Born To Succeed

Charanjit Matharu, an internationally acclaimed Educationist-cum-Sculptor was born to an affluent family in Pakistan on 12th October 1944. He, along with his entire family moved to India at the time of partition in 1947. In a family of Engineers, he was the odd one out who thought differently. He ate, drank, talked, walked and slept Art. His major source of inspiration was his School Head Master, Pandit Tirath Ram. He was a man extremely talented and bohemian who stood tall amidst all odds. His influence on Matharu was, as he gently puts it, just like a flower that fills the entire room with its sweet fragrance. The major driving force for him was his mother who was an awfully pious and sacrificing lady. In a house where donning the Engineering field was  to more like a family tradition, she stood by him and was always there with a supporting hand and ever encouraging words.

Charanjit Matharu moved to the Government College of Art, Chandigarh in 1962 with a twinkle in his eyes, determination in his soul and dreams behind his back to make it big in the Arts arena. Every mood of mind, every wave of emotion in him had a corresponding rhythm in his breath which had a parallel sensation in his body. It was a challenging yet interesting journey for him. He says that he spent a considerable part of his day sketching, fending stones, collecting drift wood and searching metal pieces with scrap dealers. When asked what art means to him, Matharu says that Art is the process of deliberating elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. It encompasses a diverse range of human activities, creations and modes of expression. He says that after a long and hectic day which often began and ended in muse, circling around his next piece of Art and working towards its accomplishment, he preferred to spend his evenings sipping a hot cup of coffee and discussing art with his friends and folks. Known distinctly for his black attire, he was a popular figure in India and abroad.

He says at that point of time, there was a lot to be learnt, a lot to be accomplished and a tough competition with his seniors. He was burning with desire to establish himself and carve a name for himself in the hearts of people. Rana, as he was popularly referred to by his contemporaries, strongly opined that if one calms the winds of thoughts, there will be no waves of ocean on the mind. He put up his first One - Man show in the Panjab University in December 1966. The Exhibition was inaugurated by the then Chief Commissioner of Chandigarh, Dr. M.S. Randhawa. Its success could be gauged by the mind blowing article penned by a noted Educationist and Art critic Dr. B.N Goswami. A number of pieces were purchased by the Museums in India and abroad and Matharu became a force to reckon with. It was a major ‘high point' in his life to see tears in the eyes of his father who was never in favour of letting his son tread the path of Art and creativity against the traditional Engineering field. This appreciation paved way for his second One – Man show in 1968 at the Government Musem and Art Gallery. This time the response was even bigger and better. Matharu has done a number of One – Man shows bettering his performance each time.

Though his creations have been in a number of mediums including clay, plaster, cement, wood and the like, his area of expertise has been Raw Metal. These wonderful concoctions won him innumerable state and national awards on a regular basis. It was an honour for the people of India to see his name included as full size articles in "Reference Asia" and "Indo American Who's Who". He also got a rare distinction in the form of a declaration from the United States which nominated him as the International Man of the Year.

When asked about his life in general, Matharu says he has lived and enjoyed every bit of his existence. Life has been decently kind to him as he got the most wonderful opportunity to make all his dreams come true, from studying Art, to putting One – Man shows and sharing his knowledge by teaching in two of the world's most prestigious schools, Bishop Cotton School, Shimla and The Lawrence School Sanawar. In his opinion, life is not a problem to be solved, it is a mystery to be lived.