If you visit Sarita Karunakaram’s residence in Bengaluru, you may mistake it for a workshop.
Although no one in her family is a mechanic, the house has several industrial pipes, bicycle wheels, bike handles etc.
A better look around will also show you dozens of bottles, paints and kettles placed right next to the hardware.
This is no workshop. This is an art studio where ‘scrap’ is turned into fantastic home decor! If the fairy Godmother could turn the rags on Cinderella into a gorgeous ball gown, Sarita is doing the same with discarded items.
Sarita’s journey into this world of art began about a year ago when she fell ill and was confined to her home. She quit her job to become a homemaker. It wasn’t long before the quiet afternoons got the better of her.
“When domestic life got me bored, I took my paints and brushes and started painting on canvases. One day an idea hit me – Canvases need not restrict me! I could make my own rustic decor! Soon, I switched canvases for discarded bottles and kettles,” she says, in conversation with The Better India (TBI).
When Sarita discovered several car tyres that her husband had put aside, she thought of turning them into a seating arrangement.
“And this upcycled furniture set the wheel in motion. It wasn’t long before I started procuring material like cycle wheels, industrial pipes, colanders from two very resourceful places- the kabadiwala and my kitchen. From these, I would make lamps that can brighten any dark nook in the house,” the 40-year-old homemaker says.
Sharing how her family encourages her, Sarita says, “My son found an old bat lying around somewhere and asked me to make something from it. Today, the bat has been made into a table stand!”
She polishes the materials, colours them and as far as possible, fixes the wires and cables herself. When it comes to more complicated things like welding metals together, she goes to a trusted shop who does the work for her.
So far, she has created over 50 such home decor items from recycled materials.
What began as a hobby was soon expanded into Rasta creations. And the rest, as they say, is history.
The beautiful lamps and clocks show you how it takes just a bit of creativity to do a makeover of bland regular items. You can check out the entire range of Rasta creations by clicking on this link.
(Edited by Vinayak Hegde)
All images courtesy of Karunakaram Sarita Murty.
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