The real Freedom!

My last year employed at Rhythm & Hues, frankly i had been fantasizing being out of office. I used to wonder about what i could do with what i have learnt here. I would photograph, shoot films, go to amazing locations, travel probably, wake up whenever i wanted, etc, etc..It was a mere fantasy. My critical side "yeah probably u will have new problems then"..Thank god to the dreamy side of me which had 85-90% side which replied "mm..Yeah probably.. But wouldn't it be so much fun to explore!"

When i did get out first thing that i felt was that i was on vacation. And after a while it hit me! At Rhythm i had a sense of belonging. I felt i belonged to the company and now i felt orphaned suddenly. I was not doing things i fantasized of because i was confused, lost. I fought that feeling with watching Grey's anatomy day and night. I wasn't a big fan of the series but i just didn't want to stop. Its crazy how u behave when insanity strikes you.

Anyways long story short, i did get back to my senses and i cleared my vision as to what i wanted to do. Today i am truly living the life that i fantasized. I am creating art for the love of it. I have never felt so free and fearless in my entire life. I am exploring art and life like no tomorrow. Every night i sleep, i have a sense of accomplishment. I have something to wake up the next morning for. A dream, a purpose worth living for. For the first time, i don't have worry or fear dangling over my head. I feel I'm living life like its meant to live!

I got a team pretty quickly, amazing vendors. Like they say, when you are living your purpose, the universe supports you and everything just falls into your lap. i have slowly started earning money. I am loving the work i am doing and i am getting so much appreciation and encouragement from people, its humbling. It was easy to get into a temptation of getting into a job. Its safe, u feel financially secured, but its not meant for everyone. You need to decide for yourself what works for you. Nobody, not your parents, not your friends, partner, nobody can decide that. If you are not happy doing something it is not meant for you, Period. If the days of complaining, problems, depression is extending for many days, something needs to change! Do not blame it on anyone then. Don't wprry about money, Money follows. It always follows. Its been 6 months i have not been on a salary and not on a single instance have i taken a single penny from my parents. When i decided money will not control me, it will follow me, the experience has been so surreal that when i need money, it just follows. I either get a project or a photoshoot, its just there. Its surreal to see that money does not have to control you. You are the boss! Just do what you want! Follow your dreams. Jump! Your faith will catch you.

Happily sharing my first promo ever "Meet Namita!"

Meet Namita! Sheetal Petkar Promo from Sheetal Petkar on Vimeo.
Every woman is beautiful! And sometimes to Feel that you need to see it through somebody else's Eyes! Please help me spread this to more women out there..I want more women to feel this way about themselves!
For more info go to www.sheetalpetkar.com . If you would like yourself or any loved ones to be photographed please mail me at sheetalpetkar.2@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you!

Special thanks to Namita, for doing everything as i say! hehe..
My brother, Akshay for capturing the behind the scenes with his cell phone camera,
my best friend, Samik RC for composing such a beautiful piece of music in midst of his busy shooting schedule
my mom, Hema Petkar for styling and handstitching such a beautiful skirt!
and last but not the least Dinesh Jagtap for being an amazing makeup artist and an entertainer

Namita's photoshoot

So my dear friend Namita wanted a break so she came to Pune to visit me and like old times we turned it into a photoshoot :D Mom became the stylist for the shoot and she made a lovely skirt. I found Dinesh Jagtap as the makeup artist and the hairstylist for my shoot. He did a fabulous job as well. We woke up at 4 am and makeup started at 5.15am..yeah! :D We reached Pashan lake - an amazing location i had never been to before. Everything just came together - the dress, Namita, red soil, lovely pathway and amazing trees! It was very windy though..Nam wasn't as comfortable as she looks..She had goosebumps, it was so cold. But nice fun!

Dress in the making

Tea and coffee dye test on fabric

pre sunrise makeup session!

 

Fearlessly Create!

2013 is ending and it has been the year of major changes. All changes are always for the good though. I've learnt a lot about myself. I've come closer to knowing myself better and simplifying my life. And i realize that's what Life is all about - Simplification! 

There are so many dreams we have in our head. We go out to achieve them. And then how much time do we spend in our head? Judging ourselves, wondering if we can reach there, wondering how, worrying about somebody commenting on us, criticizing us, "but she did this and failed", "he said my dream is stupid", thinking your not good enough, thinking your not worthy enough, my mom won't allow, my dad will disown me, i have responsibilities, its not possible and much more crazy stuff like that. How much mental energy does that suck out! Don't you feel like screaming out - Now STOP!

Stop it! Wherever you are, in whatever situation you are, after whatever bad things you have done and regretted, the fact stays - You are a Creator! That's the ultimate fact! Whether you accept it or not you are constantly creating even when you say your not - The difference is your just not aware of what your creating. What you keep speaking in your mind over and over again becomes your reality. Average out the energy of your day, week and that will be the place you are headed. That will be your life. If its good, keep it up if not, something is gotta change. 

Aren't you tired of living your fantasies just in your head? Don't you want to create it and actually be able to touch it, feel it?

