Sharmistha has a deep appreciation for the intricacies of Madhubani art, combined with her background in natural sciences, which made her explore the detailed drawings and elements of nature inherent in this art form. While Madhubani is traditionally characterized by vibrant colours, a particular style known as Kachni, is distinguished by its fine line work and monochromatic palette. This style focuses on intricate patterns and detailed line work without the use of colour, showcasing the artist’s skill in creating depth and texture through lines alone.

The Kachni style resonates with Sharmistha’s take on Madhubani. As Sharmistha began spending more time with Madhubani, she discovered that the traditional motifs and elements, though intricate and beautiful, did not fully speak her heart out. The themes of mythology, the divine incarnations of Lord Vishnu, and the everyday depictions of nature, though still meaningful, felt sort of distant from her lived experiences. And that pushed her to bring something more into her Madhubani, something that reflected her existence on her Madhubani canvas.

While she continued with elements like the Dasavataras (the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu) and other mythological characters, it was needed to reflect her urban upbringing and her life as a woman shaped by a city that has had always a unique rhythm of its own. She had grown up in the heart of Kolkata, a city that inhales diversity and exhales monotony—a place where the fusion of cultures, traditions, and ideologies creates a constant ebb and flow of new energy. In a city where the old and new coexist, Sharmistha allowed the subtle whispers of tradition, but she inevitably responded to the loud call of modernity, and she believes that her art needed to speak both languages.