Sagar Mule got instant fame soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned about his Kaavi artwork in his address, ‘Mann ki Baat’. The incident kept Sagar busy attending to people from all walks of life who are pouring into his home at Adpoi to see his artwork
Goan artist Sagar Suresh Naik Mule who calls himself son of the soil, got instant fame soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned about his Kaavi artwork in his address, ‘Mann ki Baat’. The incident kept Sagar busy attending to people from all walks of life who are pouring into his home at Adpoi to see his artwork. Sagar is also getting inquisitive calls from unknown people who are curious to know about ‘Kaavi’ art.
Overwhelmed by these visits and calls, the down-to-earth artist who emerged from a village backdrop, is now planning to devote his life to promote the Goan folk art ‘Kaavi’, painting with clay. “Let me admit, I am not an original Kaavi artist. I was just an artist, who took to Kaavi art during the first lockdown, in 2020,” he shares, adding, “This art is slowly fading away, and only a handful of temples have Kaavi paintings on their walls now, and one of it is Mallikarjun temple at Canacona.”
Sagar recalls that he was depressed. “My mother was diagnosed with cancer. With no work at hand, I had no money for her treatment. It was during that period that I thought of using clay to paint the nine goddesses in Goa – Fatarpekarin, Kunkalikarin, Mahalaxmi, Shantadurga, Mahalasa, Bhagawati, Kamakshi, Navdurga and Lairai, connecting nature with god and vice versa. While painting each goddess, I prayed for some kind of miracle to happen. And it did happen. These nine paintings were much appreciated on social media. That was the turning point in my life,” claims Sagar. Then there was no looking back.
He recently painted a 50” x70” wall painting of Mother Mary. So far, there was no Kaavi work in Christian art, but this painting is the first of such work, which grabbed much attention and appreciation. Historian Heta Pandit immediately took the artwork, says the 31-year-old artist. After that he did a Kaavi painting on the 60th anniversary of Goa Liberation Day taking number 60 and painting a new Goa emerging out of it. And on India’s 75th year of freedom, Sagar penned a video song in Konkani including friend artists with a zero budgets.
This year’s navratri, instead of the goddesses, Sagar did Kaavi paintings of nine gods in Goa – Manguesh, Damodar, Naguesh, Ramnath, Mallikarjun, Vimleshwar, Kapileshwar, Chandreshwar Bhutnath and Shivnath. He uses more natural mediums while doing Kaavi paintings - clay, cow dung, gum etc with little acrylic colours. The preservative architect Trupti Naik has been very supportive of the original Kaavi art and shared much information with Sagar.
“Life is not the same for me now, and after the national level mention from the top person like our Prime Minister, I shall commit myself towards maintaining and promoting the original Kaavi art form,” concludes the young artist.
Recent Awards include:
Prafulla Dahanukar Kalanand 2017 Award for Installation (West zone)
Applied Art & Graphic Design by Kala Academy Goa (Artist category) 42nd State Art Exhibition, 2016
Painting & Graphic Prints by Kala Academy Goa (Artist category) 42nd State Art Exhibition, 2016
1st prize in Painting in Telangana State Youth Festival, 2015
Sand Art competition in Tatva, 2013
