Jaganath the Great
Illustrations on Handmade Envelope mounted on Argali Paper
21.0 cm x 29.7cm
"I got a pocket got a pocketful of sunshine
I got a love, and I know that it's all mine"
- Natasha Bedingfield
I got a love, and I know that it's all mine"
- Natasha Bedingfield
In a volunteer exhibition last December, I
worked closely with Mr. Jaganath Koirala Sharma, who is the manager of Borong -Polok
Papermaking Unit in Sikkim, India. I soon discovered that Mr. Jagan was a
quirky man, with a big heart.
One day, as we climbed the gradual hill to head off for lunch, we witnessed the first of Mr. Jagan's crazy antics - this time, the small man leapt from the edge of the foot path onto a tree and with a branch held like a bat, he hit a couple of red fruits to us. All he wanted was for us sample the Turmarte fruits, which was a local produce.
On the night before we left, we found out that Mr. Jagan had fallen ill after risking his life on a journey, which took more than 8 hours on foot downhill then uphill on uneven, dangerous paths during the landslide season in August. He walked in the downpour despite countless pleas from the villagers to stay. He did so to fulfil his promise in delivering 30 kg of handmade paper to us in Singapore for an exhibition. That incident left him crippled for 3 days, and disallowed him from going home.
Although he leads a simple life on the Himalayan mountain slopes, Mr. Jagan’s spirit in managing the Papermaking Unit, with his sincerity inspires me. His fortitude to keep going gained my admiration and respect, and I can't wait to return this year.
One day, as we climbed the gradual hill to head off for lunch, we witnessed the first of Mr. Jagan's crazy antics - this time, the small man leapt from the edge of the foot path onto a tree and with a branch held like a bat, he hit a couple of red fruits to us. All he wanted was for us sample the Turmarte fruits, which was a local produce.
On the night before we left, we found out that Mr. Jagan had fallen ill after risking his life on a journey, which took more than 8 hours on foot downhill then uphill on uneven, dangerous paths during the landslide season in August. He walked in the downpour despite countless pleas from the villagers to stay. He did so to fulfil his promise in delivering 30 kg of handmade paper to us in Singapore for an exhibition. That incident left him crippled for 3 days, and disallowed him from going home.
Although he leads a simple life on the Himalayan mountain slopes, Mr. Jagan’s spirit in managing the Papermaking Unit, with his sincerity inspires me. His fortitude to keep going gained my admiration and respect, and I can't wait to return this year.
Jaganath the Great was featured in 100 Friends- 100 Artists 100 Inspirations exhibition, at TCC "The Gallery", 51 Circular Road between 11th October 2011 - 15th January 2012, in an effort to raise funds for the upcoming TRANSMISSION: PROJECT 2011. 100% of the proceeds from the 100 FRIENDS exhibition will go towards supporting the presentation of this year's TRANSMISSION: PROJECT
More about 100 Friends here
Video coverage of the opening by Shah Rizzal.
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