The mansions of North Kolkata described in Great Houses of Calcutta were built by the cream of the indigenous elite during the city’s colonial era. Some exceptions apart, these are now largely forlorn reminders of the ways of life, aspirations and aesthetic values of the wealthy Indian land owners, bankers and traders who flourished during the heyday of the city’s colonial era of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The houses are an important part of the urban and architectural history of Kolkata and are past representatives of the ongoing debate over what it means to be modern while representing a living culture in built form.
Taking off from Joanne Taylor’s widely acclaimed award-winning book The Forgotten Palaces of Calcutta and drawing from her thesis The Great Houses of Kolkata, 1750-2006, this book is a more comprehensive endeavor bringing in Joanne Taylor’s first hand experiences and research in Kolkata and Jon Lang’s knowledge of the broader context of architectural history and the attempts to display contemporary design attitudes in built form, not only in today’s changing world but also during India’s colonial and post-colonial eras.
The sheer number of unfinished stone monuments in India is staggering and examples appear at some of India’s most famous and well-studied sites that include rock-cut Ellora, Ajanta, and Mamallapuram. Unfinished work also appears on built temples celebrated for the intricacy of their sculpted decoration, such as those in Hoysala kingdom or in Orissa. This detailed study provides an overall coverage of India’s unfinished work while addressing a range of issues related to stone-carving by examining a select number of monuments at specific sites. Instead of focusing on a site in its entirety, the study here focuses on specific issues of consequence in the context of unfinished work, as they gain an added weight and significance through discovery of their repetitive occurrence at site after site.
At the heart of this book are the many varieties of unfinished stone carving that merit close observation to see what is there and what is not, and to appreciate that all the finished work has been through these various stages of being unfinished before reaching completion.
A total of 18 Indian photographers, all taking part in master classes directed by Wolfgang Zurborn, observed life in the up-and-coming cities of Ahmedabad and Kolkata. This photo book includes images of vibrant nightlife, neighbors living side by side, street poverty and working people. Regardless of the multi-faceted approaches of the photographers, they all explore existential issues and use their own individual perspectives to create an impression of their culture. This is a no-nonsense book devoid of folkloristic idealization.
Madras Then: The Story of Madras is the tale of several small villages that grew to become metropolis. In the sixteenth century, when the Dutch raised the price of pepper by 5 shillings, 24 merchants in London formed the East India Company in 1600 to corner the India trade. This event was to change the course of Indian history and to lead to the formation of several Indian cities, including Madras. A city of myth and historical importance, Madras and the region around the city has served as an important administrative, military and economic center for many centuries. With rare archival photographs from museums and libraries from around the world the book showcases a large number of photographs from private collections and tells a story of a city earlier also known as Blacktown. City of the oldest living language in the world, Chennai is different from the other three metros of India. A city also popularly called the cultural center of South India, Chennai is fast becoming home to some of the major global IT and automobile companies as well as India’s foremost center of medical tourism. A city of politics and films, Chennai has made Karunanidhi and Jayalalitha as popular as Rajnikanth and Kamal Hassan. From a lazy, sleepy Madras of the early twentieth century, the city is changing rapidly and this photo journey showcases the different facets of this beautiful city on the harbor.
India is a nation of conflicting realities, where the old and the new, the traditional and modern regularly coexist. Here, the artists are concerned not solely with telling their own tales but also with exploring what it means to live in a nation steeped in tradition.
Within the context of modern and contemporary India, works on paper offered artists a way of cultivating transnational modernist expression while continuing to explore the potential of a medium that had deeper roots in older artistic traditions native to the subcontinent. This volume features over 100 watercolors, drawings, etchings, sketches and lithographs by senior Indian modernists, born primarily before the 1950s and who came of age in the decades directly following Independence in 1947. These artists span the transition from colonial to post-colonial India, embracing both realism and abstraction, exploring complex metaphors, and making political statements that directly engage India’s past, present, and future.
