Launch special — 50% off everything this opening week
Syama
Kerala mural art · Kerala, India

The old colours,
painted by hand.

Peacocks, lotuses and deities, painted on terracotta and canvas in a colour tradition few artists still work in. Every piece Syama makes is one of a kind.

View the work Support Syama

Every sale and gift helps Syama manage her health and keep painting.

Syama beside her hand-painted terracotta pot 'Lakshmi'
Syama with ‘Lakshmi’ — Kerala mural on terracotta
Signature work

Mural painting on terracotta

Syama's rarest work: full Kerala mural scenes painted freehand onto large clay pots — statement pieces for a home, lobby or temple. Each takes weeks and exists only once.

Radha and Krishna painted in Kerala mural style on a terracotta pot
Radha & KrishnaKerala mural on terracotta
Peacock painted in Kerala mural style on a yellow terracotta pot
PeacockKerala mural on terracotta
Lotus flowers painted on a teal terracotta pot
Lotus PondHand-painted terracotta
$280 $140 Available now Dancing Ganesha painted in Kerala mural style on canvas
Dancing GaneshaKerala mural on canvas
She mixes colour the way few still do — turmeric into teal, sindoor into gold — until the clay seems to glow.
Paintings

On canvas, paper & leaf

Original devotional and still-life work, plus finely observed botanical studies.

$340 $170 Available now Buddha with lotuses, oil painting in glowing colour
Buddha & LotusesOil on canvas
Still life of white lilies in a clay pot, oil painting
White LiliesOil on canvas
Miniature landscape painted on a skeleton bodhi leaf
Evening by the RiverPainted on a bodhi leaf
Cubist-style portrait of a woman with a red flower
Woman with a FlowerAcrylic on canvas
Range & studies

Studies after the masters

Hand-painted reproductions after masters like Raja Ravi Varma and Leonardo — proof of Syama’s range, and available to own. Prefer your own subject? She’ll paint it on commission, in any style.

$320 $160 Available now Oil study after Raja Ravi Varma's Hamsa-Damayanti
Hamsa-DamayantiStudy after Ravi Varma
$245 $120 Available now Oil study after Leonardo's Lady with an Ermine
Lady with an ErmineStudy after Leonardo
Shop & pricing

What you can order

Starting prices in US dollars. Pieces marked Available now ship right away; everything else is painted to order.

To buy or commission, just email or text Varunee — varuvinu@gmail.com · 408-990-3955

Opening week: everything is 50% off — the discount is applied to your order.

Some ready now

Original & devotional paintings

On canvas — Buddha, Ganesha, deities, murals. Several ready today (see the gallery).
Available pieces$245–$340
New, made to order (by size)from $115
One-of-a-kind. Ready pieces ship in days; made-to-order 2–4 weeks. Sent rolled in a tube; frame locally.
Buy or enquire
Made to order

Custom, from your photo

A person, pet or favourite image — as a painting or a sketch.
Pencil / charcoal sketchfrom $70
Oil paintingfrom $190
Large / 2+ peoplefrom $600
50% deposit to start; you approve a preview first. Sketches 1–2 weeks, oils 3–6 weeks.
Order a custom piece
Made to order

Kerala mural pots

Her signature: a full mural scene on a large terracotta pot.
Medium potfrom $300
Large (4–5 ft)from $600
Grand centrepiecefrom $900
Painted to order over 4–8 weeks. Shipped by crated freight (quoted) or collected locally in Kerala.
Enquire about a pot

Shipping, timelines & payment

ShippingPaintings sent rolled, ~2–3 weeks, from ~$45 international. Pots by crated freight, quoted per order.
TimelinesIn-stock pieces ship in a few days. Commissions: preview ~1 week, finished work 1–6 weeks. Pots 4–8 weeks.
Payment & deliveryHandled by Varunee in the US — pay in USD, and she coordinates getting your piece to you.
Syama beside one of her hand-painted mural pots
Her story

The artist behind the colour

Syama is a painter from Kerala whose hands seem to know colour instinctively. Working in the Kerala mural tradition — and in oils, pencil, even on the skeleton of a single leaf — she turns ordinary surfaces into peacocks, lotuses and gods.

She has also faced serious health challenges along the way. None of it has dimmed her work; if anything, the colour has only grown bolder.

This site exists so that her art can reach people who love it, and so that what it earns can help Syama look after her health and keep doing the thing she was made to do — paint.

Varunee with the artist Syama in the garden
Why I built this

Syama is my dear friend, and for years I’ve watched her turn plain clay and canvas into work that stops you in your tracks. I own several of her pieces — each one changes the room it’s in.

She’s also carried more than her share of health struggles, and I wanted to help in a way that honours her talent rather than just asking for sympathy. So I made this page to share her art with people who’ll love it, and to help her keep painting. Thank you for being here.

VaruneeSyama’s friend · building this from the US
Support Syama

Three ways to help

Whether you want a piece for your wall or simply want to help, every bit goes toward Syama’s care and her materials.

Buy a piece

Own an original painting. Ask which works are available now.

Commission her

Send your own photo for a custom painting or sketch, or order something new. Meaningful work she can pace around her health.

Give directly

Not after art right now? A direct contribution helps cover medical care and supplies.

Buy or commission Contribute to her care

Contributions are collected by Varunee in the US and sent directly to Syama — they go toward her medical care, art materials and studio costs. Reach out any time; you’ll always hear back personally.