Designer Interview: Shallu Narula aka Creative Hatti

Today for our blog article series Designer Interview we have Shallu Narulla with us who is famously known as Creative Hatti with. She is known famously for her perspective towards India which she beautifully portrays in her illustrations.

We have asked her a few questions about her early life and her journey as a designer. How she is got into designing from what inspires her. Let's know from her how she sees the world from her eyes. Enjoy!

Hi, tell us about yourself?

Hi, I am from Chandigarh known as “The City Beautiful”. I work under the artistic name of Creative Hatti. I'm a postgraduate illustrator with a great deal of experience currently devoted to creating high-quality illustrations and icons. Creative Hatti is a collective endeavour of five passionate artists driven by the togetherness and creativity of Indian Culture.

What made you want to become a designer? Also tell us a bit about your journey as a designer.

I was a very creative kid from the beginning. I used to love creating cartoons and sketches. But I never thought of pursuing it further. I didn't even know that it's was a career option as well. I initially pursued computer science engineering, within the first month I realized that I wanted to do something creative. So I quit my engineering and took admission in the Animation and Multimedia department in the same college. I pursued my Graduation and then proceeded with Post graduation.

I met many creative people there and we made a group of five people of the same mindset. We started working during our master’s and since then, we have been working together. It's been more than 7 years; we all are still together. Helping the client all over the world with creative designs.

How would you describe your style?

Over the years I have worked with various clients and companies on various styles. Flat vectors, digital paint, line art, and many other styles. But I personally love to create simple and expressive vector illustrations which you will see in most of my artworks.

If I work for a client it's obviously all according to their requirements, But when I want to create stock it's simple, expressive, and mostly based on India. I love to add humour whenever it's possible. I am working on a design where Lord Rama is riding a bike with Mata Sita ;)

You have lots of assets regarding Indian content and style, can you please share your future plans?

I am from India which is a land of traditions and cultures. I love how we have so many religions, diversity, and colors. From a design perspective, I think India is very creative. Think of Taj Mahal, Indian Gods with lots of hands, and dresses, Indian people, food, and everything. It's so damn creative and unique. I just want to capture all that in my illustrations.

I intend to create the world's largest collection of creative Indian vectors. This includes characters, landmarks, foods, festivals, and many more. So vectoring the whole India :)

Where do you find inspiration for new designs?

I love to explore Dribbble, Behance, and magazines to keep myself updated with the trends in illustrations styles and designs. But to decide what to create, I look for inspiration around my daily life. I create it in the style I have developed.
Currently, I am working on a series illustrating all possible professions of Indians. They all are inspired by real people for example the cobbler sits on the roadside my way, there is a tailor under a tree, and so on.

What pieces of work you most proud of and why?

Although I create every artwork in such a way that I can feel proud about it. But the Lord Krishna Illustration series is my favorite. I am personally a Lord Krishna devotee and created this series with so much love. I think it captures many aspects of Krishna. Being naughty, being in love, a friend, a baby, a king, and many more.

What made you want to become a contributor to Iconscout?

I came across Iconscout via Facebook. I visited the website later on and found it to be a very authentic one and also noticed that they have quality work uploaded there. I felt the guys behind the Iconscout had a big vision. I was confident that my data will be safe, it's on a genuine platform. The most important thing I felt was that there will be good sales :) When I tried Iconscout, it was amazing. Their support was very good.

What are the benefits you have received by uploading your work?

I get decent earnings from Iconscout. My designs are available in one place in a nice and organized manner. I even send this as a reference to show clients my work. I was featured on their social media, so my own credibility as an illustrator has increased a lot too. I have been a contributor to other platforms also, but I feel connected with Iconscout. I feel that in the future I will get even more opportunities as they are continuously updating themselves.

Three things you like about Iconscout?

• The best thing about Iconscout is their support. They are available 24x7 for their contributors. I have not seen support like this on any other platform.
• They support their contributors like anything. They feature on their homepage, their social media, and wherever possible. That’s very inspiring and positive for me as a contributor.
• Just like the overall website, the contributor dashboard is very simple and easy. We can easily see our downloads, sales, and products.

At last, what tips would you give to the budding designers of India?

Don’t wait to create perfect artwork to share. Just keep on working. Share whatever you have created on your social media or whatever design platform is available to you. Take the feedback and comments positively and work on it.
Do keep yourself updated with the latest trends and tools. Explore design platforms, look for inspiration, follow trending artists, join design communities. That’s most important.

Thank you for sharing your experience with us, Shallu! If you like her work, visit her profile now by clicking the following link. You can check other designers interview here. We will be back with another interview soon. Till then Happy Designing!