With contributions by Tamara Sears, Michael Mackenzie, Paula Sengupta, Emma Oslé, Darielle Mason, Rebecca M. Brown, Jeffrey Wechsler, Kishore Singh and Swathi Gorle.
A jali is a perforated or latticed stone screen, with ornamental patterns that draw on the compositional rhythms of geometry and calligraphy. In the parts of India, western Asia and the Mediterranean where solar rays are strongest and brightest, ustads (or master artisans) were able to evolve an aesthetic language of light, giving it form and shape through lattices of stone and other materials. Jalis share a common aim of bringing filtered light into enclosed spaces, while providing protection and privacy.
The expansive volume covers more than two hundred jalis across India, from the temple-inspired designs of the Gujarat Sultanate to imperial symbolism and Sufi allusions in Mughal jalis, the innovations and adaptations of jalis across Rajasthan and central India and, further south, calligraphy in pierced stone in the Deccan. With contributions by Mitchell Abdul Karim Crites, George Michell, and Ebba Koch, this lavishly illustrated publication reveals the poetry etched in these stone screens.
Award-winning writer René Balcer is best known for his hit series Law & Order and Criminal Intent. Much less is known about his startling photographic work, shared only with his close friends and colleagues – until now!
This offers 500 photographs showcasing Balcer’s trademark crime scene aesthetic. The stunning images range from West Africa to the Utah desert, from a remote Arctic village to a seedy Brooklyn bar, with photos full of narrative mystery. There is a section on pre-Covid China, a China many say has since vanished. Also included is a unique homage to Balcer’s adoptive city of Los Angeles, and a ground-breaking photo-essay on Buenos Aires’ posh Recoleta neighborhood.
Marked by wry social commentary and breath-taking beauty and framed by insightful essays from noted Contemporary Art expert Robert Hobbs, renowned artist Xu Bing, and bestselling mystery writer Naomi Hirahara, these compelling never-before-seen photos are now presented in a glorious high-quality publication.
This exhibition and accompanying book show how contemporary artists are reinventing craft techniques, exploring identity and cultural history.
Embroidery, a skill passed down through generations, is central to this exploration. Traditionally practiced by women, it’s now embraced by both genders. The exhibition highlights the work of Madhvi and Manu Parekh, who draw inspiration from India’s rich spiritual and artistic traditions. Their works, ranging from paintings to sculptures, reflect the interplay between the real and the imaginary.
The Chanakya School of Craft works with these artists to reinterpret their work through embroidery. This fusion of art and craft challenges traditional boundaries and creates a dialogue between past and present.
One bowl meals are the answer to quick, simple meals that are well thought out, balanced and filling. Filled with grains, noodles, rice or millet, vegetables and protein, they serve as the perfect weeknight meal that is complete, can be made in individual portions, makes good use of leftovers and are extremely versatile. Bowl meals give you the flexibility to switch out ingredients based on dietary restrictions, healthy choices or personal tastes. Indian food offers a variety of flavors and opportunity to pair different flavors, techniques, marinades and ingredients. Chef Megha Kohli takes the principles of the traditional Indian meal and applies it to the popular ‘one bowl meal’ concept to give you recipes that are easy to follow, quick to whip up and in which eat bite offers an exciting combination of taste, textures and flavors.
The career of Y.G. Srimati – classical singer, musician, dancer and painter – represents a continuum in which each of these skills and experiences merged, influencing and pollinating each other.
Born in Mysore in 1926, Srimati was part of the generation much influenced by the rediscovery of a classical Sanskrit legacy devoted to the visual arts. Soon swept up in the nationalist movement for an independent India, she was deeply moved by the time she spent with Mahatma Gandhi. For the young Srimati, the explicit referencing of the past and of religious subjects came together in an unparalleled way, driven by the conscious striving for an indigenous agenda. This experience gave form and meaning to her art, and largely defined her style.
As John Guy demonstrates in this sumptuous volume, as a painter of the mid and late twentieth century, Y.G. Srimati embodied a traditionalist position, steadfast in her vision of an Indian style, one which resonated with those who knew India best.