If you have done something wrong in the past, forgive yourself.
If somebody else has done wrong unto you, forgive them and forgive yourself for creating it.
If the situation is bad, accept it and build a new reality.
If you don't know how to do something, learn new techniques. There are many people in the world who had your problem and they have solved it. When you want to learn, a teacher appears! 
If your bored of your life, change something, add more fun to it. Take time out, play, read, dance, do what you love.
If your heart is not in your work, get out of it.

But for God's sake Stop complaining! Stop giving excuses. There is always a way! Always! There is a solution to every problem - Accepting, Changing, letting go! Life is beautiful. Create what you love fearlessly. There is nobody stopping you other than Yourself! Accept this and start changing your energy. For 2014 list down all your dreams you want to create and announce it to the world that you are creating this now. Start seeing the beautiful things around you. Start seeing the love you already have in your life. Start loving yourself more. Start appreciating life - its beautiful. Be thankful for all the goodness you have in life and Watch your life change! Its magic. 

You deserve more, your worth much more than you think! So in 2014 please cut the crap and Fearlessly Create! :)

Getting your "gorgeous" out series! - WHY?

So as my confusion cleared and i came to a decision of starting a Makeover Portrait studio in Pune, this last month i have been working towards setting it up. Work is so much fun, i tend to happily overwork :P Living a life of purpose can be so gratifying. We hear and read about it but actually experiencing it is so completely on a different level. 

The concept of being "gorgeous" to an everyday woman is still so suppressed. Beauty has been never considered a necessity, yet we are always pulled towards it. The world runs towards it, yet hypocritically criticizing it. 

Why have a makeover photo shoot when you don't model or act? 

What's all the showoff for and what clothes are you wearing??
What is wrong with you?

Have you started modelling? 

Are you shifting careers? 

Your not serious about your work anymore! 

Makeup karnese koi bhi acha dikh sakta hai? (Anybody can look good with makeup)

All this is so fake!

Yet deep down inside, every single one of you is dying to feel it. 

When somebody compliments you at the start of your day - "Hey, you look so good today", your day is made. There is an instant effortless smile. So quick! You feel charismatic the entire day. You stay in that amazing mood, you don't get as angry at people, you do something good for somebody. So why criticize it?

Yes makeover, styling doesn't change who you are as a person, but it brings newness to the way you look at yourself. You love buying that new dress, you buy those new shoes even if its wayyyy out of your budget, you pour yourselves in hot wax, you pluck your eyebrows, you scrub and remove your dead skin, you have a different haircut, you LOVE it when something feels different. Its a stress buster. Why?? You want to feel beautiful. So painful, yet so damn satisfying.

"Getting your 'gorgeous' out series" is not just a photo shoot, its an experience of a lifetime. Your eyes in the photographs look straight at you or at your own self. They stay with you for a lifetime. They teach you how to look at your own beauty. And when you are able to see your own beauty, your world becomes beautiful.

I am still finding ways to convey this to people. Words cannot convey this experience, but only experiencing it can. So i decided to keep this as a regular thing at my studio..Didn't have the guts to do this earlier, but felt confident over time - 

Come and have a makeover and free photo shoot experience. 

Pay a session fee of Rs.2000(makeup artist, styling expenses). 

If after you see your portraits, something inside you does not shift, if you do not feel amazing, beautiful and happy, you don't need to buy any portraits at all. 

If you love them, you can buy as many pictures as you like.  

I am glad to be given such a beautiful gift of being a photographer. Even if it inspires, empowers and brings joy to a few people in this world, i'll feel honored. I'll keep photographing people, showing them their beauty forever. 

Now on, i am consciously going to let only the pictures do the talking. So here starts the series..

Two of the 4 shoots i did this month -- 

Diksha Gupta - Banker

Add caption

Dr. Nivedita Page - Anesthetist

My Water connection!

I've always had a very special connection with water. My happy place always has a water body in it, my favorite exercise is swimming, I have scuba dived just once and the experience was spectacular. Two minutes in the sea and i felt like i belonged there. It just has a magical effect on me. I become quiet and peaceful in and around it. Chaos cools down and i come back to my senses. Here is my dedication to my favorite element "Water" :) This is a sequel to the following post - http://chasingshootingstar.blogspot.in/2013/06/becoming-one-with-water.html

 

Location : Palolem beach, Goa, India

My best friend's wedding! :)

My best friend got married on 2nd July, 2013. Nivedita is my friend since the time when i didn't even know what friendship meant. She made me proud. She is my super achiever of the year. 3 years back she fell in love with a guy named Nehal. She wished to marry him but only with her family's blessings. She loved her parents equally. She let go of neither her family nor Nehal. She stood firm with her vision, with her dream in the clouds of doubt and unpredictability. Her parents loved her equally and they agreed. Family and friends enjoyed the wedding and I have never seen her look so Beautiful ever! She taught me something from all this -

 Never make a big deal of your problems. They get solved if you let them solve themselves. Believe in yourself and don't compromise on your dreams. Its not an accident! You get what you want. Nobody can strip you off your experience if you see it so clearly.

I love you Nivedita and I am the proudest friend!

And yes i forgot to mention - Cherry on the top was that the next day of getting married her MD Anesthesia results were out and she topped her college. Dreams do come true! :)