Mylapore’s friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man has his tryst with filter coffee

CHENNAI: Comic artist Supraja Ganesan reckons Spider-Man to take a break from his usual chores of saving lives in New York City, and come explore the serene neighbourhood of Mylapore. She next wants him to taste the famously brewed filter coffee of Chennai, accompanied by a long stroll at the Marina Beach, alongside the sunset, with the rays reflecting his altruistic persona.

“I was inspired by Vincent van Gogh’s ‘The Starry Night’ painting when I started working on the ‘Spider-Man in Van Gogh’s Mylapore’ storyboard. I have introduced the super hero into the Mylapore verse, where he stands hanging onto the Kapaleeswarar Temple pillars, watching over the city,” she explains. Not an artsy kid, Supraja completed her Civil Engineering only to later fall in love with the design club at her college. At 23, she is now a comic artist and a visual storyteller, who showcases the streets of Chennai, which is a treasure trove, yet to be explored, stating, “I live an aesthetic life through my zeal for all things art. The people and places I see every day persuade me to visualise them through my artistic lenses in coming up with comic ideas. I pay close attention to the nuances surrounding me, neglecting the grandeur of the city.”

Supraja finds admiration in the little joys of life. This admiration for people around her made her sketch a shopkeeper whom she passes by everyday. A small door opens to an even smaller shop where this bearded old man sits everyday, stitching and mending objects. Supraja admires his dyed-in-the-wool steadiness towards work. “Romba nalla irukku. (It is very nice)” said the shopkeeper when she showed him the artwork, with a beam of joy on his face.

Supraja is a devotee of Lord Shiva. Honouring the deity on Maha Shivaratri this year in her own way, the visual storyteller visualised Lord Shiva paying a visit to the city, atop a flight, flying towards the Kabaliswarar Temple. “I assumed that Shiva would be extremely occupied on the day of Shivaratri. Hence he will be traveling in a flight, making pit stops to bless his devotees,” she explains. Showcasing Supraja’s artwork out to the city, The Sunshine House will be displaying her postcards to the people of Chennai, with her love for the burg. “Stories the city has to tell, the warmth it offers, the bonds it creates are no less than magic. You grow and glow differently when you are in the right place. For me, Chennai is that absolute right place. I will be showcasing my way I connect to the city through this platform” Supraja states.

My Chennai: A love letter, an art event will take place at The Backyard, in Adyar, on October 8, from 2 pm to 8 pm, which will witness art stalls, art workshops and art performances.