Paper is undeniably a vehicle for the flowering of Indian art, literature, history and religion, but where did it come from? Who made it and how? What was their inspiration? How has this ancient craft survived in today’s India? Comprehensive and detailed, this book traces the nearly thousand-year history of hand paper-making in India.
While legumes, pulses and lentils are used in many parts of the world – North Africa, southern Europe, West Asia, China and the countries of Latin America – it is in the Indian sub-continent that they are cooked not just on a wide scale but also with unmatched culinary skills and imagination. The daal is a staple food of this region, consumed by all economic brackets at all times of the year.
This book is a tribute to the rich and awesome diversity of Indian gastronomic traditions. The recipes in the book – that include not only daal curries but also daal-based snacks, savouries and sweets – cover most regions and communities of India. It also includes several international lentil recipes. A deep knowledge of world cuisine and fine understanding of flavours have immensely helped in raising the bar of one of the simplest fares of the world.
The images presented in this book take us to the heart of India’s rich folk traditions. The display of paintings accompanied by recited or sung commentary has been a part of that heritage since very early times, as attested by references and legends in Sanskrit sources, such as the Harsacarita, a 7th century work by Banabhatta. Known as ‘patacitras’ (or ‘patas’ for short), these illustrated narratives are painted on rectangular fabric, paper, or scrolls. They are a type of performed art that reaches out to audiences, mostly in India’s rural provinces. They convey the artists’ responses to legends and social themes from varied social and cultural bases. This book focuses on a particularly powerful set of such paintings from the Bengali-speaking region of eastern India, which depict events from the Ramayana in the form of scrolls that can be rolled out as the story unfurls. The vividly colorful images presented in this book occupy a special niche in the history of Indian art. They are remarkable because they are not only aesthetically beautiful, but also act as pictorial translations of a text that has been part of Indian culture for years, often used as their source of moral guidance. Especially astounding is that these ‘patas’ by Bengali folk painters diverge so often from the magisterial Ramayanas of adikavi ‘First Poet’ Valmiki. They leave out important parts, and import into the Rama saga episodes from local narrative caches. Following conventions of both art and storytelling, these portrayals constitute what is now recognized as a tradition of rural counter-Ramayanas, which express alternative alignments of ethical judgment. Contents: Foreword – 9, Preface – 13, Ackowledgements – 15, Introduction – 17, The Narrative Tradition of Indian Painting and the Ramayana – 29, The Bengali Patuas: History, Background & Style – 41, Songs of the Patuas – 51, The Ramayana of the Bengali Patuas – 63, Book I – 70, Book II – 81, Book III – 83, Book IV – 92, Book V – 95, Book VI – 98, Book VII – 116, Summing up – 128, References – 131, Index – 135
House of Maskati chronicles a unique textile legacy, weaving together pan-Asian cultural threads and shifting patterns of trade over five generations and 160 years. The story begins in 1856, when Abdul Tyeb Maskati started a small business exporting block-printed cloth from India to Siam (as Thailand was then known). Before long, the cloth was being made to order, with Indian block-makers carving intricate designs especially for the Siamese market. Known as saudagiri in India and pha lai in Siam, this unique art form blends South Asian and Southeast Asian artistry and design. As one of its first and biggest producers, the Maskati firm expanded from Siam to Singapore, Cambodia, and Burma, and the name ‘Maskati’ became synonymous in Southeast Asia with this type of block-printed cloth. After consolidating his initial legacy, the descendants of Abdul Tyeb Maskati responded to diminishing opportunities in the pha lai market by diversifying their trade networks, products, and expertise. Under the leadership of his grandson, Abdultyeb Maskati (pictured on the cover), the family firm was transformed and extended its reach as far afield as Japan. Later still, after years of prudence under challenging political circumstances across the region, the business was transformed once more. Today, it continues with his great-great-grandsons at the helm and is run as two separate entities in India and Thailand – a geographical legacy of his initial idea to ship textiles from India to Siam 160 years ago.
