Saikh Md. Sabah Al-Ahmed
(sabahalahmed@gmail.com)
It's often been said that one's creativity is inborn and ever-flowing like a brook or a fountain. Young artist and poet Chiranjib Barooah's debut book Ascendence to Transcendence is a beautiful blend of art and poetry – 24 each, bifurcated into two sections. This rare blend instantly catapults the innate creative pursuits of Chiranjib to an altogether different level. His dexterity in his paintings as well as his passion as a verse-maker could easily be felt from the 48 gems that he has incorporated in his book.
Speaking about the core essence of the book, Chiranjib says: "The book portrays the fragmented world of a fantastic kaleidoscope of imagination in my mind through art and poetry in 24 paintings and poems on diverse subjects." The book is divided into two sections, each consisting of 24 paintings and poems respectively, and is based on variegated themes or rather disciplines like Quantum Physics, Occult, Philosophy, World Mythology, Astrophysics, History, Epic Sagas, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Psychology, Art, Music, Literature, Parapsychology, Spirituality, Psychedelics, Horror and Archaeology.
One can easily gauge the uniqueness of the book, going by the multitude of disciplines upon which it is carved out. Chiranjib exudes: "The USP of my book is that I have stressed the following qualities while creating this book – mind bending themes and topics that question the biggest unsolved mysteries and secrets that have baffled humankind since the beginning of time, its epic grand scale of content (composition, characters, events) and context of paintings and poems, experimentation in using colours, mediums, themes and a writing style for the readers to experience a fresh taste."
He further adds: "It's fast paced, thrilling and full of action, and this is how the poems and paintings are designed for the readers. The hidden meanings and secrets embedded in each of the paintings and poems will baffle readers, questioning for more, just like solving riddles."
Chiranjib is a passionate poet and an equally brilliant painter. His 24 paintings and poems bear testimony to this sheer brilliance in both his creative pursuits, which he does with equal elan. It took Chiranjib 180 hours for completing each painting and one to two days for penning down a poem. There are a total of 41 illustrations in this 80-page book. It was his curiosity driven mind to journey deep into the uncharted territories of Macrocosm and Microcosm, the deepest questions to which humankind was seeking answers, were his sole driving force of inspiration, not to forget a bunch of artists, scientists, philosophers and books. Writing such a book on diverse mind bending and complex subjects blended with imagination and uniqueness was quite a daunting task. It required extensive study and analysis and lots of initial sketches, doodling before the final form and shape is achieved. It was quite a challenge to give form to formless, intangible thoughts, while devoting most of the time in other mundane or official work. Chiranjib himself admits: "Understanding the psychology of the readers to feed their interests and likings is an altogether a tough task to deal with."
The book stands apart from the rest, as it cannot be straight-jacketed into a typical genre like fiction, non-fiction, poetry, science fiction, biography, etc. Therein lies its beauty and USP, and with its high quality printed paper, coupled with its fine designing and layout, this debut book by young Chiranjib with its twin themes of art and poetry is surely going to leave a mark upon its readers.