Calligraphy as a healer: Prof K C Janardhan in conversation with Dr Nan Ananthraman
It is not always that the Maestro, Prof K C Janardhan meets a calligrapher, whose work takes his breath away. Dr Nan Ananthraman’s work did and soon it transpired that they had more in common between them than meets the eye. They are both passionate about calligraphy and have taken it upon themselves the onerous task of empowering others to overcome obstacles by using the art of calligraphy.
Both Dr Nan and Prof Janardhan face severe medical conditions that would have had debilitating effects on them had they succumbed in front of the adversaries. They did not and picked up the pen instead, to take the fight to a different level altogether. The progress of the ailments has been checked, the social stigma that such disorders are accompanied with has been banished, and now, the triumphant practitioners of this deeply spiritual art, are spreading the good word, touching to transform lives with their example: quill firmly in their hands.
I met Dr Nan Ananthraman for the first time at the Chennai Pen Show and was immediately impressed with the air of positivity she exuded. Prof Janardhan was equally impressed and it was not long before that I requested that they sit down face to face and talk about their unique journeys so that the world at large may learn from their experience.
To meet people like Prof Janardhan and Dr Nan who are so passionate about a common subject is a revelation of sorts. To meet people who have honed their passion to perfection, doubly so. The interview that follows is a spontaneous conversation, without the usual “preparations” that normally precede such talks. And I consider myself extremely lucky to have been there in the right place at the right time, not only to have captured this conversation, but to have heard
The exceptional triumph of the will that the protagonists recount here have lessons for all of us, and I will consider it a personal achievement if it goes on to influence even one person to pick up the gauntlet (or the quill or the pen).
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