Musicscapes: The Multiple Emotions of Indian Music is a visual diary, comprised of 30 years of photo documentation. It explores Indian music through the lens of the passionate photographer Shobha Deepak Singh. Shobha is a chronicler, dedicated to representing the musical zeitgeist of modern India in pictographic form. Retelling history through evocative black-and-white portraits, she displays the many moods, iconic moments and the ‘rasa’ of Indian music. From the maestros of vocal music, Balasaheb Poonchwale, Kumar Gandharva, Bhimsen Joshi, Kishori Amonkar and Shubha Mudgal; to legendary instrumental musicians, Bismillah Khan, Ravi Shankar, Amjad Ali Khan, Ali Akbar Khan, Vilayat Khan, Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Shiv Kumar Sharma, Ronu Mazumdar and Zakir Hussain; Shobha captures some of the boldest and brightest talents that have emerged from India’s diverse music community. Her unique visual language portrays these artists with a rawness and verve no other photographer’s camera could match.
Jangarh Singh Shyam was born in the early 1960s to an impoverished Gond family in rural central India. Discovered and nurtured by the renowned artist J. Swaminathan at Bharat Bhavan, the multi-arts center in Bhopal, Jangarh rose to global prominence after participating in a seminal art exhibition in Paris. After a brief career spanning only 20 years – and by then recognized as one of India’s greatest tribal artists – Jangarh committed suicide in 2001 at the age of 39. His work, informed by the Gond deities of his childhood, defied established categories and inspired a contemporary school of indigenous painting, which continues to attract admirers in India and abroad. Exploring his aesthetics, themes, and art historical relevance, this book also looks at the relationship between the artist and his early patrons, the collectors Niloufar and Mitchell S. Crites. Dr. Aurogeeta Das closely examines the huge body of work Jangarh left behind in The Crites Collection, enriching her study with references to works in other private and institutional collections. As such, she also captures early practices of collecting contemporary folk and tribal art in India. Contents: Preface by Mitchell S. Crites Patangarh to Paris, New Delhi to Niigata; Images I Samvega, Aesthetic Shock: Jangarh’s Artistic Evolution; Images II The Enchanted Forest: Jangarh’s Thematic Range; Images III Cataloague Raisonné: Paintings and Drawings from the Crites Collection.
Indian royalty’s passion for western luxury goods reached its peak at the height of the British Raj (1857-1947) as Indian rulers traveled to Europe and began to model their lives along western lines. Commissioning architects to design palaces in modern or historic styles, purchasing fleets of cars, and ordering their family jewels to be reset by the most skilled European goldsmiths, Indian princes established themselves as the new creative patrons of European high design. Based equally in the archives of firms such as Louis Vuitton, Boucheron, Chaumet and Hermès, and in palaces and private collections, this book examines the role of maharajas in an age of high spending and fashion. It brings together original designs with surviving objects, and, for the first time, looks at the creative dialogue between Indian princes and the skilled tradesmen who satisfied their desires. Paired with the objects themselves are absorbing and often humourous accounts of how maharajas indulged their tastes with unparalleled extravagance and aplomb. Rich in anecdotes and visually splendid, Made for Maharajas brings alive the extraordinary lavish, varied and sometimes implausible works commissioned by princes whose wealth knew no bounds and whose eccentricities were legend.
