Shaam-e-Sarhad: A day at a border village in the Rann
In January this year, we were in Gujarat to be part of the Rann Utsav. The festival held in the Rann of Kutch from November to February each year attracts several tourists. We were to spend an…
Soof and Khaarek: Ways to select a bride?
“I hadn’t seen my wife before my wedding”, says Mukeshbhai. “But I was sent several samples of embroidery made by her. That told me so much about her.” We are at Kala Raksha in Sumrasar Sheikh village,…
Maata ni Pachhedi: Celebrating the Mother Goddess
Somewhere among the pages of a thirty year-old diary, which I maintained as a schoolgirl, I still have “Maata ni Pachhedi” scrawled. The diary had questions from Quiz Time and India Quiz, and everytime Siddhartha Basu asked…
The art of Rogan block printing
We were in Ahmedabad and my friend Deepa asked us if we would like to see the craft of Rogan block printing. So we hired two auto rickshaws and went off to find Khan Chowk. After some…
Lippankaam: Kutch’s mural art
We travelled into the interiors of Kutch and the walls of the mud houses that we saw all had beautiful murals on the exterior. This art of wall decor embedded with mirrors is called lippankaam. Lippankaam is…
The dazzling Sun temple at Modhera
I couldn’t have chosen a more significant day to visit the Sun temple in Modhera. I was there on the auspicious day of Makar Sankranti. The temple’s intricate architecture dazzled my eyes, as much as the sun…
Colourful spectacle at the International Kite Festival
I had hear about the International Kite Festival from my friend, Chetna, several times, but travel plans never seemed to work out. However this year finally, I was lucky to be in Ahmedabad right in the middle…
Passage through history: Heritage walk in Ahmedabad
We happened to be in Ahmedabad to attend the convocation ceremony of my niece Jyotsna at the Indian Institute of Management. Since we had an extra day in Ahmedabad, we were wondering how to spend it, and my…
