#theFridayFeature — Dhruv Kuttan
“Observe, learn, get better
skill wise… And then create!”
- Dhruv Kuttan
I still remember the 11th grade essay that till date, for me, is a prominent eminent of exquisite writing inspiration. Our English exams were just done with and the best of the essays were being told about by our class teacher. It was titled ‘Discipline’ and the very first line caught my attention — ‘The idea of discipline is wrongly interpreted in schools’. What followed was an insight of how children are led to believe that not growing their hair long and walking in a straight line is what discipline truly is. The subtle message was how discipline in schools is used as a medium to achieve compliance. Like most of you might be aware, the word discipline comes from the same root as the word disciple — the root meaning of the word is “a process of learning”. I was no stranger to the thought the words reflected. I had heard it first in 9th grade, shortly after being acquainted with the thinker. I knew him as a musician and an artist, he had emerged as a prolific writer too. That was when I came to believe that how important the thought process is… Art, music and writing are just reflections…
People closely associated with me know that a majority of my friend circle is either elder to me or younger. Dhruv remains one of the few who has been able to sustain the friendship, and rightly so, as I don’t find many with unique qualities such as his.
Dhruv is —
- Product Design Intern @ Magic Crate, Bangalore
- Doodler (dhruv.kuttan)
- Pianist
- Writer
Speaking on his definition of art, he says,
“Art to me is a medium of expression. Whatever thoughts are running in my mind are translated in strokes and lines. By the end of it, my artwork is a conversation with self. For me, art and design is like a symphony and harmony both of which is found in music. Every piece is a creation and a composition of thought and emotion.”
- Dhruv Kuttan
Foremost, Dhruv taught me compassion. A quality which I believe is slowly and steadily fading out into glory. A world that thrives by manipulating and manoeuvring, it is only creativity that can neighbour compassion. Rather, the root through which creativity stems is compassion. Unless you feel, no one else will. Our generation is so used to receiving it all so instantly, that we have forgotten how to ‘feel’. Thoughts arrive and an action is committed, with less or most times no feeling at all.
It is very easy to be selfish, ignorant and overlooking. It hardly takes any effort because involved parties are only yourself. It takes real guts and empathy to think for someone other than yourself.
- Dhruv Kuttan
Our education system kills creativity. Would that be a reason for dying compassion?
For me, another prudent learning has been the importance of perspective. Spending time with Dhruv I realized that more than the craft, what matters is the way you look at not only towards your work, but also towards life, because the craft can always be developed but the perspective has to be inherent, within you. Unless a distinctive perspective is born with you, you have not much scope of enhancing and evolving the same.
Most people look at their work as a ‘job’, but Dhruv chooses to differ.
“It is the idea of creation and innovation which gets me going every day. I believe whatever I design, is going to touch the lives of a lot of people, to make their lives comfortable and it is that thought that I cherish and makes me happy. Ultimately art is what you do for yourself whereas design is a service to people.”
- Dhruv Kuttan
Again, doesn’t the root remain the same? Does it not all stem from compassion?
Dhruv is a person who gives it all in anything he creates. In my view, it is compassion towards his creation as well. He prefers to not do anything instead of doing it half-heartedly. When all sitting in an exam would find ways of copying answers from one another, Dhruv would be sitting silently and doodling the question paper with sketches only he understood. Despite, he’s always grabbed admiration for his work.
“Be it creating a product or a piece I put my 100% in it otherwise what is the point. Every artwork showcases the mental state of my mind so once I’m done; my emotional state is carved in stone on paper.”
- Dhruv Kuttan
Finally, Dhruv remains one of the most honest people I’ve met. There’s no mask that covers his aura, neither lie contradicting sides to his personality like the majority have. While all choose the easy route of faking it, I’m sure a huge amount of courage is required to be true to the world, and more importantly, to yourself.
Thank You Dhruv for being an immense inspiration to me and many others. Hope the dreams that you are working towards are achieved shortly in the near future!
“There’s no such thing as normal.
It’s just another word for lifeless.”
- Shahrukh Khan
Well, that’s all for today.
Keep reading, keep sharing and never stop believing!
“We are part of something much bigger …why not embrace it?”
- Dhruv Kuttan
