Shalini's Journey Of Art And How It Turned Her Hobby Into Career

Alwar: When the Covid-19 pandemic brought life to a standstill in early 2020, 24-year-old Shalini Gupta from Rajasthan's Alwar district, forged a new path for herself. Without giving in to despair, she unleashed her inner creativity and embraced the art of sketching. Despite lacking professional training, Shalini took to sketching on her own. She took inspiration from foreign artists on Instagram and started drawing portraits. Today, she is a portrait artist, exhibiting her work across the country and bagging orders from even abroad. "True success for me will be when my paintings inspire more people to pursue art as a career," Shalini said. According to Shalini, her mother, Lata Gupta, had stood for her like a pillar of strength in her journey. When she presented her idea of portraiture to her family, her mother not only offered her full support but encouraged her in every step. Her mother's motivation helped Shalini transform her hobby into her career, she said. She started pursuing her hobby along with her studies and would devote hours at night to sketching.