Saleeda Balakrishna ref sheet

Posted May 4, 2008, 9:42:41 PM UTC
Completion Date: 05-03-08
Time Taken: 18.5 hours
Medium(s):
+ Sketched in OpenCanvas 1.1
+ Colored and watermarked in Photoshop CS2
Music:
+ Shabba Shabba - Jatin Sharma
+ Kismet - Bond
+ Dola Dola - Bride and Prejudice
+ Maar Daala - Kavita Krishnamurthy & K. K.
+ Utanma - Sertab Erener
+ Fragrance - Gackt
+ Dunya - Niyaz
+ The Hunt - Niyaz

Comment:
Hooray for productivity~
Because I should totally be doing homework and getting ready for Midterms, lol. x.x Been wanting to do this sheet forever as it goes with Itarah's sheet. This is the lesser known other half of her/me, Saleeda. My persona if you will as I am sooooo not going to get into an explaination about it. Worked on this on and off for days now, you won't believe the amount of interuptions I put up with, ugh. But now its all done~ <3

::EDIT:: Reworked the layout of the entire sheet so it would look more organized and clean. Added in the bronze necklace and a more accurate depictation of the eye in both low and high light. Information updated as well.

Name: Saleeda Balakrishna (Married name: Balakrishna-Maxwell)
Title: Devadasi of Durga (Not a devadasi of the old practices, but more a servant/priestess)
Form(s): Itarah -
[link]
Age: Appears to be in mid-twenties
Sex: Female
Status: Married to Aya D. Balakrishna-Maxwell -
[link]
Occupation: Dancer (Bellydance and Bharatanatyam), Freelance artist
Origin: India (Possibly in the area of Madhya Pradesh or Maharashtra)

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Hair: Tawny orange-brown with a straight texture that hangs to her thighs. Her bangs are parted slightly to one side, while the rest naturally frames her face with individual sections that hang in front of her ears and over her shoulders. It is often worn unstyled and loose, but can be seen a variety of styles depending upon wardrobe, mood, etc.
Eyes: Slate blue (Note: The eyes are similar to the stone Tiger's Eye and highly reflective. Examples: The eye on the left demonstrates the appearence in bright light, while the eye on the right demonstrates the eye in normal/low light.)
Complexion: Tanned
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 175 lbs.
Size: 18 (Standard US size)
Physique: Curved
Distinguishing Marks: She was a permanent "birthmark" on her forehead similar to a bindi. It is an ovular dark brown mark with a white center and to the left and right at its peak are single white accent marks. Beneath each eye starting at the outer corner is a dark brown dot followed by a line that extends near the inner tear duct. Her ears are colored like Itarah's with a black shell and white circle. The ears are not cat ears, but more similar to elves. They are capable, however, of a wider range of movement than normal human ears. Though it is not a constant feature, she can be seen with henna on her hands, forearms, back, face, ankles, and feet. The designs vary.
Piercings: Three in each ear (Crescent Moon earring worn in the right ear only)
Jewelry: Two obsidian bangles etched with golden-brown "cracks" on her right wrist, two small gold hoops and a gold stud in her left ear, Crescent Moon chain earring and gold stud in right ear, sterling silver wedding band on the middle finger (worn on both hands), a sterling silver guardian pendant (resemebles Griever from FFVIII), and a bronze snake necklace with Tiger's Eye (necklace from Brooke Stone Jewelry -
[link] )
Clothing: Usually a brightly colored sari (
[link] ) of varying colors. She does own comfortable Western clothing such as hoodies, jeans, t-shirts, etc. Her wardrobe also contains Salwar kameez ( [link] ), along with that are the dozens of dancing costumes she owns which vary widely.

PERSONALITY
Likes: Dancing, deserts, her husband (duh), family, cooking, shopping, water, arguing, speaking her mind, etc.
Dislikes: Over zealous persons, forcing opinions/beliefs on her, backstabbing persons, dishonesty, etc.
Saleeda may be short in height, but she is not short on mouth or intellect. Quick witted and sharp tongued, you get brutal honesty whether you like it or not. She is not one sugar coat anything, having learned it does no good to do so. She is loving and trusting of the few that are close to her, but strangers are not readily welcomed with open arms. Her trust is not easily won, but once earned she is loyal to a fault. Saleeda is also a very short tempered little woman and will not think twice about snapping heads off and raising her voice when warranted. She is also a highly emotional person and deeply spiritual. Often she relies heavily on intuition, precognative ability in dreams, and her beliefs to make descions every day. It comes as no suprise either that she has a strong gift of empathy, and will cry be it from sadness or joy. She is a sensitive person, but hardened by past expriences that have left her guarded.

BRIEF HISTORY
With all of our stories, it begins with our parents. Saleeda's father was a tiger god serving the deva (male god/deity) Krishna. His name was Kimikala, the last name of Balakrishna was given to him for being a servant of Krishna( in the Indian culture the name means "of Krishna/servant of Krishna"). Kimikala was devote and faithful to his lord, acting as a vehicle, like many tigers and lions do for the gods. However, on an excursion one day to recieve his offerings from a village he saw a woman by the river. The river was the staple of life for the near by village, and it was not uncommon to see women and men alike fishing its waters, bathing in them, or drinking from them. Kimikala was utterly fascinated by this woman however and descended to her. She was not frightened, she did not run from him. This shocked him and he was bewildered by how bold she was to also not address him as a deity. "Tiger, you stand in my drinking water. Move aside." Were the first words she said to him. Instantly he was smitten with this woman. She was bold, something that many were not, and clearly unafraid to speak of what she wanted. So he did move and went on his way into the jungle to find the village a short way off.

