Mughal Sarais, where caravans & cultures mingled
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
Reads
Dig a little deeper into India’s art and heritage, uncover lesser-known stories and expert insight on everything from the popular to the esoteric.
India, G20 & the repatriation of cultural artefacts
Conversations on the repatriation of museum objects continue to evolve and encounter new complexities
Destination India, a reading list
Five books that showcase how the world once saw India
Mughal Sarais, where caravans & cultures mingled
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
Rabindranath Tagore’s ‘Kabuliwala’ to get a contemporary remake
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 »
India’s African History – The Siddis of the Deccan
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
“Echoes of the Land has been a revelation for us at Ojas”
In conversation with Anubhav Nath, founder of Ojas Art, on the collaboration with Sarmaya and the vitality of indigenous art
‘Sisters Who Watch Over Us’ – Telangana’s powerful local goddesses
Among the Dalits and Bahujans of South India, the seven sister-goddesses are revered as protectors of the land and preservers of its people. Meet the gramadevatalu of Telangana
Ripple effect
Two contemporary creators, Zishaan K Latif and Sahil Vasudeva, on how water flows through their filmmaking, photography and music practice
‘By saving our tigers, we saved our rivers too’
Did you know that most of India’s rivers originate in forests? To understand this invisible connection, we interviewed conservationist, naturalist, wildlife photographer and President of the Wildlife Conservation Trust, Dr Anish Andheria
Stepping into the underground splendour of Delhi’s baolis
Marvels of Medieval architecture, conservation and urban planning, baolis or stepwells have played an important role in defining the culture of Delhi
How to collect rare coins in India
We get experienced numismatists to answer some frequently asked questions about how to collect, decipher and research old and rare coins
Madras Talkies – Reading List
Titles from the Sarmaya library that will draw you further into the heart of Tamil Nadu’s culture through music, architecture, photography and art
Reeling them in – How Tamil cinema shaped politics
For over a hundred years, Tamil cinema has had its finger on the pulse of the region’s cultural and political life. Find out how this love story began and the chief protagonists who directed its course
The Curious Case of Chennai’s Elleesan & the Dravidian proof
A story about Francis Whyte Ellis, a British linguist whose study of law, land and language in the 1800s would influence the Dravidian politics of the 1900s
Sarmaya X TARQ: In conversation with Hena Kapadia
We spoke to Hena Kapadia about our collaboration and her own journey with founding TARQ. How did she come upon its winning formula? We have the answer to that and much more
Assam’s Mighty Ahom Dynasty
The Ahoms outlasted most other medieval Indian dynasties and gave their name to the state of Assam, but an account of their empire barely finds mention in mainstream culture. Here’s 10 facts that will get you curious to learn more about this northeastern empire
Age of Empires – Reading List
Understand Indian empires through their temples, art and even hairstyles in this reading list drawn from the Sarmaya library
Rock & Ruler: Golconda’s Trail of Diamonds
What the chain of diamonds trickling from the marketplaces of Golconda tells us about the dynasties that branded and traded, and won and lost them
Book of Kings: Early Mughal portraits in Muraqqa’s
Opulently gilded and calligraphed, filled with a patchwork of intricately detailed imagery, evoking wonder and awe, the muraqqa’ tells unforgettable tales of royalty