNED FOUR YEARS ON MAY 4th! So, good news time *drumroll*:

'I GOT A JOB!'

So the illustrations I did in collaboration with ze loverrly Surabhi Chauhan, got noticed by none other than Sabyasachi himself! And I joined in as an illustrator + Web designer! Part of me is still getting over how this all happened. But so far so fucking good :) I'd be able to share some stuff real soon hopefully, but there's lots brewing.
P.S. - For those in India, get hold of this month's Vogue, there's a little something on page 136 that I whipped up :)

This month end I'll get my diploma jury out of ze way, so I can finally call myself A GRADUATE! :) Wish me luck!

Well, I'll put up some of the work I've been doing in the recent past, fun stuff. Although I hardly get to do any personal illo work, but here goes.
I was a part of Cocaine's 54 project, where 54 illustrators got to do their take on a playing card. I got 3 of diamonds. I wanted to put in three completely different contexts of diamonds, and was itching for a style tweak in terms of the work that I had been doing and came up with this.

Lots of mad Chumbak work! I had such a gala time working on all of it :D

First up, their collaboration with Samosapedia! With all the 'shit' that people were saying, we figured it was high time what Indians say gets documented. And we did this this! This goes on a mug, tin, tiny notebook, poster & a tee (coming soon!). So keep up with the lingo and enjvaai!

MUGS! I was asked to work on a Chennai mug, and I was frankly trying to push it as much as possible, because I knew I wouldn't be able to represent the city too well considering I have been there only twice, all for some two- three weeks. What I feared most was to give a shallow Delhi-person view of the lovely place, and come across as just plain blah! But with help from some Chennai friends and my sister (who was there for one whole year!), I was able to deliver, and was SO happy with the way it turned out! Also, turns out a lot of Tamilians love it! WIN :)

For Father's Day, I turned around a design the quickest in the history of me working (the folks at Chumbak still joke about this everytime I'm late)! Maybe it was because of the unconditional love I have for my daddy, or just that I blurted it out when I was given a chance. But I loved every single bit of working on this, and it hopefully comes across. I LOVE YOU PAPA! Mug, here. 

KEYCHAINS! I worked on this bike keychain based on many a guys hopelessly obsessed with their bikes :)I wanted to do a big, ferocious tiger keychain but then we settled for something peaceful and cute. They came out beautifully after production in splendid bendy rubber, the details look great!

 

Annnd, the Bollywood Kiss keyring! Shadylove forever :)

Some magnets for your fridge/ almirahs. The mango magnet & what I call 'the Gau mata' AKA Nirvana Cow magnet .

All Chumbak™ images courtesy, well, Chumbak.

Lots more happening, waiting to come out!
Also, I got a Russian shoutout on a blog for my Dress A Day sketches! :D
P.S. - I miiiiight start a Dress A Day II, which means another month of more fashion and many new designers' spankin' new collections! JOY!

Do leave feedback and have a great, happy & prolific day :D

Post-it Pandemonium + Gaga This Way

Hallo!
I've been looking forward to this update for AGES now!
PLEASE CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. Though you might need to open them in a new tab to see them in the resolution I put.
I'm obsessed with Lady Gaga, and feel very strongly about bullying as an issue, having experienced my share throughout my school life. With the Born This Way foundation launching and brand Gaga emerging generally all over the world, I was more than glad to have been asked by them folks at Manta Ray Comics to work on a comic on Gaga. And to think it got printed in the newspaper exactly a week before her 26th birthday! First seen printed on 21st of March in Mint daily.

So this is basically what delayed my blog entry, I've spent way too long cropping these and putting them together in more or less the same order as they were drawn! Either way, I've clearly dirtied way too many post its! And here they are :D I think all of them have been done while listening to music, which would explain lyrics that might make no sense.

I couldn't help but work on this illustration after reading Daniel Garofali's 'We're Human Too' Huffington Post feature. Yo can read the article here.

I think these conical bra-ed women are more Jeremy Scott inspired than Gaultier, after his almost catastrophic Fall 2010 attempt at them that Rihanna wore too. I got some gorgeous 300 gsm watercolor sheets, and filled them up with all the fluorescent I had. It's a pity the fluoro yellow looks plain yellow though :(

Me and my parents recently went to gurudwara Hazoor Sahib, Nanded and I won't exaggerate when I say it has got to be the most amazing place I've been to. That one space's mood changes with each passing hour, all hours of the day. So the little time that I got when I was not putting my jaw back in place, I sketched. I put it together horribly, though. There was too much compiling to do!

Sigh. I just realized I put up a lot o hand-done work after a really long time. I'm glad I got to 'Digital Detox', only to realize nothing can imitate the feeling of pen rubbing against some lovely paper.


