Presenting My Portrait to American Film Actress Ashley Judd at KISS

 A Memorable Gift: Presenting My Portrait to American Film Actress Ashley Judd at KISS

I, Jyotiranjan Gudia, along with Dr. Achyuta Samanta, (sir) the founder of KISS and KIIT, together presented a portrait to the American film actress Ashley Judd in 2017 at KISS.

It was Thursday, February 17, 2017. At that time, I was studying in the third year of my +3 Arts course. Early in the morning, we heard that an American guest would be visiting our institute, the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) and that the KISS Humanitarian Award 2016 would be presented to her that day. Whenever there is a programme at our institute- whether it’s small or grand- it always feels big and special to us. And we usually receive the information about such events very quickly, because our art teacher, Subrat Mahala sir, always informs us in advance, especially when there’s a painting-related assignment connected to the programme.

Like every other day, that day too I went to our vocational center, where some young children were sitting and doing drawings. During the lunch break, after finishing my meal in the dining hall, I was returning when I saw some welcome boards being put up. Looking at the photo on one of those boards, I don’t know why, but I felt very happy. I made up my mind that I would draw a portrait just like the one on that board and present it to the guest during the meeting. When I went to the vocational training center, another madam had arrived and was sitting with the children, teaching them how to draw. When I reached there, she was asking everyone who could draw portraits well. The little kids around me all said, “Jyoti Bhai draws portraits very nicely.” When that madam heard my name, she came to me and asked if I could draw her portrait. When any guest visiting our institute expresses a wish or expects something from us, it becomes our duty to fulfil that expectation. Since she only wished for a portrait of herself, I quickly drew it for her and mentally prepared myself to later draw a portrait of that day’s chief guest. I have attached a photo below from the moment I was drawing her portrait. That madam was originally from our beloved state, Odisha, but had married and settled in America. She had come to visit Odisha for just ten days.

I am drawing a portrait of an Odia girl who is married and living in America.

After drawing the portrait of the madam who had come from America, I returned to my hostel and there I began working on the portrait of the guest arriving from America. The guest who was visiting that day to receive the KISS Humanitarian Award 2016 was none other than the renowned American film actress Ashley Judd. Besides being a Hollywood actor, she was also a social activist and the Global Goodwill Ambassador for the UNFPA. I quickly rushed to a nearby shop, downloaded her photo from the internet and started working on her portrait. Below, you can see a photo showing the moment when I was sketching her portrait inside my hostel room.

Since the photo I drew somewhat resembled her real image, I took the portrait to our Vocational Center and showed it to our art teacher. He also gave me some suggestions and by following his advice, I tried to improve it further. After working on it for some more time, I was finally able to capture her exact likeness in the portrait. Below, I’ve attached a video of the moment when I was sketching at the Vocational Center of Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS).

I am drawing a portrait of Ashley Judd in my hostel room.

Once the portrait of the American actress was completely finished, our art teacher, Asst. CEO Pramod Patra, whom we respectfully call Pramod Sir, was informed about it. He came to see the portrait I had drawn and examined it carefully. Then, he informed the Founder of our institution, Dr. Achyuta Samanta Sir, about it. Upon hearing about the portrait, Samanta Sir immediately called Pramod Sir and said that the portrait drawn by our student should be presented as a gift on stage to the actress madam. Following the instructions given by Samanta Sir, Pramod Sir told me to stay prepared for the presentation. I too held on to my portrait and patiently waited for the program to begin.

That day, around 6:30 PM, as guests were being welcomed at our event, Samanta Sir warmly welcomed Ms. Ashley Judd, who had come all the way from America. During the award ceremony, Dr. S. C. Jamir, His Excellency the Governor of Odisha, presented the award to Ms. Ashley Judd in the august presence of distinguished guests including Hon’ble Dr. Justice Dalveer Bhandari, Judge of the International Court of Justice, The Hague; Madhu Bhandari; Diego Palacios, UNFPA India Country Representative and Country Director, Bhutan; C. J. Venugopal, Principal Secretary to the Governor, Odisha; Padma Shri Jitendra Haripal, singer; Saswati Bal, President of KIIT & KISS; Prof. Achyuta Samanta, Founder of KIIT & KISS; and R. N. Dash, Secretary- all were present at the ceremony. At that moment, Samanta Sir and I together presented the painting of the American film heroine Ashley Judd, which I had drawn, as a gift to her. When Samanta Sir and I gave the painting in front of everyone, I felt extremely happy. I had never imagined that a portrait I had drawn over such a long time would be given to such a great and renowned person. But the fact that my painting was presented to such a great personality was only possible because of the vision and support of our institution’s founder, Prof. Achyuta Samanta. Below, I have shared a video showing the moment when Samanta Sir and I together handed over the painting to Ms. Ashley Judd.

I, Jyotiranjan Gudia, along with Dr. Achyuta Samanta, (sir) the founder of KISS and KIIT, together presented a portrait to the American film actress Ashley Judd in 2017 at KISS.

I am drawing a portrait of Ashley Judd in my hostel room.

Ashlye Judd receiving KISS Humanitarian Award 2016 at KISS

Ashlye Judd receiving KISS Humanitarian Award 2016 at KISS

Ashlye Judd receiving KISS Humanitarian Award 2016 at KISS

I, Jyotiranjan Gudia, along with Dr. Achyuta Samanta, (sir) the founder of KISS and KIIT, together presented a portrait to the American film actress Ashley Judd in 2017 at KISS.