Sweden discovers dalit painter prodigy from orissa

The Indian artist , who had by then earned quite a reputation as a sketch artist, was known for making a portrait in ten minutes. It was a prophecy that kept him distracted — one that was made by a priest when he was a child growing up in a village in Odisha — he would marry a girl from far away who would own a jungle, be musical, and be born under the sign of Taurus.

And Charlotte was everything that had been prophesised. During our first meeting, we were drawn to each other like magnets. This very love made him cycle km from Delhi to Sweden on a life-changing epic journey. It was in school that he first understood the meaning of caste when he came in contact with the Hindus. From being forced to sit outside the class during school, watching his classmates wash themselves after coming in contact with him, to having stones pelted at him for approaching the temple, PK endured the harsh reality of being an untouchable in India.

An Indian Dalit artist, P.K. Mahananda

As a kid, he was pulled to art and was quick in drawing things. So much so that eventually he ended up getting a scholarship from Odisha to attend the College of Art in New Delhi. But soon the excitement started to fade away as hunger and poverty came knocking on his door. With no money to keep him floating, things started spiralling until he began painting on the streets of Delhi to earn a quick buck.

But for three years I learned the lessons of life. But things changed for him when he ended up doing 10 portraits of Soviet astronaut Valentina Tereshkova and appeared on television. The stint made him an overnight star in the capital and helped him continue making portraits in the heart of Delhi. With a longing for India, she had travelled for 22 days in a minibus along the Hippie Trail to reach India.