Happy Rakhi ♥️

Me and my siblings

I grew up in the shadow of my elder sister, Shweta Di, who was confined to a wheelchair with cerebral palsy throughout her life. She had significant physical and mental disabilities. Given her need for round-the-clock care, I often felt like the last priority in my family. 

While I obviously cared for her – reading her stories for hours, waking up at midnight to change her wet bed sheets, and comforting her after nightmares – I craved some of the attention she received. Unfortunately, by thriving academically and staying out of trouble, I had simply proven to my parents that they didn’t need to worry much about me.

Shampoo bottle recycled | 2014

So, I would lay awake at night, strategizing new ways for earning my parents’ attention. Up and about by 3 am, I would start creating colorful paper planes, drawing imaginary characters, transforming shampoo bottles into pen stands, converting old electronic items into art pieces, and what not, all the while looking after my sister.

At 6, I would then wake my parents up (have always been their alarm clock), holding the creative project in my hand with a hope to earn their praise. 

Today morning, I finished this portrait and showed it off to them. Now, I have my parents’ full attention but not my sister anymore.

Miss you every day, di. Happy Rakhi ♥️

Reference - @paintingbysnehal