Hyderabad: Following the state’s bifurcation, contemporary artist Raparla Vinod Chowdary has started a fully equipped art studio in Guntur city.
“The regional feelings of Telangana and Andhra are giving rise to differences within the Telugu community, which is forcing many AP artists to think twice about staying in Hyderabad. With Telangana artists forming their own association, the atmosphere is no longer conducive for contemporary artists to work together,” says the 43-year-old Vinod, who feels that an artist has no region or religion. Like Vinod, about 20 renowned AP artists from Hyderabad are also planning to shift to Guntur, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and other areas, which will promote art in the residuary state.
“My parents admitted me in a convent in Guntur at the age of 12 but I would bunk classes and paint signboards etc. Later, our family shifted to Miryalaguda but my mindset failed to change. Vexed with my behaviour, my family returned to Guntur and sent me to a signboard artist,” he says. “Initially, I was inspired by greenery and I learnt landscape painting from various artists. In 1988, following the craze of the Tollywood industry, I went to Chennai where I worked as a layout artist and cine poster designer. But commercial painting became a threat to my art and passion so I later shifted to Hyderabad,” adds the artist.
His passion for art did not please his parents who got him married to a girl who was his relative. However, their viewpoints regarding art did not match and they divorced within six months. “I have decided not to get married and will be dedicating the rest of my life to the promotion of art. I have trained nearly 20 artists in the past five years and am planning to start an art academy in Guntur to promote art among youngsters,” he says. Recently, during the oath-taking ceremony of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Vinod had presented the CM with his portrait.
