Aarthi Parthasarathy — “If you are someone who is moved by what is happening in the world, you cannot help but become part of the solution.”
Well-known for her webcomics Royal Existentials and UrbanLore, Aarthi effortlessly straddles the space between film, writing, animation and art. She is a co-founder of Falana Films and a part of Kadak collective. We spoke with her about her work, her philosophy and Cubbon Park.
Fill in the blank: Being a creative professional is NOT easy or glamorous.
The logo of Falana Films (The crow and the handcart) — is really cute and interesting. Is there a story behind it?
My teacher at Srishti, Michael Joseph — he once in class said something that really struck me. Often there would be this notion that you are ultimately an artist, or author, or whatever you want to call yourself. He would encourage that, but he would also try to bring us back to earth saying that “You have to make a living, and you are no different from a tailor or a carpenter. You are catering to a need, and you are selling your wares”. When we were setting up the studio, we wanted a part of the logo to signify that we are here in your neighborhood providing you a service. Also, everyone in the studio has this element of personal practise, which they want to be relatively unfettered. The bird was a way of signifying that. That you are free to do what you want. Mira Malhotra from Studio Kohl designed the logo as one of her early projects.
What is an important lesson about your work you’ve learnt from someone who is not a traditional creative professional?
It was from my family. When I was in college and they were watching a film that I had worked on, they smiled at the end of it and said, “It was very nice, but we didn’t understand it.” I felt like I’ve somehow failed. If it doesn’t communicate to all age groups, across culture and language, then in certain cases, what’s the point? Since then, I’ve been trying to create work that communicates effectively to different people and talks about something in a broader sense.
A lot of your work is based on social issues, so what would you say is a creative professional’s unique strength as a change-maker?
It’s very important for creative professionals to consider what kind of work they are putting out there, whether it’s personal work or work for a client. There has to be some kind of ethical grounding and representation of a belief system. Ultimately, you cannot put out kachra to sell something. It has to align with something, it has to mean something, otherwise you’re just contributing to a decline of discourse or decline of conversation… and there’s enough of that. And if you are someone who is moved by what is happening in the world, if certain things affect you, you cannot help but become part of the solution… or part of the conversation at least. It becomes a very natural process, not something you have to think about. You immediately start working on certain projects or start working in a way that contributes to something.
Do creative professionals have pet peeves? What do you really find annoying?
We have worked with clients in the past who have wanted an abnormal number of changes in the project. Not being able to justify why you want something or why something is not working is annoying. Sometimes people give you very abstract phrases and sentences, where you think, I am a writer and I know that doesn’t make any sense. You can’t get them to articulate their reasons. Sometimes they don’t feel that they need to articulate it — “I’m paying the money, so even if I can’t explain it you have to change it.” Which doesn’t make any sense because this is a transaction based on money, yes, but also logic and reason.
How would you describe the personality of Bangalore?
(laughs) Um, I think Bangalore is like one old beautiful house that just got demolished to become an apartment building. And it’s not a very well-designed apartment building. The original inhabitants of the house are still there downstairs and there are tons of new people in the apartment building. It’s super hectic, very crowded and noisy.
Finally to wrap up — How would you spend a perfect Sunday in Bangalore?
I would go to Cubbon Park, spend a morning there, figure a brunch or lunch somewhere around it, and then come back home and spend the afternoon and evening reading.
Has Cubbon Park changed in the time you’ve been here?
Yes, the crowds that come there now are crazy. Thankfully, Cubbon Park is big enough to accommodate all the people that come. But it’s very telling that there aren’t enough public spaces to chill. Most hangout spaces in Bangalore are commercialized. You have to spend some money to avail the space, whether it’s a coffee shop or a sports arena. I think Cubbon Park and certain other parks are the only few places where you can do nothing… and pay nothing to do nothing!
Follow Aarthi on Instagram at @aarthipartha
Website: http://falanafilms.com/
Medium: aarthi parthasarathy
Behance: https://www.behance.net/aarthipartha
This interview is a part of a series of conversations with designers from Bengaluru called ADI Diaries. You can find more interviews here.
