The works on display by the students of Std VII showed such maturity that Munde bought Gautam's painting of ships seen at a distance in the sea framed by two looming high rise buildings. They were the result of talents which bloomed in small kholis packed with rather large families. Gautam's parents work as labourers in far away Beed in interior Maharashtra.

Coming from economically backward section of society, both neither have the luxury of a family-steeped-in-art background nor the leisure of a middle class lifestyle. Yet, the colours Nalini, student of Ratanbai Municipal School, uses are bright while the people painted by Gautam, who studies in Gautam Municipal School, are happy. Theconfidence they showed was largely because of the efforts and encouragement of their art teacher, Sudha Patil while the Yuvak Pratisthan, which promotes artistic endeavours, provided funds.

``I realised their potential while teaching the regular lessons. A little extra coaching reaped rich dividends when they began winning at inter-school competitions,'' Patil told Express Newsline. The twice-a-week extra training has done wonders. The two have come a long way from painting what Nalini calls ``jhuk-jhuk gadis'' and crocodiles.

The paintings, done with no help from models, show the maturity and understanding that is essential for a good artist, according to professor M P Pawar, Head of Department, Sculpture, at the J J School of Arts. He was all praise especially for Nalini's keen observation of details in animal anatomy, which is evident in the animal figures including a crocodile and the bal Ganpati - all made of plaster and paper pulp mix. ``Drawing is much easier than sculpting. The latter needs keenobservation,'' he said.Several viewers posed for photographs with the city's new found young achievers who prefer nature for their water colours. ``There is a lot one can express in a nature painting,'' said Nalini. Perhaps why the city they live in does not figure in their works. The only exception was Gautam's painting bought by Munde.

In the first hour after the inauguration, Nalini sold one painting and two sculptures and Gautam one painting. The exhibits are priced from Rs 75 toRs 500. The proceeds of the exhibition, open till March 2, will be used for further training of these young artists and getting admission to the J J School of Arts.