Rashmi Sirdeshpande

Ruchi Mhasane is an artist and illustrator who studied Children's Book Illustration at the Cambridge School of Art, UK. She works mostly in pencil and watercolor; in her art she enjoys capturing expressive gestures and movements, especially those of little children, and loves adding hints of fantasy and the natural world. In her spare time, she enjoys the company of books, wildlife, music, and quite often, solitude. She currently lives and works in India.

Former lawyer Rashmi Sirdeshpande is an award-winning British Indian children's author who writes hopeful and uplifting picture books and illustrated non-fiction. Her debut picture book, Never Show a T-Rex a Book, illustrated by Diane Ewen, won a Society of Authors award, was shortlisted for the Laugh Out Loud Book awards, and was selected for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. Rashmi is also one of the official authors for World Book Day UK 2022, which seeks to get books into the hands of children all over the UK. Dadaji's Paintbrush, illustrated by Ruchi Mhasane, is her first lyrical story and draws on her Indian roots.