Womxn Doing Life
Motherhood
Maria is redefining what it means to be a mother in her late 60s, to her beloved cats. With patience, care, and a fierce pride, she nurtures them as family, finding joy in their playful chaos and quiet companionship. It is a watercolour painting of motherhood that has never been about convention, but about love, presence, and the comfort of creating a home filled with life on her own terms.
Cal
This watercolour painting is a fan art of Cal Bowman, a character from the Netflix show Sex Education played by Dua Saleh. As a non-binary person, Cal breaks away from the rigid barriers of gender binaries, their identity is not reduced to just their gender, but shown as part of a fuller, nuanced personality.
No Scars To Your Beautiful
Inspired by Alessia Cara’s song, this watercolour painting reflects the artist’s personal struggle, and that of countless other girls, who grew up facing taunts about their natural body hair. It stands as a protest against a world that dictates how women should wear their bodies, turning natural features into cultural trends, and a call to embrace beauty in its most authentic form.
Existing
A watercolour painting of a woman spending her Sunday on the couch with her favourite book. It is her special time alone, surrounded by the soft glow of her crystal lamp and the quiet pitter-patter of rain against the window.
Womxn (alt. spelling of women to include trans and non-binary people & to challenge male-centered language) doing life is an art collection curated over three years that depicts women in their natural habitat away from the male-gaze. It compiles both traditional and digital art mediums to bring together the essence of a life where one lives for themselves at their own terms without having to accommodate to anyone else. It is inspired by the artist’s own experiences as well as all the people she has come across.
Mallipoo
Mallipoo is a digital illustration of Kamalam as she sits on the floor, easily threading flowers into a garland. What was once only a way to support her family has now become her own quiet space. Married at sixteen, she rarely had time for herself, but today she smiles softly, humming an old tune as flowers gather at her side. Kamalam lives in every woman who sacrificed their dreams and interests for their families without being given the option who ended up finding joy in the later stages of life.
Clementine
This watercolour painting, completed in half an hour for a college assignment, is a fan art of Clementine, played by Kate Winslet in the beloved film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Clementine is loud, impulsive, selfish, and always moving too fast, never slowing down, often leaving others behind when they realise they can’t keep up. Through this work, the artist reflects on her restless nature and quietly wishes her peace: the kind that allows her to stop blaming herself and live with the weight of her own actions.
Butterflies
A watercolour painting of a woman exposing her breasts to monarch butterflies. The work speaks of intimacy without shame, of the body as inseparable from the natural world, and of a woman choosing to embrace herself in her most unguarded state.
Studio Apartment
This digital illustration is of Sara, an independent artist from Dhaka, listening to her favourite renditions of Qawwali music while flipping through a magazine in her studio apartment. Living alone and on her own terms, she is finally inhabiting the life she once dreamed of as a young girl: independent, single, and surrounded by the fragments that make her who she is.
Laila
Laila is a digital illustration of a young woman draped in her mother’s old saree, striking her own version of the famous Mumtaz pose. As she plays with the fabric, she reflects on the traits she has inherited from her mother. The relationship is not complicated, yet in quiet moments she catches herself smiling like her, or notices the way she, too, learns to adjust to a world beyond her comfort, just as her mother once did.
Under My Skin
This watercolour painting has hung on the artist’s wall for years, traveling with her from one home to another, quietly reminding her that it is okay, that it is beautiful. On days when jeans feel too tight or a small bulge seems to ruin an outfit, the work speaks of the woman’s body that protects her, carries her, and keeps her healthy, even as it is overlooked in the noise of unrealistic beauty standards. It stands as a gentle reminder that these curves are a part of you, and they are meant to be.
Amber
A young girl holds close the plastic flower gifted by her ex-boyfriend, the end of their relationship marked not by anger or betrayal, but by the quiet, painful drifting apart we all hope to escape on a watercolour painting
Leona
Leona has just come out to her orthodox parents as asexual, a milestone that could redefine their relationship forever. Oil paint on canvas, this painting depicts a nervous yet relieved girl, she feels lighter than she has in years, finally free from the heavy weight of expectations that never belonged to her.
Mazha
Megha, inspired by someone I once knew, is a watercolour character captured in the joy of the first rains in her hometown in Kerala, returning after years away. The downpour brings back memories of school corridors, her first love, and racing her cycle home to avoid getting drenched. But the rain feels different now, no longer something to escape. It carries a new sound, a comforting presence, and the scent of long-awaited relief.
This portfolio brings together work from across my academic and professional journey, spanning multiple design disciplines. It is presented as a shopping cart of ideas with each object leading to a different part of the site.