Hovering close-by

Living in the jungle gives you a voyeuristic access into the life of animals around. But there are plenty among them who choose to be as reclusive as possible from the two-legged beings around. One such category consists of the predatory birds. One might see them soaring high in the sky but never close enough to be identified except to trained eyes. And that’s why the unusual proximity to the house by this large winged bird caught my attention. I looked out of the window to see this Eagle perched on a tree, frequented by the small insectivores/frugivores of the winged families.

Crested Hawk Eagle are not so easy to spot around human habitations yet this one hovered around the balcony close enough for me to hear the its flight before I could spot it. May be there was a carcass around that I couldn’t see or smell or may be the Eagle was nesting close-by. Either way, the close sighting made my pen itch to draw this specimen.

Vibrant colours for a vibrant couple

Weddings are the most confusing yet overwhelming times in any and every Indian family. And when you are not the bride/groom, the gifting business becomes more of a burden than a pleasure. We have moved away from the traditional gifts of clothes, jewellery and household items but cast away onto an island of uncertainty when it comes to modern day wedding gifts. As individuals, we have grown so apart that except immediate family, one doesn’t know what the bride or the groom would like. So I chose the straight forward approach to this kind of a situation which is ask the recipient. Knowing well that I was in that situation a little over a year ago, and somebody asking you point blank about a wedding gift is not an easy question to answer. To make my cousin’s life easier I gave her multiple choices followed by the question. She picked few and I narrowed down on the most convenient one.

Few months later, at the wedding, I met the groom. I was very proud of my little sister for being so right about the choice of gift. The groom seemed to be swooning over macaws more than his bride. Two days after the wedding, he was busy exhibiting his love for the colourful birds of the South American rainforests than his bird. So I thought if I gave a sketch of a macaw to them, may be he will continue his head-over-heels business with both the colourful birds.

The Macaw took 40 hours to come alive at 12 X 16 (inches). Rotring pens are not always the easiest or the kindest tools to handle but they have stood by me all along. The results have mostly been better than what I expected. I hope the macaw brightens up the newly wedded couple’s home 🙂