It takes time to capture what Aslam says, so much does he speak with calm, as he would to his students. His classroom at Modern College in Flacq has been a deep repository of unsuspected talents until such time he made the discovery that his students could attain heights in a subject at the highest academic level. They follow in the steps of the guide.

Aslam hails from the village of Bel-Air, Caroline, which he has not left in the wake of urban emigration. He attended the Louis Dorbec Roman Catholic Primary School in Bel-Air and the New Educational College for his lower secondary schooling, which he left for the Higher School Certificate classes at Dunputh Lallah State Secondary School in Curepipe. This is where Aslam showed a keen interest in Art as a main or principal subject, “main” in the examination jargon.
Painting by his student.

He recalled how in Form 1 he had been drawing lines on his own to portray his message abstractly, ignoring the existence of masters like Kline and Pollock. In Form 5, he was placed among the best-scoring students. His teachers canalised his energy, discussed colours and perspectives in Art literacy, and placed him on the track to obtain the best results in the end. Of note, the learner had scarce research resources, these being limited to encyclopedias at school. The opening hours of public libraries in towns posed a real challenge to villagers. Mrs Chung, the Art educator, was an exceptional person in transferring her passion to her students. Aslam bagged Rank 1 in the HSC examinations in 1996.

It was quite natural for Aslam to find a context in which to improve and prove his ability to combine his creative and imaginative talents. Aslam read for a degree at the University of Mauritius and at the National College of Arts in New Lahore, Pakistan. Today, he has the opportunity as a professional to transmit his savoir-faire to students who, in return, aim at excellence, reciprocating the confidence he shows. The artist is displaying his paintings.

Apart from teaching, Aslam the artist seeks inspiration for his own paintings and is regularly present at the Salon de Mai set up at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute. He is assisted by his wife, Farzanah, in exhibitions, whether in a solo initiative or in groups. She is among the people who by far support him to keep moving, go on painting, and to prove, if proof was needed, that each art painting has a unique character that spreads joy and happiness. The sea and the shores have often been a leitmotiv for putting colours to a canvas.

Aslam has gone beyond the Salon de Mai solo exhibition. He has exhibited at the National Art Gallery, the Natural History Museum in Port-Louis, on the premises of the EDB and the Arcades Currimjee in Curepipe, Caudan, and at the Galerie de l’Aube in Floréal. His art is varied: triptychs depicting pastoral life, batik, oil painting. He is also versed in painting with coffee, this latter with the aim of promoting sustainability.

It is not exaggerating to speak of a touche-à-tout, but Aslam will tell you that he is at ease painting on large surfaces, on peepal leaves, on dry banana leaves, on recycled paper, and on oyster shells. Furthermore, he practises pyrography. Aslam and three other artists, Said Aniff Hossenee, Dev Chooramun, and Nikhil Purbhoo, participated in a group exhibition in Bangladesh in 2018. This event has remained an important milestone in his path.

Aslam will go far in creating new faces, new landscapes, and new linear forms. Many more paintings will emerge from his workshop with renewed inspiration, only the artist knows how. Maybe this is an exaggerated assumption, but he keeps on brushing the things around. His art is growing in direct proportion to his wisdom and outlook.