hello, world!

Thank you for visiting :)

The first portrait I made was of Nelson Mandela at the humble age of 13, and with that came the realisation that the values of a sketch are sometimes easier to understand than a boring Hindi class. Cut to 12th grade, and a brilliant teacher introduced me to the world of paints after years of blacks, whites, and greys. It was exhilarating, and to my surprise, a language I could understand. Uske baad kya, I jumped into the world of studying psychology, social work, and whatnot - my studies and work took over, leaving me with my colours only a couple of times a year.

In 2020, locked at home, I found myself making sense of the world/ distracting myself from everything painful through splashes of watercolours, hard presses on oil pastels, scratches on paper, and more. You can see all of this very well documented on my Instagram page - @kal.aakriti. In 2024, I designed a calendar for myself and my mother because I wanted a highly customised piece and, well, why not! Now, in 2025, this is an annual ritual and personal challenge - integrating my desire to design and create something people-centric. I've already been dreaming up the 2026 one since January :) (hint: it's going to be interactive).

This unplanned, unknown path has led me to some beautiful things. Over the last year, I've made illustrations for a website and some campaigns, logos for two organisations, a wedding card, and a few personalised pieces for people of their loved ones (not limited to humans). I have felt grateful every minute to be able to contribute to someone's joyful moments, their work, and their story. 

So, this is just a little about me. 

What about you? What brings you here?

Feel free to write to me for -

• commissioned pieces

• opportunities to collaborate

• feedback on this website (will be much appreciated)

• anything else that may drive you to write to a random stranger on the internet