Sikh Heritage, with a foreword by Hardeep Sigh Puri, is a succinct and delightfully photographed glimpse into the community’s religion, its ten gurus, its temples, traditional systems of governance, history, architecture, and the famous Golden Temple. This book traces the history of the valor and devotion of the Sikh community, which forms less than 1 per cent of India’s one billion population, yet produces over 50 per cent of the country’s food reserves. Despite the brutal assaults of history faced by the Sikh community – such as the partition of Punjab – they still maintain the merit of their heritage. Looks at how the thriving Sikh diaspora has spread across the globe; and how they always took the words of the gurus with them wherever they went. This work has captured the relics that have borne witness to the establishment of the Sikh community and identity. Most of these heritage objects associated with the gurus are in private collections or in gurdwaras. A photographic documentation of the Sikh historicity through objects both in time and space, such as the beautifully captured images of Takhats or temporal seats of the Sikhs, portray a unique relationship between the edifice and the Sikhs – thus, each photograph is a story in itself. This new approach aims at the conception of Sikh heritage not only as the sacred masterpieces of the past to be valued and conserved, but also as emblematic and living spaces to be appropriated by the local communities who are the bearers of a rich and active collective memory.
The book dives into the history of sedition and censorship in colonial India. Closely examining 100 texts that the British Empire banned, censored or deemed seditious, the work brings to life these lost gems from India’s freedom, cultural, and social movements. It includes writing by figures famous and obscure, of events immortalized and forgotten, by Indians and non-Indians, by people jailed and free, by politicians and missionaries, by travelers and novelists, and in several Indian as well as European languages. Each excerpt illuminates not just its author’s thought processes, but the times in which it was composed and circulated.
Bringing you vegetarian wholesomeness and stories from India, Thali is an immersive tour into India’s culinary landscape. As one of the largest consumers of a vegetarian diet in the world today, many Indian communities in the plains and the peninsula have depended on the huge variety of healthy local produce rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains, and cereal due to suitable climatic conditions over generations. There’s a diversity of food available for every occasion, season, festival, age, region and even the day of the week – you name it. Exquisitely designed, with 70 easy-to-make quintessentially Indian recipes, Thali will make your mouth water and jaw drop with histories of India’s places and people telling you who they are and why they eat what they eat. Doctor, nutrition expert, wellbeing advocate and columnist, Nandita Iyer is the author of three bestselling books. She has been writing on nutrition, health and food for over 15 years. Since 2006, her popular blog, Saffron Trail, has been a major resource for healthy food and vegetarian recipes.
The Herbal Sutra: Indian Wisdom and Wellness through 100 Herbs is a journey into the heart of India’s herbal legacy. A stunningly illustrated compendium of 100 of India’s most illustrious herbs, the book documents their ancient wisdom, versatile applications and remarkable benefits. From haldi (turmeric) – a powerful antiseptic that is widely used for beauty rituals and for its anti-inflammatory goodness to jamun (Indian blackberry), a rich source of vitamins and antioxidants, and the kokum (butter tree) prized for its sweet and tangy taste, a reliable savior from the summer heat, these herbs form India’s rich heritage, offering a wealth of benefits. Harnessing the power of these herbs accompanied by illustrations that are inspired by India’s hand block printing tradition, this beautiful book sheds light on how to live better, eat better and make holistic choices using these sacred herbs that have been a part of our generational wisdom.
The history of Mughal glass has been predominantly neglected, leading scholars to speculate as to whether these spectacular specimens are European imports, made from European glass but decorated in India, or of entirely Indian manufacture. Mughal Glass: A History of Glassmaking in India delves into these questions while simultaneously exploring the development of new glass recipes, the impact of increased maritime trade, the Mughal emperors’ penchant for luxury goods, and the influence of colonial consumption in India. With a comprehensive catalog of Mughal glass objects gathered from both public and private collections around the world, this book stands as a definitive work, offering an authentic account that sheds light on a long-neglected aspect of Indian history.
Everyday Indian Aesthetic is a unique documentation of India, depicted through aesthetics as seen in architecture, adornments, objects, colors, textures, patterns, and typography. It celebrates the diversity of the country while highlighting the identities and functionality associated with everyday design. With more than 400 photographs taken during Sayali Goyal’s travels around rural and small-town India, she invites you to take a personal journey and interpret the richness of Indian design that is based on form and functionality with an element of the unusual. This photo book will let you wander through the pages without restricting the way you see and discover how design has the capacity to document cultural exchange whilst holding the past in the present.