Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; October 4, 2017)

The teaser image of an empowered Sulu, portrayed by Vidya Balan, in a pink saree replete with a red cape, caught the attention of many and started a conversation around the actor’s upcoming slice-of-life comedy, Tumhari Sulu. Such was the power of the simple visual that writer-columnist Twinkle Khanna took to Twitter to write to Balan, “More power to your sari/cape.” Many felt it was only fitting to see Balan in a cape, considering the actor is one of the few female artistes who have changed the dynamics in an otherwise male-dominated Bollywood, in her own little way.

Seeing the tremendous response around the image, director Suresh Triveni decided to step it up. A self-confessed fan of Bollywood’s forgotten art of designing hand-painted posters for films, Triveni thought it the perfect opportunity to revisit the now dying form. He roped in Laxman Subhash Jadhav, one of the oldest poster artists in the industry, to make an oil painting of the actor in her cape avatar as a gift to her.

Jadhav is a well-established name in the circuit, having created several portrait paintings over the last 15 years. The poster currently holds pride of place in the actor’s living room. It will also be used for the film’s promotional activity, thus putting the focus back on hand-painted posters.

Says Triveni, “I saw many paintings of Vidya’s earlier films at her house. That’s when my greed started — I wanted Sulu to be a part of her wall of fame.”

Balan, who holds an interest in collecting art, is thrilled by the painting. “The character of Sulu is very special to me — she is a curious, fun-loving and enthusiastic housewife who ditches her apron for the cape. When Suresh gifted me this painting, I was delighted and put it up on my wall almost immediately. It is a treasured gift.”