Music is this kid’s muse

Saniya Pasricha

Imagine having around 150 works sprawling under your name at the tender age of 10. Seems surreal, doesn’t it? At an age where children don’t even know how to dress themselves right, this child prodigy is not only painting canvases but also selling them.

Meet Aarav Verma, the latest kid on the block, who started painting at the age of four and developed an intense passion for it. Only recently he achieved a feat not many can boast of. He shared the stage with sitar maestro Shujaat Khan, which was a mélange of sitar recital and artwork.

The artist matched the strokes of his brush on the canvas to the tempo of Khan’s tunes. He says there could not have been a better challenge than painting under the guidance of the Grammy award-nominated musical legend. 

Aarav, who studies at Shiv Nadar School in Gurugram, says, “It was my first-ever live painting performance on stage and an incredible experience to perform next to Ustad Shujaat Khan ji. I had not decided what I would paint. Instead, I wanted to follow the mood and melody of the evening. I have always followed my heart when it comes to painting and my parents have always encouraged me to do just that.”

Crediting his father, Yogesh Verma, for his fascination towards painting and the success of the jugalbandi, Aarav says, “All that I am today is because of my father. He gave me my first canvas when I was four years old. It was he who wanted me to paint to the notes of music.”

The Delhi boy, who is also enchanted with the world of aliens and dinosaurs, says that when it comes to painting, spontaneity is what he believes in. 

“Whenever I paint, there has never been any specific idea or thought in my mind. My work is about what comes to me naturally at that point of time,” he smiles.