Alwar (earlier known as Ulwar), a city in Rajasthan, is believed to have been a part of the ancient Matsya mahajanapada that had its capital at Viratnagar (now Bairat). It is said that the Meenas were the first to settle in Alwar and build a mud fort and town, remnants of which are still seen scattered…
Category: india
The Dolls and Masks of Bengal: a depiction through pictures
The history of Bengal goes long back archaeologically, wherein tools from the Stone Age era dating back to almost 20,000 years have been found from various excavated sites. In historical texts, we find that the epic Mahabharata talks of this area as divided into different kingdoms: Magadha, Banga, Pundra, Anga, and Suhma. Each part was…
Gaganendranath Tagore- A forgotten part of Bengal Art History
Few days back I came across a news link that spoke of the recent installation of paintings by Gaganendranath and Abanindranath Tagore in the Victoria Memorial museum gallery (Kolkata). The first feeling was of immense happiness seeing the two artists finally receiving their due places in the hall of fame. The second feeling was of…
Paintings by the colonial era Company artist: SitaRam
During the late 18th century as the East India Company expanded its control over Bengal and parts of northern India, Indian painting technique and style underwent revolutionary changes. The Mughal style of painting using natural pigments and minerals were abandoned for the newly learned watercolour technique, and old painting themes that were based on historical…
Exploring the history of tea
Come, let us have some tea and continue to talk about happy things ~ Chaim Pot. “I say let the world go to hell, but I should always have my tea.” ~ Fyodor Dostoyevsky Origin of Tea – China or India? Some historians believe that tea originated in China and is said to have been…
Gwalior Fort in the heartland of India, Madhya Pradesh
The old State of Gwalior in India’s madhyadesa Standing amidst the forest clad ridges, low topped hills and plateaus, valleys, plains, and many rivers (Chambal and its tributaries), the old State of Gwalior in Central India has been a silent witness to many historical proceedings from times immemorial. Geographically the territory could be divided into two…
Visvesvara /Basheswara/ Bishweshwara Mahadev temple in Bajoura (Kullu, Himachal Pradesh)
While staying in Sarsai near Manali with my friend in early April this year, I came across photographs of the beautiful Baseswara temple (assigned to 9th c. CE built) located in the Bajoura town of the Kullu district. Despite grim warnings by my friend about how hot Kullu will be by late morning, and her…
Temple of Dance- the Ramappa temple complex in Palampet, Telengana
“The temple is a place of beauty, it is a place of revelation, it is a place of peace. It is the house of the Lord.” ― Howard W. Hunter The Palampet temples In a serene valley of the long forgotten village of Palampet, amidst vast crop fields, surrounded by wooded hills and a large lake, stands…
The Temple in Warangal Fort (A Photo Essay)
It had been a long day of travelling and exploring different Kakatiyan temples in the remote village of Pillalamari in Telengana, and when we finally journeyed towards the Warangal fort it was already late afternoon, and we had just a couple of hours in hand before the fort premises would shut down for the day….
Kakatiyan Dynasty- An Architectural Sojourn
“Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on to future generations. Our cultural and natural heritages are both irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration.” ~ UNESCO As I sat down to read the books and various journals that I had bookmarked in order to write on…
Moni Gāthā 