He collected his offerings but asked a question of the village elder. He wanted to know the woman's name, and to know if she was spoken for. Kimikala was crushed to know that she had a husband whom she had just married. The woman's name was Itandra Srivastava, a rather foul tempered thing with a mouth that spoke nothing but hard honest truth. She was a well loved woman by those that were allowed close enough to her, and hated fiercely by those that were kept at arms' length. Kimikala was determined to have her for his own, and so the tiger god ascended back to the palace of his lord. He plead with Krishna for three years straight, refusing to mind the jungle region of the village and bless them with good hunts until he had what he wanted. Such action rewarded him with punishment, seventy lashes and a knotch in the ear. He ceased his begging after that, watching Itandra from a distance. Every time he went to collect offerings he watch her at the river, concealed by the jungle foliage.

Little did Kimikala know was that Itandra knew he was there each and every time. She'd grown used to the tiger god's presence, and even forming an unspoken bond with the striped watcher. One night, Itandra slipped from her husband's bed, wandering deep into the jungle where humans were forbidden to go. It was thick with shadows and hanging vines, a place that was alive in its own right; a place only a god could enter. But she was granted safe passage into this place, and in the small stone temple before his own statue stood Kimikala. His skin was tawny and laced with the same stripes he wore as a tiger, ears long and pointed, body cloaked in heavy gold jewelries and adorned with a silk weave loincloth. Gold henna on his face, hands, and feet, and of the most odd feature, he had ocean blue eyes. Itandra could not deny the attraction to this handsome creature, and he had never denied his love of her, but he had concealed it. That night they copulated at the base of his temple statue, Kimikala expressing his love for her in truest form and purest act. At dawn she left her beautiful god, and went to the river. None suspected a single thing, knowing how she was early to rise to bathe and wash clothing for her husband and her mother. The months went by and she grew, her husband and all the others of the village thinking the child to be his. Itandra knew not how she was to hide the truth of the baby's appearance, but she prayed that Kimikala would be able to intervene should something go array.

The day Itandra gave birth, it was instantly known that the child was of no blood relation to her husband. A baby girl born with the marks of the tiger god on her forehead, pointed ears, and the strange markings under her eyes. In a rage her husband took the child and went to the river to drown it. Itandra was restrained, screaming for Kimikala to save their child, begging for the god to come to her aid. He did in fact come, a behemoth tiger leaping out of the sky to strike down on the man at the river. He tore him limb from limb and devoured him; flesh and bone alike. The villagers were in a flurried panic, taking shelter and arming themselves as Itandra took the opprotunity to run and collect her child. Kimikala had kept their daughter safe between his great bloody paws. She took the crying babe and tried to quiet her, thanking the tiger over and over again. However, the skies darkened and on the surface of the river did a mist rise. A great lotus blossomed and in its center stood Krishna. He was ashamed of Kimikala and angered, he was also displeased with the woman who was unfaithful to her husband. Both were to be punished accordingly. For the rest of his days, Kimikala was restricted to the form of a tiger and was cursed to forever speak in the tongue of beasts when he came to the human world. Itandra was made barren, and a red brand was placed on her palm to show that she was an unfaithful wife. To punish them both, the child was taken and was to be cast into Hell.

Upon taking his disobedient servant and the child back to the heavens, Krishna was met by his consort Parvarti. She plead with him, convincing him that death was not the answer for the child. She had a greater purpose. Instead she gave her husband a challenge. "If the child can learn the elements from serpents and find favor in a temple, then you must let her live. If she does not, then you may kill her." So Krishna agreed to this, taking the child down into Patala (Underworld, nothing like hell). He spoke to the king of the Naga, telling him of Parvarti's challenge to which did the king agree to let his seven divine rear and tutor the child in the forces of nature. She was taken to a grand temple, surprisingly light and glowing. There were 7 wings in the entire structure, one for each of the seven that resided there. They were all summoned to see the child left in their care, the first to take her being the Naga of Light, Ravi. As she grew she was not the only one in his care. On her fifth birthday, an infant not so different looking from Kimikala's deity form was left with the seven naga. This was her younger half brother, Kenja. After a year's time another infant of the same bloodline was left there, this being the youngest sibling, Zala. In the care of the naga did the sister and her two brothers learn the elements.

When it came time to see, after twenty years, if the child had learned the elements Krishna came gloating. "I have won. I have won! She has failed to find favor in a temple." But before Krishna could speak once more did the sound of a feminine voice echo. "Do not be so hastey, for she has found favor in mine." The goddess Durga, had been watching the child grow and learn and wished to have her. Indeed, Krishna had lost and in disgust he accepted such. Her brothers would finish their teaching with the naga and become servants of Durga as well, joining their sister later. The day she was welcomed into Durga's temple, she was finally given a name. Saleeda Balakrishna, the name to honor her father and one fitting of a daughter from a woman such as Itandra. She was also given another name, one that came with the form she was given by the goddess. This was Itarah or Itaraḥ itaraḥ itaraḥ sura-itarāḥ which means (after transliteration) "The lesser - Different from someone else, other than the demigods." Saleeda was given the position of devadasi. As she progressed in years of service, she was granted benefits such as eternal youth, her secondary form (Itarah), and she was eventually promoted to the head of all the devadasi in the temple.

Artwork, Saleeda Balakrishna © 2008 P. Lolla (*souls-poison)
Background textures from [link]
DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION!!! ARTWORK AND CHARACTER COPYRIGHT P. Lolla (*souls-poison); ALL RIGHTS RESERVED!!! DO NOT STEAL, ALTER, COPY, AND/OR REDISTRIBUTE UNDER PENALTY OF LAW!!!

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