Art Becomes Synonymous With Breath for Tapadia
Tapadia also spoke about spirituality as a defining part of her life and work.
Hyderabad: For Dr Saroj Tapadia, art fits into life the way breath fits into the body. It is not scheduled, not imposed, and never treated as a task. That approach framed the inauguration of her art exhibition on Tuesday at ICONART Gallery, where her works will be on display until December 25. The exhibition opened in the presence of artists, professionals and guests from across fields, reflecting the wide space art occupies beyond the gallery.
“What remains constant for me is observation,” Tapadia said, when asked what stays unchanged as her themes and media shift. “That comes from my medical training. Once you learn to observe closely, it becomes part of how you see everything.”
A practising anaesthesiologist, Tapadia said her engagement with art is relatively recent in the larger arc of her life. It is only over the past 15 years that she has found space for her hobby, after years spent balancing marriage, children and a demanding profession. “Earlier, there was simply no time. Now, even with work, I can take time for myself and so, art.”
“That time is not structured around targets or output. She does not sit down with the intention of completing a piece in one sitting. “Different works take different amounts of time,” she said. “Some take a day, some take a week, some take a month or even a month and a half. I don’t do it because I have to. It happens naturally.”
“Nature enters her work repeatedly through birds, trees, flowers and landscapes, not as a chosen theme but as an instinctive presence. “It comes automatically to my mind,” she said. “When I paint, I move away from work stress. It gives me peace of mind.”
She works across sand, oil, acrylic and digital media, often photographing her surroundings and drawing from plants she grows herself. Her engagement with sand as a medium traces back to classical Indian sites. “Sand painting came to me through Ajanta and Konark,” she said. “Sand has its own discipline. People think it is difficult to maintain, and it is.”
Her background in science, particularly anatomy and zoology, has shaped how she approaches form. “I have studied structure for years,” she said. “That helped me a lot. It trains the eye.”
Tapadia also spoke about spirituality as a defining part of her life and work. Coming from a God-fearing family in Latur, Maharashtra, she said faith has remained important even as she pursued a scientific profession. “People assume doctors or those in science are not spiritual. For me, spirituality has always been there, and it reflects in my work.”
M.V. Ramana Reddy, sculptor and president of the Hyderabad Art Society, who was at the inaugural, said creative expression plays a crucial role in mental well-being, especially for those in service-oriented professions. “Artistic outlets are important for doctors and others who work under constant pressure saving lives, and that while it is a plus when such work grows into a public exhibition, the larger value lies in the emotional and mental release art offers,” he told Deccan Chronicle.
The exhibition was also attended by Hyderabad police commissioner V C Sajjanar, who appreciated Tapadia’s work and the discipline involved in sustaining a creative practice alongside a demanding profession.
Despite the public showing, Tapadia is clear about where art sits in her life. “I do justice to my profession first,” she said. “I am a doctor. Art is my hobby. Whenever I get time, I focus on it.”
Her exhibition at Iconart Gallery remains open from December 24 to 25, between 11 am and 8 pm, offering a glimpse into a practice shaped not by urgency or ambition, but by observation, faith and time allowed to unfold on its own terms.
