Budgam, June 06 : Nadiya Mushtaq Mir, 29, a calligrapher from Kralpora village in Budgam district says the reason behind her creative hand is love for designs and calligraphy art styles.
A self-taught calligrapher, Nadiya developed her interest in art when she was a kid.
“I was inclined to art, designs, sketches and drawings since my childhood. I used to draw with crayons which gave wings to my imaginations and dreams. It was then that I decided to be associated with this art,” she recalls.
She mostly scribbles Quranic verses.
“I usually write verses from the Quran, nothing can be better than the words of Almighty,” says Nadiya, who is a graduate in Humanities, and has a Masters in Economics and diploma in Advanced Fashion Designing under her belt.
She earns handsome money out of her work.
“Islamic calligraphy is an art where people don’t mind spending. In addition, calligraphy is a blessing for me and fortunately it has worked well for me,” she explains.
When asked what inspired her to become a calligrapher, Nadiya responds that she was inspired by meaning behind the words of Arabic calligraphy.
“Once I came across Arabic calligraphy, it looked quite amazing, but the meaning behind the words truly inspired me to give it a try. So, I picked up brush and pen, never to put them down. Also, before scribbling I consider the meaning of what I want to draw,” she says.
Professionally, this Budgam calligrapher started sketching designs since college days. She uses scripts like Diwani, Jeli, Riqa, Kufic, Early Kufic, Eastern Kufic, Modern Kufic, Thuluth, Naskh, Shikasta Nastaliq, Muhaqqaq, Mosalsal and Sumbuli.
Last year, her work was exhibited in an 8-day long Calligraphy Workshop “Khush Khat” in Srinagar, organized by Department of Tourism in collaboration with J&K Academy of Art, Culture, and Languages and INTACH’s J&K Chapter.
Her plan is to develop a well-accomplished group of refined Islamic calligraphers in Kashmir. She also has a plan of establishing an art school.
“I have a plan to establish the calligraphy art school in the valley,” she says.
Nadiya says that her efforts have started bearing fruit as her work got international recognition.
“High-profile brands from Kashmir, India and foreign countries have contacted me to design their logos and other stuff,” she says.
The young calligrapher says that she is using social media extensively to promote her art and make people aware about it. “With simple hash-tags, I have been able to promote my art internationally,” she adds.
She is creating her own designs and does not have any calligrapher role model.
“I like art pieces of all Arabic calligraphers, but I don’t have any role model. I believe in practicing this art,” states Nadiya, who draws colorful designs in almost all styles of calligraphy and her clients prefer the same.
About the support of parents in her work, she says that whatever she has achieved would not have been possible without their support.
When asked where Kashmir stands in the world of calligraphy, the young artist says “it is still in very skeletal stage in Kashmir, or in other words it has not been institutionalized.”
Nadiya has a word for the unemployed youth.
“Each one of you is already unique and valuable. So be a hard-worker, you’ll never know how amazing and successful you can be. Believe in yourself and you can do amazingly interesting things,” she adds.
And for the budding calligraphers, her message is: “Don’t be afraid. Calligraphy is an art of immense dedication and patience, which will help you in achieving perfection in this art. Calligraphy requires a lot of love and time,” Nadiya suggests.
