Cuttack Kid’s One-Off Drawings On COVID-19 Bring Laurels To Odisha

Cuttack: At a time when people find it too much to bear being confined to the homes, a student from the city has earned laurels and recognition for the pictures he drew to create awareness about COVID-19 during the free time.

The paintings of Harshil Agarwal, a Standard V student of Stewart School, have found a place in World Book of Records (WBR), London. He has been honoured as a ‘Silent Warrior Against COVID-19’ by the WBR. His artworks have also found place in ‘Exclusive World Records’ and ‘India Book Of Records’.

Harshil started drawing one picture every day from March 25. He continued it till the end of lockdown 2.0 on May 3. Though just 9 years of age, each of his paintings carried a positive message, mostly related to COVID-19, lockdown and social distancing.

From birds enjoying the nature while humans are caged during lockdown to depicting interdependence and dualism through Yin Yang, his artworks encompass very unique themes and the sketches are crayoned with meticulous care. Some of the themes were inspired from the television content.

Harshil’s father Sanjay Agarwal regularly uploaded the drawings on various social media platforms. While uploading, he used hashtags like ‘PMO’, ‘CMO’, ‘WHO’, ‘Stay Home’, ‘Stay Safe’ and others. As the posts became popular, Harshil gained fame for his talent.

The constant help of his mother Rinky in content creation and father’s support with social media helped him grab this success, believes Harshil.

A resident of Mahtab Road area, Harshil aspires to continue his passion for painting and has also applied to the compilers of ‘Guinness World Records’ and is hopeful of getting enlisted.