A Diwali discount, an in-person workshop, a new book and a pinch of courage

(in reverse order)

Welcome to my corner! I am so glad that you are here.

Most of you, my early subscribers, know me personally and know that I wasn’t always an artist. I mean, I always knew I was one, but I wasn’t confident enough to act on it. I used to wear suits and crunch numbers and stare at spreadsheets all day. That was a long time ago. Today I draw, paint, teach art and now I am (gasp!) writing about it. Even as I write this, a tiny voice inside me is saying “Who made you the expert? Why would anyone listen to you?” But I am pushing forward anyway and I hope that you will join me on this journey.

A pinch of courage

That’s all you need. And you don’t need it all the time. Just for 4-5 seconds maybe. Right when you’re about to walk on that stage to sing that song or enter that room to ask for that promotion or to click that ‘publish’ button on that draft newsletter. This newsletter. Which has long been overdue. Which I kept delaying. Till I remembered something renowned art agent and teacher Lilla Rogers once said during one of her live sessions. That you really need to be brave only for a few seconds. Right when you are about to do that little scary thing. Till then you can get everything else ready. Like in my case, decide what I want to write, who I want to send it to and what platform to use. None of those other things were that scary. The only scary part was hitting the publish button. And that needed just a pinch of courage for less than a second of time.

What is that little scary thing you have kept off for a while? Nothing big and life changing, but something small that you’ve always wanted to do?

A new book!

I’m so thrilled that in my very first newsletter I get to talk about an exciting book I have been illustrating over the past few months. Shakti Girls.

Shakti Girls is an upcoming book of poems about 13 extraordinary Indian women. Beautifully penned by Indian American author Shetal Shah (Instagram @shetal_shah_writes), this book hopes to inspire young girls (and boys) of Indian origin everywhere. I am so honored to be a part of this book because I strongly believe that representation matters. For most of us, this is where our dreams are born.

Shetal has just launched a Kickstarter campaign to bring Shakti Girls to life. Visit the campaign page to hear from Shetal and see some of my art in the book. And if you feel inspired, please support the book and share it with others. Let’s bring this book to life!

In-person workshops are back!

It’s so great to be able to experience in-person workshops once again. And be surrounded by young creative energy. I’m excited to be a part of Re-Imagining: Our Welcome to the Arts World, a day of immersive art workshops for children. In these workshops, kids will be introduced to a variety of art forms through hands-on projects and creative, exploratory play by a group of South Asian Creatives. Organized by Aangan NYC, these workshops seek to reshape how we introduce children to the world of art, and give them experiences that we hope will inspire them for a lifetime. Parents will also have an opportunity to meet and interact with the artists to learn more about their work and lives as professional creatives. So if you are a parent and in New York City on Nov 5, check out the event, choose from a range of exciting workshops and get your tickets before they sell out. It will be great to see you there!

A Diwali Discount

Diwali is right around the corner and I am offering a 20% discount on all art prints in my shop. (Psst! My bestselling Ganesha and Laxmi prints make a perfect Diwali gift). Use Coupon code ‘DIWALI20’ at checkout for the discount. And if you’re shipping to the US, there’s free shipping on orders of 3 or more prints.

I hope you enjoyed reading this. If something I said resonated with you, I’d love to hear. If you have thoughts on what you’d like to read about in upcoming newsletters, let me know. Let’s build this together.

Did I mention how happy I am that you’re here? Thank you again for joining my corner.

This is Kavita’s Corner, a newsletter about my journey as an illustrator and my thoughts on inspiration, creativity, making big changes and discovering your inner artist.