Explaining how she differentiates between her mainstream work in art and her exclusive works on her different manifestations of Lord Ganesha, Sujata says, “It is easy – my Ganeshas are all recognizable as representations of the prototypical form –though the paper works often end up as very distant abstractions of this form – whereas my mainstream work is characterized by pure abstractions with no ambition of evoking any specific recognizable form. I take the lines and curves that are visible in Ganesha’s more traditional/religious representations and apply them to my personal aesthetic, creating a whole new form carrying the energy of the base form without needing to be anywhere close to it in appearance. When it comes to the sculptures, the fiberglass form is fairly figurative. However, the way I apply my paints to the surface, is done in the same manner that I would approach a blank flat canvas.”

Sujata explains that her paintings and her family are her reference points and her day-to-day live adapts itself between them. There are days when she paints and then days when she does not. “The days I paint seem to pass off in a jiffy and I do not even realise that the day is over. The place I live at any given moment does not matter. It could be Delhi or Paris or Dubai or Pune. The days when I am not painting or sculpting on fiberglass, I divide between my daughter Helena and husband Rune and then, visit art exhibitions, keep engagements, or visiting a museum, or just shopping. The business of life does not bother me because as a person, I am quite organized, neat and keep things and jobs in order. I work better when my mind is not cluttered so I see that my home and my workplace are also not cluttered.”

Space and culture-wise too, Sujata has pushed the borders of her life and her art but not her close relationship and rapport with her husband and daughter, her family back home and so on. She says that her global existence has added to her curiosity on the one hand and openness on the other metamorphosing from the global to the glocal. “Each place I go to has had its impact on my work, be it Japan’s cherry blossom trees or the wide plains of the Serengeti or Macchu Picchu. Travel contributes to my creative fuelling tremendously. Besides, I love meeting the local people in different countries, observing their crafts, their culture and their lifestyle and trying to weave some of this into my work. For example, I have incorporated some of these crafts such as a given technique of dyeing, or embroidery, or sculpture, anything in short I find interesting, powerful and inspiring,” she elaborates.

How has the long stay in Paris, the dream city for artists, painters and sculptors across the world played in her work as an artist? Sujata says that Paris had changed her and influenced her positively in many ways. “I would not say just Paris. I think every place you live in leaves a deep imprint on your work and your life. It adds different dimensions to your creativity. As artists, we are particularly prone to influence and inspiration as we love to be in tune with our environment. We notice everything; we pick up little things and details that mean a world to us. India is certainly a backbone of everything I have done and do today.”

Yet, she is insistent that Paris has played a significant role in shaping her as a creative person, making her evolve over the years, not permitting her to remain in stasis or placing mental blocks on her creative self. “Paris, in a manner of speaking, is not about just making things but more about being unapologetically obsessed with all things creative. People pay such great attention to just about everything from the way they dress to the way they plate their food and decorate their homes – it is a great pleasure to be surrounded by such high level of aesthetics at all times. The French are also very curious about foreign cultures, traditions, about art, food, music, dance – they are constantly learning and developing their repertoire of knowledge. This attitude is something I try to incorporate in my lifestyle. I have found that curiosity always leads to great discoveries, which in turn expands my visual vocabulary making me a better artist,” Sujata sums up, beautifully.