Mother's lines, son's drawings; a creative collaboration, says Narendra Modi

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The lines written by a mother and the drawings made by her son have come together as a poetry book. “This is a creative collaboration. Best wishes for the future,” wrote Prime Minister Narendra Modi after reading the book.

The English poetry collection 'Blossoming with Buds', written by Lakshmi Sreekumar, a Botany professor at KSMDB College, Sasthamkotta, received a congratulatory letter from the Prime Minister.

Lakshmi wrote her poems during her travels and her free time at work. She turned these poems into a book last December. As she could not find a publisher, she self-published the book using her own money. Her son, Sreeram Chandran, added beauty to the poems through his illustrations. Many have described the book as a symbol of the deep bond between a mother and her son. The book contains around 20 poems on philosophy, love, and life realities.

Letter that came as birthday surprise
Lakshmi sent copies of the book by post to the Prime Minister and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, without expecting a reply. On December 30, she received a call from the Prime Minister’s Office saying, “The Prime Minister has read the book and liked it.”

Later, on January 16, which was her son’s birthday, she received a congratulatory email from the Prime Minister. About a week later, the letter reached her by post as well. Sreeram’s illustrations in the book are done using acrylic, watercolour, and pencil drawings. He is a Class 9 student at AIS School in Bangladesh. Lakshmi’s husband, Prashanth Chandran, works in Bangladesh as the Indian representative director at BIMSTEC. Lakshmi, a native of Kowdiar in Thiruvananthapuram, currently lives near her college in Sasthamkotta.

“A beautiful blend”
In his letter, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote:
“Thank you for sending the poetry collection along with New Year wishes. My heartfelt greetings. This is a beautiful example of creativity. The illustrations prepared by your son Sreeram bring life to the poems written by the mother. The seamless blend of words and visuals reflects personal brilliance and the deep creative harmony between both of you. My best wishes to you and Sreeram for the future.”