Simply Sivitha Sivakumar: “Beautiful, beautiful human beings.”

Her voice spilled out and over the speakers, and smothered my ears like honey. A warm, goo-ey, sickly sweet voice, which speaks so passionately of love and art. This voice is laced with power – The power to mesmerise. This voice, belongs to the one known as Vee.  –Sivitha Sivakumar. 

With humble beginnings in London, Vee often found herself at the edge of society, struggling with feelings of being an outsider from as young as primary school. She speaks with knowledge, and with a full heart. A pairing not often found unless coaxed, but for Vee, it is wholly natural. With a somber smile, she reflects on how she “moved around a lot growing up, so making friends was hard…”

She credits her parents as one of her main inspirations, later revealing that her name is a love-child of both their names. “They gave me everything that they could, and I am so grateful for that.”

“We were loved. Truly loved.” 

Her voice dripping with tenderness, she finds happiness in seeing other people in love, and controversially adores public displays of affection. It makes her feel “so warm” on the inside, and encourages everyone to start romanticising all aspects of their lives. She softly chuckles, exclaiming how ever since she has adopted this mindset, her cosy cup of Raspberry and Peach tea in the morning has become the “best part of her day”.

A notable artist who inspires Vee, is the one and only Chella Man. They are a deaf, transgender, genderqueer actor and activist for LGBTQ rights and representation. Her admiration for them goes beyond words, proudly displaying her love for individualism through her own personal style, further explaining how people from all walks of life inspire her to celebrate life; “Beautiful, beautiful human beings.” She tells me “I have always wanted to create art that inspires people”, and I truly believe that she will. Watch this space.

Vee speaks so poetically about another inspiration in her life; Rupi Kaur. To be precise, about a particular poem that really hit home. She tells me how she found this poem, or rather this poem found her, at a “bad point” in her life, and how “she made me realise that I am worth it.”

“The fact that someone else was feeling these things as well, comforted me.” 

In a statement full of pathos, she exclaims how “when you look at yourself in the mirror, and you think that ‘you look ugly’ or even, ‘why do i look like that’, That is abuse. You are putting yourself down. You are degrading yourself.” 

To close, Sivitha Sivakumar is definitely a name to remember. I believe that if we were all to adapt Vee’s mindset, there would be a drastic shift in the way we all perceive ourselves and other’s. She has inspired me, and she will continue to inspire others, I am sure of it. A beautiful quote which she uses to remind herself of her humanity, is one which is so broad and full of truth, which reads from the classic 1989 Dead Poets Society : “But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.“