"One man's junk is another man's treasure."The above phrase is a cliché, yes, but also incredibly apt for 29-year-old Vidya Bhat and her husband Sushrutha KS, who have been working with discarded glass bottles and turning them into works of art for the last two years.
A biomedical engineer by qualification, it was Vidya's love and passion for art that led her to start her venture, named Chittaara. What began as a hobby has now become a full-time venture for her."I have always been interested in arts and craft, right from childhood. Somewhere along the way with the pressures of academics and education, my concentration towards it started dwindling. It was only when I saw that my art was being well received and appreciated that I decided to work on it full time," begins Vidya.
When asked why she named the venture Chittaara, she says, "Sushrutha and I are from Karnataka and chittaara in Kannada means art and design, which is the core of what we do. It is usually the women of the Dewaru community who make these stunning artworks."
Recalling the first bottle that she painted on, Vidya says, "It was an Amul Kool bottle, which was lying at home. The thrill of finishing it and having it all lit up was enough to motivate me to make many more."
