Struggling painters must suffer for their art, slumming it in filthy digs and eating whatever's in the fridge, even if it's not food.

But Ani K licks those lightweights – he paints with his tongue and regularly, if not surprisingly, deals with nausea, cramp and headaches.





'First, I tried with my nose but not­iced others were already doing it. I thought of giving my tongue a try and succeeded,' the 30-year-old said.

'A few newspapers reported it. I got a good response. Then I made it a regular practice.' Ani devised his technique last year, after seeing another artist paint using his foot.

When he first started, he got severe head and body aches every time he tried to use his tongue. He was sick because of the pungent fumes but has grown immune to the effects, he claimed.

So far, the drawing teacher has finished 20 watercolours including – rather appropriately – a 2.4m (8ft) wide rendering of Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, featuring Jesus and his disciples. It took him five months to finish.

He now plans to show 150 works in a gallery he is building in his home in Kerala, India. He hopes to be ready in six months because, now his body is used to the unorthodox method, he can complete one canvas in about four days.

Already, Ani has works featuring Mahatma Gandhi and Osama bin Laden. He added: 'I'm always looking for something different.'

The artist is not the only one who uses unusual body parts for art.

Di Peel swapped her brushes for breasts to create abstract works, while fellow Australian Tim Patch earned the nickname 'Pricasso' after pion­eering the use of his penis to paint. He can only paint for a short time, though.

And Stan Murmur paints with his bottom – but lost his job as an art teacher when he gave a TV interview demonstrating his technique.