Storytellers of Wonder

Category: Gujarat

  • Raja Ravi Varma and The Royal Gaekwad Collection

    The Maharaja Fateh Singh Museum, housed within the Lakshmi Vilas Palace in Vadodara, India, carries some of the most unique European and Indian art works, that were collected by Maharaja Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III during his numerous trips out of India. The Museum was constructed as a school for the Maharaja’s children. It was established…

  • The Embroidery of Life: Needle Crafts and Colors of Kutch

    Amidst the barren desert landscape of the western border towns of India, smatterings of color are a representation of life, appearing as adornments on the bodies of the beautiful tribes. Embroidery, here, is not a glorious vocation but part of the daily fabric of how a day is spent. It isn’t uncommon to walk among…

  • The Vankars of Bhujodi

    The festive vibrance of embroidered textiles is the natural show stealer within Kutch textiles, but the subtler, elegant outcome from the rhythmic clacking of Bhujodi’s Vankar family of weavers is not far behind in appeal. The Vankars or weavers of Kutch weave colorful threads on the loom, with the yarn coming from Bhujodi, Ludhiana, Rajasthan…

  • Mashru Project by Raw Mango: Celebrating A Lost Legacy

    The word ‘mashru’ comes from the Arabic word ‘shari’a’ that means ‘permitted by Islamic law’, an allusion to the prohibition of wearing pure silk fabrics by Muslim men, citing laws in the Quran that restrains luxury in their lifestyle. Mashru is a mixed fabric composed of a smooth silk surface and soft cotton backing, thus making…

  • Resplendent Legacy: The Beloved Patola of Gujarat

    “Padi patole bhat faatey pan phite nahin”, “The design laid down in the patola may wear out, but it shall never fade.” True to this ode to its beauty, a Patola is a coveted silken textile that is believed to have been woven since the 4th century AD. According to historians the weaving was certainly…

  • Bridging the Old and New Worlds: Vintage Textile Collector Mr. A. A. Wazir

    The room is layered with brightly colored phulkaris, rabari embroidered cloths and cowry shell tassels. Among them is seated a man who has spent more than forty years painstakingly building what can easily become a museum collection. At his home in Bhuj in the Kutch region of Gujarat, the septuagenarian Mr. A.A. Wazir has passionately…

  • Sartorially Set: Trendy Dandiya Night Look

    Symbolizing victory of positivity over negativity, Navratri literally means ‘nine nights’ in Sanskrit.  Amidst worshiping Goddesses Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati during this festival, the stylish set step out in embellished ghagras and  cholis to dance to garba tunes. While all of the western Indian state of Gujarat erupts in the flavors of this festival and the dance, the…

  • Tale Trails – A hidden haven for booklovers in Ahmedabad

    I had read about it. Adjectives like rare, tucked away, quaint, hidden gem etc. can make me visit anything, even a postbox, and this was a full-fledged bookstore. And so it was to be, in the summer of 2013 when I found myself in Ahmedabad, yet again. (It is quickly becoming one of my favourite…

  • 5 Unconventional Dos for first time India travelers

    A discerning traveller chooses a travel destination based not just on the location or weather but based on the overall experience. Of course you could be fully satisfied with the fabricated experience courtesy of Thomas Cook but at some point you may question the integrity of it all and wonder aloud, ‘is this the real…

  • Textile Narrative: ‘Mata-ni-Pachedi’

    Mata, Shakti, Devi – These names evoke vivid images from mythology. The Chitara families of the wandering Waghris tribe of Gujarat visualize Goddess’s many manifestations as hand-painted or block-printed images on textiles, surrounded by stories from myths, epics and folk traditions. ‘Mata-ni-Pachedi’ translates literally to ‘that which enshrines the Goddess’. The historical evidence of this…