

Indian maps, myths & travel legends
In conversation with professional geographer Dr Manosi Lahiri about the ways in which travellers have helped to draw the map of India
In conversation with professional geographer Dr Manosi Lahiri about the ways in which travellers have helped to draw the map of India
Conversations on the repatriation of museum objects continue to evolve and encounter new complexities
Fanny Parkes’s richly illustrated journals give us a sense of the freedom that the author experienced as a woman traveller in 19th-century India
Five books that showcase how the world once saw India
“I found myself going back to the different ways in which Ashoka was remembered and trying to understand how memories of him had been accumulating and eroding like the slabs of rocks on which he had left his words. I then decided to combine this with the fun and feel of his forms in Thailand,… Read more »
For our 36th edition of Sarmaya Spotlight, we bring you the most picturesque destinations, thrilling travel stories and colourful souvenirs from across the Subcontinent
Pichwai paintings were born in the temple town of Nathdwara in Rajasthan and centre the 8-year-old deity, Shrinathji
On the banks of the Dal Lake with a physician-turned-photographer-turned-mountaineer
From the Himalayas to the Nilgiris, the mountain slopes of India are home to hill-stations. Built by the British, these were sanctuaries designed to get them through sickness and long summers
Along the ancient Silk Road and the historic Grand Trunk Road lay a series of rest-stops and inns called sarais where caravans of travellers, pilgrims and traders could break their journey
One of Rabindranath Tagore’s most popular short stories, Kabuliwala, will be told once again in film. In this new remake, Mithun Chakravarthy will reportedly play the titular role of Rehemat, an itinerant merchant from Kabul, Afghanistan, who strikes an unlikely friendship with a 5-year-old girl during his yearly visits to Kolkata. Though it is fiction,… Read more »
Art historian Rajarshi Sengupta takes us on a tour of south India’s celebrated Kalamkari textile tradition
The Siddis are unique among the multicultural communities of the Deccan. Many arrived in India as East African slaves but their lives collided with the volatile politics of the region in ways that would birth new identities
“A thousand-and-some years ago, there arose in southern India an empire that was among the most remarkable the world had ever seen. It defied a myriad of obstacles, and yet, through all the struggles and violence, it also cultivated and refined an aesthetic sensibility of breathtaking beauty.” – Kamini Dandapani on her lecture for Sarmaya… Read more »
“From 600-1100 CE, the Deccan was arguably the Subcontinent’s cultural and economic centre of gravity and shaped its religious and artistic history. Its medieval contemporaries acknowledged its prominence, and understanding their world can teach us a lot about our own.” – Anirudh Kanisetti on his lecture for Sarmaya Talks. Anirudh’s talk took place on 17… Read more »
The Maratha identity, which took shape in the 8th century and continued to wield power even under British rule, is one of the most understudied aspects of Deccan history. Travel with us to meet its most influential architects
Like its culture, the geology of the Deccan too is incredibly diverse and supports a dazzling variety of life
Archive Director Organisation: Sarmaya Arts Foundation Location: Mumbai Duration: Full time Starting Date: Immediate Desired Skills and Experience Masters degree from a recognised university in arts/ humanities. Prefer candidates with 12 – 15 years of experience working in research or arts management and has managed programming in an arts or humanities organisation. Candidates with… Read more »
“Delhi in the time of the last Mughal emperors was the site of extraordinary intellectual activity, laying the foundations of a modernity that drew on both Western and Indian ideas.” Swapna Liddle is a historian with a special interest in Delhi. As a scholar, she has studied the development of Delhi as an imperial capital… Read more »
Moin Mir eloquently outlines for us the pillars or central tenets of Sufism