Today is Janamasthami, celebrated as the birth of the Indian god Krishna, let us take a small journey to the picturesque North Eastern state of Manipur. Why Manipur on Krishna's birthday? This is because Krishna is still celebrated here in every form, through religion, art, architecture and the beautiful Manipuri dance.
Adieu, Karni
Adieu, Karni With heart wrenching pain, I write this tribute for one of India's greatest and youngest museum directors, Karni Singh Jasol đ s I write this, Karni was spearheading one of the most exciting projects transforming Mehrangarh into one of the super best museums in the world, and we were waiting with bated breath for its unveiling. He had already co curated some of the worldâs most amazing exhibitions in the US, based on the Mehrangarh museumâs collection, he was on a spree to take Jodhpur to the world and winning.
Part 5: Rajmataâs legacy â¤ď¸
Part 5: Rajmataâs legacy Rajmata started the Maharaja Sawai Man Singh Vidyalaya, in memory of her departed husband in 1984... A true warrior, lover of freedom, Rajmata Gayatri Devi has empowered generations of women, men, society, state and a country like India. The links to all the 5 parts are given at the end of this post. Please comment on the blog posts. Thank you for reading đ
Part 4: Rajmata’s other love: the City Palace Museum, Jaipur
Part 4: Rajmata other love: the City Palace Museum, Jaipur I am lucky that I knew Rajmata slightly personally. She had heard of my father in London where he was pursuing his Phd at SOAS and on his return to his job as Deputy Keeper at the Indian Museum, Kolkata, she had tried to contact him. My fatherâs evil boss had thrown away Rajmataâs letters of invitation so when my father received a call from someone calling himself Maharaj Prithviraj from Jaipur inquiring why the letters were not replied to, Baba thought it was a prank by his evil boss. Then Maharaj Prithviraj met with him and that started a lifelong bond between them.
Part 3: A passionate affair begins
Part 3: A passionate affair begins The MGD School is located at Sawai Ram Singh Road on 26 acres of land, you cannot miss it. It houses separate buildings for the senior and junior schools, has two large playing grounds, a big stadium, a rose garden, a swimming pool, two basketball courts, a music and art room, five hostels for different ages, and a hostel for female faculty, several labs, an extremely well stocked library and an infirmary for the unwell girls. It still remains a girl school, a sanctuary for many.
Part 2: The Gayatri Devi âAandhiâ
Part 2: The Gayatri Devi âAandhiâ
...And, she arrived. In style.
Not because of her beauty, garments, jewellery, handbags, perfumes or shoes. But because when she reached Jaipur for her marriage, it is believed, she had told her husband that she would not follow him by three steps as all Rajasthani women had to but she would walk beside him. He agreed but also told her to be patient as it would take his court some time to accept someone like her.
‘Our’ Rajmata Gayatri Devi: a 5 part tribute to a visionary leader â¤ď¸
Rajmata
The word sends a shiver and thrill down every MGDian! For us, there is only one person who has earned this reaction. She is Rajmata Gayatri Deviji Sahiba, Queen Mother of the erstwhile royal state of Jaipur, the present capital of Rajasthan. Though she left us in 2009 she will continue to live in every breath we take, for generations âŚ
This series of five posts is a tribute to Rajmata, written to share with the world who she really was and what she represented for little girls from Rajasthan, a western desert of India, recognised for its valour, colour and cultural heritage. It is also a state that, today, even nearly 75 years after Indiaâs independence has one of the highest crime rates against women, an alarming number of child marriages and dowry deaths, and continues to practice the heinous crime of female foeticide (the killing of the girl child in the womb or immediately on birth, before they even take their first breath).
Shrey Purohit, the adventurer dreamer :)
"My paintings are a means of conveying hope, that reflects the community and comfort around the neighborhood,â says Shrey Purohit, who has won two PleinAir Salon Art Competition awards and then "donated and auctioned his prestigious 2021 PleinAir Salon Art Competitionâs best artist under 30 Award-winning âDowntown Near the Van Gogh Exhibitâ oil painting to raise funds for the homeless and needy in San Francisco." I am so excited because I had taught Shrey at a design school in 2017 in Mumbai.
Palash: the Flame of the Forest flower
'Palash' has many names in many languages. It's a very popular, loved and revered flower which sets forests on fire during late February and March in India. It is also known as the 'flame of the forest' or 'parrot tree' in English, 'tesu' 'dhak' and 'parasu' in some Indian languages. It mainly blossoms in the... Continue Reading →
Museum Memory #65: Mahima Jain
Museum Memory #65 by Mahima Jain at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Brussels. 19 February 2018 Dear Figure Tombale, I was in Brussels for just a day, a gloomy grey afternoon made magical with the burst of autumnal colours. After a walking tour and a disappointing time at the Manneken Pis, I decided to... Continue Reading →