Category: History

• August 18, 2016

  Maheshwar’s Raksha Bandhan Connection: The Ties That Bind

  

  Raksha Bandhan is conventionally known as the festival commemorating the love between a sister and her brother. Each year this love is renewed and strengthened by a symbolic gesture – the sister ties a piece of thread – a rakhi – on the wrist of her brother. The thread represents the brother’s commitment to protect […]
• April 2, 2016

  Punjab: an Amalgam

  

  Famous for its scenic landscape, mustard blooms, ancient fertile lands, religious diversity and gregarious people, Punjab, despite it’s beautiful mountains and rivers was not always as blessed! Punjab has always been the center point of civilizations due to its strategic location as the entrance to the Indian subcontinent. Foreign invaders like the Persians, Greeks, Scythians and Kushanas came […]
• March 5, 2016

  In a Qila

  

  How Qilasaaz is effecting change in the lives of women artisans of Mahmudabad. The backbone of the erstwhile world of feudal privilege and opulence was always an invisible army of skilled craftsmen/women and artisans. They ensured a splendor and an aesthetic richness that was often breathtaking. Their efforts affected every aspect of life then and […]
• June 19, 2015

  Resurgence of ‘Shakti’: Shamlu Dudeja’s Kantha Crusade in Bengal

  

  Each piece of work is a labour of love, in its patterns, the story of simple women, their joys, sorrows and aspirations. The origin of Kantha can be traced back to the Buddhist era when devotees had to seek alms for their daily survival. The ‘bhikshus’ often received old fabrics which they layered and tacked […]
• March 23, 2015

  Ganjifa: 16th Century Traditional Playing Cards of India

  

  The Story of Ganjifa In June 1527 Babar, founder of the Mughal dynasty, sent a unique gift to Shah Hasan, a close friend from Sindh. It was an exquisite set of Mughal Ganjifa round playing cards, each hand-painted on ivory and inlaid with precious stones. Little did he know that he was going to spark […]
• March 3, 2015

  Braj Ki Holi

  Braj ki Holi beckoned a band of thirsty travelers from across the land to rejoice in a colorful feast this spring immersed in the magic of Krishna’s playground. In Mathura lay history writ in stone tales of grandeur and glory framed Of Kanishka and his burgeoning metropolis and Buddha worshipped in many a form. Then […]
• February 5, 2015

  Charma Chitrakari of Andhra Pradesh

  We are no more than a moving row of magic shadow-shapes that come and go round with sun-illumined lantern held in midnight by the Master of the Show. —From the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam (12th century) Known as Tholu Bommalata in Andhra Pradesh (Tholu -leather, Bommalata – puppet dance), leather shadow puppetry was a widespread […]
• January 28, 2015

  To Alwar and Back in a Heartbeat

  The yellow of her odhni, of the mustard in the breeze, of the unabashed sun. It is the color that follows you through the dusty roads that lead out of Delhi and towards Alwar, the ‘Gateway to Rajasthan’. Sitting to the north of the capital city Jaipur, this erstwhile princely state now beckons weekend free-wheelers […]
• January 23, 2015

  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 […]
• December 28, 2014

  The Royal Atelier: Preserving the Legacy of Miniature Paintings in Kishangarh

  Kishangarh is an erstwhile princely state founded by the Jodhpur prince Kishan Singh in 1609. Located at the centre of this now bustling town is the Kishangarh Fort, enveloped by the Phool Mahal Palace and the Gondulav lake beyond. The Fort, built in 1649, is an epitome of the Rajput and Mughal styles of architecture. […]