“I did not know that I am born with the talent of sketching till the age of 11 years when my school teacher Master Munir scolded me for playing with pencil and papers all the time and for making funny sketches of my friends in class,” said 22-year-old Abdul Wahab.
He is a resident of Zahir Pir City in District. He has an inbuilt tendency to express his thoughts by using the most common tools of a sketcher: pen and paper.
Sometimes, he also uses a piece of chalk and coal to sketch on blackboards and walls respectively.
Wahab added, “I had always harboured an undying love for sketching and painting.”
To his credit, he has sketched many renowned personalities ranging from politicians to literary figures and world leaders to showbiz personalities.
His portfolio includes sketches of former US president Abraham Lincoln; Pakistani writers Saadat Hassan Manto and Bano Qudsia; Indian film actor Shahrukh Khan; Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan; National poet Allama Iqbal; Quaid e Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah; musician Abrar ul Haq and many others.
Wahab reminisced that during the school days, he was totally unaware of his unique talent of drawing people’s faces.
However, he used to draw sketches of friends on wooden slates used for writing at that time.
“I still recall how my teacher used to reprimand me for wasting my time on useless activities and not giving proper time to studies,” he added.
Due to some unavoidable financial circumstances, however, Wahab had to forgo his school education and was forced to study in a religious seminary. He also left the seminary after few months despite family pressure.
“I did not want to be a Maulvi or a religious scholar, that was something against my nature,” Wahab maintained.
After leaving Madressah, Wahab was readmitted in a school where he completed his matriculation.
He recalled, “My family has always disapproved my fondness towards sketching and deemed it un-Islamic.”
“The only motivation I could have was intrinsic motivation,” the sketch artist noted.
Wahab added, “After my matriculation, I was introduced to some motivational lectures of Qasim Ali Shah, a renowned public speaker, and started reading quotations of famous speakers that helped to start sketching again.”
“Qasim Ali Shah once said that everyone is blessed with some hidden talent,” he relayed. “It is on our own will whether we nurture that talent or ignore it. In either way, that inborn talent always surfaces,” Wahab claimed that his words motivated him to explore his inborn talent and ultimately awaken a sleeping artist inside him.
Despite his family’s explicit displeasure, Wahab has been sketching enthusiastically for around two years now.
His relatives are still against his passion for sketching; calling it an act of blasphemy as he draws animate things.
“I am always cursed for drawing images of people that only God can create”, he continued.
With a heavy heart, Wahab noted, “I am the motivator of my own self, even at times I feel so low because my work has never been recognized neither appreciated by my family.”
“I have not received any medals or awards for my sketching because I was never given an opportunity to showcase my talent,” said Wahab.
He added that despite the displeasure of his relatives, his father used to be very happy when someone admired his paintings.
However, his father never supported him openly because of his family’s allegations of blasphemy. Wahab opined that the overall mindset of our society was still immature, even in the 21st century.
He said that there were two extremes; the snobbish people who never know the exact meaning of painting but hang it in their homes just to show how wealthy they are and secondly those who consider this art a sin. He quoted lines of William Shakespeare from Hamlet, “There is nothing good or bad but thinking makes it so.”
“The art of sketching is not good or bad, it is only the human beings”, said Wahab. On the other hand, he revealed that he was constantly under pressure from his family to quit this art and find a legitimate source of earning. His father was suffering from diabetes and he was the only earning hand in family, he cried. Despite the pressure, Wahab called sky his limit as he pledged to never give up on his talent. “Even the time and space cease to exist when I sketch, I cannot find this love and fondness in any other job,” he stated. “I will keep sketching until my last breath and make my own ways to the world famous art galleries and exhibitions,” the artists concluded.