Myths are born and heroes are made through the art of storytelling. When a bard travels from village to village narrating tales of a local event or a minor god, they’re scattering the seeds that will one day grow into a towering forest of legends. Generations will take shade and find inspiration here. This month,… Read more »
Read more ...WATCH: Performances of Bengal Patua, Phad & Tholubommalaata
Ancient Indian Games & the Stories They Tell
The Never-Ending Story
We look at three indigenous art forms from the Sarmaya collection and listen to the timeless tales that animate them
Read more ...Now Reading: Families, the good, the bad and the insane
WATCH: A heartwarming follow-up to our Lucknow workshop
Our February workshop at KK Academy, Lucknow lit the spark for a summer of art, performance and fun
Welcome to the bazaaar-e-husn
Meet the cultured, witty and charming ladies and lads of Delhi’s erstwhile marketplace of desires
Read more ...The Delhi You’ve Never Seen
See the city as it once appeared from the vantage point of these vanished, obscured or simply forgotten sights—resurrected from the Sarmaya archives.
Read more ...By The Book
The five most compelling portraits of Delhi as drawn by some of its best known writers, artists and historians
Read more ...Delhi Diaries
Over centuries, Delhi has come to mean different things to different people. It has drawn saints and scholars, conquerors and traders, refugees and royals to its fertile lands with the promise of shelter, warmth and a place to dream. These dreams were not modest, either. The saints sought spiritual absolution and the conquerors, world domination.… Read more »
Read more ...Sufis, Dargahs & Divinity in Delhi
Some of Sufism’s most charismatic leaders called Delhi home in the 13th and 14th centuries. Get to know these marvelous mystics
Read more ...Now Reading: Divine gardens, a unflinching memoir & a feast of art
Forgotten saint
Sarmad Kashani is one of the most enigmatic figures ever to be buried in the city of Delhi
Read more ...WATCH: The history of magic at the Ashmolean
Virtually priceless
Return of the Goddess
Rainy day heritage walks
Indian Art Breaks Free
While a new nation was finding its feet in 1947, a small group of artists was formulating its visual language. Meet the Bombay Progressives in the Sarmaya collection
Read more ...Now Reading: Highly literary SMSes, searing YA fiction & tales of the rich
India & Independence
As Independent India turns 71, we look back at the movements that won us our freedom, the struggles that have held us back and the symbols that give us strength. We journey with Delhi as it steps from the medieval world to the modern; we see India through the eyes of historical map-makers; and we… Read more »
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