Hobbies to livelihoods: How young artists are redefining dreams and careers

There was a time when sports, dancing, singing, and painting were all part of our leisure hobbies or cultural activities. Still, we gradually started to get acquainted with the different ways of young people's careers. They have earned the country's reputation in the world arena by making sports, dance and music the primary goal of life.
Coming out of the trend of becoming a doctor or engineer, many young people have adopted cultural activities or hobbies as the primary means of earning.
Today, many young people's lives are being simulated differently due to such hobbies. Some are just working as a hobby, and some regularly draw thousands of pictures to earn a living and livelihood after the cruel journey of reality with their hobbies.
Amir Hamza Rifat, a Department of Art History student at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka, is an ideal example of this young generation's life.
After overcoming many obstacles, Rifat is strengthening his position in the fine arts department of Dhaka University. Due to his intense addiction to painting since childhood, the fine arts have taken him one step closer to fulfilling his dream.
But Rifat's journey was thorny. Growing up in a conservative Muslim family, he did not get any support from them for art or painting, but there were obstacles in the ranks.
Rifat studied science in school and college. When Corona brought the world to a standstill, his studies were about to end.
He passed the admission test without family support and joined the art department. Although he has not been trained academically in practical artwork, no young person of this generation can be held back by a lack of opportunities.
He's competing to do better work every day than ever. "For the first time, I did the artwork on a commission of 300tk, and the maximum amount I received was 30,000tk till today," Rifat says.
Last year, he won a prize worth about 50,000tk in an Art contest. Rifat learned various forms of art, such as alpana, Caricature, and Stage Art, through his interest, the help of seniors, and different online platforms.
Now, considering the art's size, details, and time, he demands a commission. These earnings help his family as much as possible while he bears expenses.
But is everyone's dream path so thorny? No, not everyone. Many people get the support of everyone around them, including family, to fulfil their dreams. In life, they can work happily with their favourite work as a career.
Parthib Chakraborty Surja, a student of the ceramics department of the Faculty of Fine Arts, is just such a young man who is doing his favourite work with significant dependence.
Surja, who grew up in nature surrounded by Srimangal's beauty, has always painted to support his family. Artists don't have a specific time or meaning. Sometimes, there is an extra workload and earnings for the month. Sometimes, there is no order for four to five months. Surja has seen all of this and has slowly adapted to it.
So far, Surja has done the lowest commission art of portraits at 1,500 and the highest at 10,000tk. He shares pictures of his work on his Facebook profile and gets orders from different people. Surja is also very interested in making clay statues, one of the genres of art.
Surja explains his work by saying, "I work hard to make idols for various pujas, including Durga Puja. For the last puja, I sold eight idols measuring eight to ten feet, each worth 30 to 35 thousand taka. That was a humongous and tough task to do."
"I am doing these things with my will and interest; I am not under any obligation. I am more interested in painting portraits; I also want to master clay figurines," he added.
With the change of time, we can see changes in every field. In the same way, women and men have become aware of fulfilling their careers or hobbies. They also participate with equal interest in art, literature, music, and sports.
Aumeya Proteeti represents that society. Growing up in a cultural family in Dhaka, Proteeti never had to compete to become a doctor or engineer. Inspired by her musician parents, She has developed her painting talent.
Today, Proteeti sells artworks of different meanings at different times. "The goal of conviction is that I will achieve maturity in the illustration. I dream of freelancing through digital art," says Proteeti.
Every aspect of the world today is changing. And with that, the goal of every young person's life is changing. Today's youth have come out of the habit of sacrificing their dreams under the pressure of family or society.
They are working hard to achieve their dreams. These young people, who love themselves, their dreams, and their goals immensely, are revitalizing society's new construction.

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