Do leave feedback and have a happy day! :)

Of Vectors, Panda Virus & Tattoos

HOLA!
Apologies for the extremely delayed update, but here it is!
There's lots more I couldn't put up because I don't have a scanner; but it will be up soon :)


First up an entry for Nicola Formichetti's 'PANDA VIRUS CHALLENGE' for his nicopandanation blog. I love Formichetti and had MAD fun working on this, and was really glad with the way my first GIF (*stars in eyes*) worked out! It is also up on the Nicopanda Nation blog IN DEMI-ANIMATED GLORY HERE, for some reason it refuses to animate on the blog. Mugler FW12 shoes love :)

NEXT, my recent obsession TOMMY TON'S PHOTOGRAPHY :O If you haven't seen it, I suggest you check it now and here. This illo was based on one of his photographs, here. I wanted to take reference (for once) and I could see this becoming a bit David M. Buisan-ish. Ok, no I'm not even comparing. But it was fun to work on the tattoo details, my characters never have tattoos! Probably because there's hardly anyone in India with decent looking tattoos you want to draw :[

Also, I FINALLY worked on more vector portraits! As much as I resist using gradients, I somehow always end up using them. I think I should work on vectors without gradient next.
First up, dancer/ model/ hot-thang DANIEL GAROFALI. Also, he put this up on his Facebook!

Next, the most striking looking model I've been going mad over for ages now, miss LINDSEY WIXSON. I love how she's so distinctive looking. And, those ridiculously psycho Gareth Pugh X MAC lashes. This portrait took much longer than expected!

Last up, some fun Chumbak work for V-day, a part of their Kamasutra collection! As they say, it is 'Continuing their tradition of the Non Nude Kamasutra.' :)
The Kama Sutra boxers' design + a quick mockup! You can get yourself one here.

And here's the mug, design + the final print. To buy one, here.

Image courtesy: Chumbak

Ha! There it is :)
Do leave feedback and have a lovely day! :D

Threadless Loves Pin-ups entry: WAKE UP ALONE. Vote!

Hi

I just submitted for the Threadless design challenge 'Threadless Loves Pinups'.
And what better contemporary pin-up icon than the amazing Amy Winehouse! I'll need ALL the help I can get to get as many votes as possible! Vote. Spread the word. Get a free hug :)
 Do vote: HERE.

2012 IS HERE!

HI ALL!
It's 2012, the year the world has been raving about for a long, long time and living up to it already, it started with quite a blast for me, literally. My laptop fell and my hard disk gave up and died. Urgh. Still getting over that :(
Apart from that utterly delightful news, THERE'S LOTS OF WORK TO SHARE!
You have been warned; this will be a really, reeeally long post :)

First up, my second The Small Picture comic courtesy Manta Ray Comics, titled 'GAON-VILLE'. I worked with the ever-so-amazingly-clever Arjun Kolady, who scripted the piece, with Dileep Cherian's thoughtful edits.
The piece was first seen published in the daily Mint, on December 14, 2011. Higher res version, here.

I recently collaborated with a Delhi based fashion blogger, Surabhi Chauhan AKA Lovestruckcow on a series of fashion illustrations of the best six in Indian fashion during 2011, 'Six Best in 2011' for her blog LOVESTRUCKCOW.
First up was for the Goa based designer, Savio Jon and his Spring Summer 2012 collection.

Second, Suneet Varma's Couture 2011 'KamaSutra' collection.

Third up, the amazing Kolkata based Sabyasachi and his Fall 2011 collection.

Fourth, Alpana & Neeraj with their crazy awesome Fall 2011.

Fifth, the larger-than-life Manish Arora's Srping Summer 2012 collection in Paris.

And last, Rohit Bal's Couture 2011. Excuse me, I've been watching too much Samurai Jack :)

I had crazy fun working on these, and I do hope it shows :)
All of the illustration blog entries can be found right here.


Ok, so I've been following Hellen Jo's absolutely RAD badassery for a good two years now, and she makes drawing on Post-Its look irresistibly delicious. I could not stop myself. So here they are, my first set of Post-it obsession. I've been  listening to a lot of  Lana Del Rey & The Black Keys' latest album recently (And an unending supply of Gaga), as must be evident below. Also, some Studio Killers love!
The scans do not do justice to the fluorescent markers & glitter wax crayons abused for this noble cause.

Also, the scans might not even look like post its anymore. Here's a picture of my sketchbook with all of them, AND IT REMINDS ME OF THIS.

Me and my parents went to a trip recently, Mussourie+ Poanta Sahib. It was freezing cold, I got a mega-swanky-ass hotel room all to myself and I finally met the extended family after ages :'D The joy!
These are some of the sketches done during the course of 7 days.
First, some train sketching! Hello, sleeping uncle :)

Below is my dad, sleeping like a baby. He slept through the entire journey because he wasn't too well. Also, I love drawing him, I could do it forever :)

Some street sketching in Mussourie.

Poanta Sahib, the living quarters.

 Men in pagris of all sizes, loads of fun to draw! :)

 The langar sewa, evening chats and lots of vegetables to cut :)

 Langar sewa, people making chapatis and making fun of how I was standing and sketching instead of helping them out :P

My sketchbooks are becoming better friends with my precious brushpens, and here's some of the sketchery they've been whipping up! Lots of ladies ahead :)

And last but not the least, some Chumbak work :D
A 'Pehelwaan' boxer design. I had SO much fun working on this :D Now I can proudly wear it around too. to get yourself one, here.

And, a quick mock-up.

Then, to an 'OM' keychain :) Below is the design and a picture of the final product :)

Do leave feedback and have a louwely, prolific year ahead :)