It is not just kaleidoscopic embroideries that Gujarat is so famous for; it is also the home of wonderful weaves that combine impressive skill and generations of expertise, with the result of pure aesthetic joy. Reaffirming that appearances are deceptive, the spectacular Mashru has the appearance of glistening silk that conceals the soothing feel of [...]
Sitting under a banyan tree on a clear summer afternoon, daydreaming lazily, a vine found its way into a pair of idle hands and was twisted and turned into a twine… No one knows how the rope was first made by man, but it has been used since prehistoric ages. From building of the colossal [...]
Hampi (Karnataka), the seat of the famed Vijayanagara Empire was the capital of the last big empire in Southern India, covering several states. The empire reigned supreme under Krishnadevaraya, the Emperor. Today, the ruins of Hampi of the 14th Century lies scattered in about 26 sq. km area, amidst giant boulders and vegetation.
Strewn over a [...]
A busy morning as I rush to work, crossing busy streets and crowded pavements, I am inundated with a multitude of sights, sounds and smells. I can smell fresh samosas and automobile exhaust in one breath. But one sweet fragrance that greets me at every little pause is that of the incense. The purifying aroma [...]
“Godhuli”… long shadows of dusk, a cloud of dust covering the orange horizon and the sounds of tinkering bells, announcing that the cattle is returning home.
Our villages have always had a strong relationship with animals, be it for farming or cattle raising. There are festivals especially for animals, such as Govardhan Puja, or Camel races, [...]
Bright colourful clothes, beautiful large eyes, nimble limbs dancing in front of an enthralled audience… this is not a dancer performing, but the puppet moving with the deft fingers of the puppeteer.
Kathputli is an ancient and one of the most popular performing arts of Rajasthan, a state in western India. The word “kathputli” derives from [...]
Patola is an exquisite and wonderfully intricate silk textile of India, believed to have originated in the 7th Century AD. Patola silk textiles are produced by resist dyeing of warp and weft threads before weaving, a complex process known as double ikat which is also practiced in other parts of India and abroad. However, Patola [...]
