Ragini Sinha: expression of human aspirations and freedom by Ved Prakash Bhardwa

As an artist, I have come to love freedom – freedom of which the kite is a dynamic symbol in my creation. -Ragini Sinha

As an artist, we learn a lot from our environment and take many inspirations from it, but it is rare that an artist continuously transforms seemingly ordinary things from his environment into an all-time multidimensional expression of life. Ragini Sinha is one artist who has always turned an ordinary experience into an extraordinary one. Through symbols, he has presented a different perspective of looking at life in his art. That's why in his paintings, the simple-looking mushroom becomes a symbol of the birth of hope, while the kite becomes an expression of human aspirations and freedom. Starting her journey from a small town in Bihar, India, Ragini Sinha is today a well-known name in the contemporary art world of the country. When I ask her why she chose 'mushroom' as a motif, she explains that she finds a mystery in it. The quest to understand the mystery and reality of life inspired him to explore new expressions in art.

He has always welcomed new challenges in his artistic journey. He never hesitated to adopt new subjects as well as new mediums, insted he has been getting a different kind of thrill about new mediums. She says that when she was studying in college, most of the girls were not particularly interested in graphic arts. Painting is easier than doing graphics, but it has a different kind of beauty. I started doing graphics (print making) in college. The texture quality in the graphics as well as working with different hues in the same color was a challenge. I accepted this challenge. At that time I did a lot of work in graphics, but after coming to Delhi, I left it because I did not have the facility to do graphics here. Ragini Sinha stopped doing graphics after coming to Delhi but she started bringing the texture quality of graphics to her paintings. As a result of this, a new dimension started appearing in his paintings. Along with the original subject, he started adjusting the texture in the background in such a way that a new aura was added to the painting. She breaks the flatness in the picture and takes it to multi-meaning images.

His paintings are emotionally powerful. Whether he paints mushrooms or kites, or images of women, they all aim at the expression of feelings and emotions. She portrays the most beautiful aspects of human life to add something beautiful to the lives of those who see her art. After coming to Delhi, there was a different world in front of Ragini Sinha, the crowd all around, and the odd condition of the woman in that crowd. The condition of women in a modern and educated society was worse than that of an uneducated society. She picks up the brush and starts a new series focusing on women's lives. Even in the worst condition of a woman, which is her powerful side, to save and decorate life, to give it a new light with feelings and emotions, Ragini starts taking it in her pictures. The canvas of his canvas starts expanding and birds, flowers, leaves, etc. start appearing in it. Instead of being descriptive, she starts saying her point in a more effective way in a symbolic form. From here comes a new twist in his art, to create a new sense of life on the level of art. She has been giving importance to positivity in her art since the beginning, which has now become more vocal.

This positive outlook helps him enter a new world of thought and creation, which is reflected in his Udaan series of paintings. Flying like a kite freedom and passion started touching the new sky of expressions on his canvas.

When we fly a kite in the sky, we feel free in the same way, we enjoy its rhythmic movement; We feel like a bird and feel that we touch the sky. We understand that not all feelings and fantasies are true, but that feelings and fantasies make life enjoyable. Ragini wants to touch new heights of creation but the human form is not enough for her. She then chooses a different form which is flying in the boundless sky, a canvas for Ragini also a sky where she wants to fly with her fantasies and desires. Kite can fly in the sky but it is controlled by hands through a thread. Ragini has a great command over technique and knows very well how to fly her painting like a kite. The compassion, the color scheme, and use of negative and positive space, and the use of texture reflect his quality. Another turning point I would like to highlight in her art is that she blends traditional art with modernity. She uses certain motifs and designs of folk art in some of the paintings. She hails from a state that has a great tradition of folk art, which enriches her creations.

Another new dimension was added to his art when he started making the tradition of Madhubani and Mithila painting a part of contemporary art. The use of motifs and patterns of folk art is visible in many of his recent paintings. This is not just a method of decorating the picture but an initiative to save and carry forward our tradition. She believes that we can get true Indian art only by the coordination of folk and modern art.