SHP Feature's: December Roundup

Look's like I'm always playing catch up! Here's some really cool sites to shop online, that were added to the Shop Indian page on SHP a while ago.

 Aniika

Aniika is an online bazaar that serves as a platform for emerging Indian design talent to build their brands. Though moored in Indian tradition, the site features designers with a contemporary and global feel. 

 L to R: Bollywood Masti Playing Cards by Chumbak, Purple Kada Bag by Darshana Baindur, Ganesha Key Head by Chumbak, Mid-day at Raniket- Acrylic Painting- by Chandrama Nath, Hadwoven antique Zari clutch from Kye, Brushed Silver with Pearl Earrings from Silverphish

Aniika was co-founded in October 2011 by  Shamim T and Meghana Rao, and has it's presence in the U.S. and India. Please go here to check out more of their lovely curated products, and links to the designers that create them.

 Natural Mantra

Natural Mantra is India's 1st online store carrying only organic lifestyle products. It was founded by Nishant Nayak, who after returning from several years in the US found it difficult to continue his organic and green lifestyle in India.

L to R: 24 Letter Mantra Organic Flax Seeds, Organic Kid's Coldcare, Madurai Jasmine and Mogra Bath Salt, Rustic Art Power Laundry

Natural Mantra launched with providing natural baby-care products, the site has now expanded to covering all aspects of eco-living and home care. Please go take a peek at their unique products here.

Pret-Amoda

Pret-Amoda was founded by Ritika Walia after she moved back to India in 2009 due to the economic meltdown in London. Pret-Amoda was finally realized in 2010 after several rounds of talks with leading designers.

L to R: Jas Sandhu's Pop Art Stole, Lotus Pink's Ivory Cotton Silk Dress, Lotus Sutra's Turquoise Jhumkas, Rachana Reddy's Padma Teak wood clutch, Malaga's Silver Pouch with Kalgi Brooch, Agastya's Agate earrings

The site features wares by several leading designers and makes Indian designers more accessible. Take a peek at the gorgeous stuff available on Pret- Amoda.

Indiologie

Indiologie was founded, in October 2011, by Preeti Reddy, an MBA from Carnegie Mellon who moved back to India recently after a few years of working as a management consultant at Bain & Company in the US. 

It all began in December 2010, when Preeti was working on an indie movie project, and realized  the struggle of independent filmmakers to get noticed is not much different from that of other independent creative people – that they were all getting buried under the barrage of marketing from local and international brands. As consumers, we were settling for the least common denominator – things that would appeal to the largest majority - variety, taste and creative flourishes be damned. 

So Preeti Reddy and her colleagues took their movie platform and extended it to be an indie platform, with the intent to bring together indie-minded people and collectively give a boost to the indie.

A look at the results of the wonderful initiative.

Please go here to see more of their products.

Nuteez

Nuteez is a cool new leisure-wear band selling women and men's tees, pants and shorts. It is nice to see that somebody is finally targeting this niche, which is most often been ignored. Please go here, to shop some new tees... ahem I meant Nuteez- Sorry that was a pun, I really couldn't resist! 

{Credit for all images goes to the respective sites and the designers who retail with the brands}

Doors Only Please

Several years ago, back home in Madras, I came across a stunning piece of mixmedia artwork at Focus Gallery. A traditional old wooden doors that used to dot Tamil Nadu's agraharams, it made me rather nostalgic, as I grew up near an agraharam in Madras. I had fallen so in love with the piece, that I had never quite forgotten and could recall it years later in detail. A few months ago, I finally chanced upon the work again on Geetha's blog. 

Meet the mystery artist. Meet K.R. Santhana Krishnan.

Santhana first began painting doors in 1996 for a final year project for his Fine Arts degree. 16 years, approximately 40 shows and 800 paintings later he continues...

Reminiscent of his hometown of Kumbakonam, these classic wooden doors and the homes within are slowly becoming yet another nostalgic remnant of a bygone era. He was inspired by the the Bengali artist Sanjay Bhattacharya, who similarly painted interiors as viewed from the entrance.

Deprived of people, these half open doors give us a glimpse of the everyday objects and lives of its inhabitants. Entrances or thinnais, had a pivotal role to play in daily life- it was where guests were received and business conducted on the raised seating areas just outside the doors. Doors which were fully opened only if the guest was a close relative who could be welcomed into the inner courtyard.

 

A mix of acrylic on canvas and wooden models of doors (complete with old locks and stained glass), Santhan's eye for detail deserves high praise. His paintings capture the tiniest details that give us a window into the life of these agraharams- glimpses inside of aluminum milk cans, kerosene lamps, tulsi madams,  turmeric painted to the bottom of doors to keep away insects and bugs, milk accounts scratched on wood or faint white numbers painted outside by the govt., to denote that polio drops were given to a child in the house under the immunization program. 

His acrylic on canvas works, depict the vibrant primary colours usually chosen to paint walls and doors, the peeling plastered posters and advertisements painted just outside on the walls.

 The colour above was popularly known as mittai pink.

 As captured in the painting above, Santhana notes "In those days, they used stained glass or plain ones above the door to let the light in. But in the afternoon they would place usually pictures of gods to keep out the bright light."

Santhana has also painted traditional doors and glimpses of inner courtyards of homes in Rajasthan and Punjab.

To check out more of his stunning work please visit- His website, Facebook page or blog.

For those of you in Bangalore, his solo exhibition, "Traveling doors" is on at Kynkyny art gallery, from Jan 21st 2012 to Feb 9th, 2012.

{Credit for images of all the artwork goes to K.R. Santhana Krishnan}

San Francisco: A Hipster's Guide to Hinduism

San Francisco's Asian Art Museum is holding an exhibition of the artworks of artist and Pixar animator Sanjay Patel. Titled  Deities, Demons and Dudes with ‘Staches, the illustrations of Indian avataars and Maharajas are quirky and fun. 

I loved the pop-culture re-interpretation of Hindu mythology.

Also do check out his lovely illustrated book-The Little Book of Hindu Deities: From the Goddess of Wealth to the Sacred Cow.

The exhibition is on at the museum till the 22nd of April. While there, also don't forget to view the main exhibit- 'Maharaja: The Splendor of India's Royal Courts'- The exhibit includes over 200 artowrks, jewelery and other pieces that the Kings of India collected and commissioned. 

Thank you AR for the link!

{Image credit for all illustrations goes to Sanjay Patel}

Is An All Black Apartment the Answer?

I'm quite bored with the all-white-apartment-with-splashes-of-color look that has been omnipresent for the last two years or more. It has moved from being a design trend to a design staple, and it is now high time that it reached the 'Oh SO passé!' stage.

Here's a rather unusual and exotic answer- An all-black space owned by the TED speaker and international advertising consultant Cindy Gallop. I'm not quite sure if I like this as an alternative. What do you think? It used to be a Y, and her apartment was the swimming pool!

An interesting end note- Cindy Gallop also spearheaded a rather fascinating project, IfWeRanTheWorld. A real-world experiment in tapping good intentions and turning them into tangible, do-able microactions. As the site states- All of us can achieve more than one of us, and everything starts with a microaction. 

On that note of a belief in a greater good, I wish you all a wonderful weekend ahead!

RIP Bharati Chadha

While catching up on posts last night, it was with great shock that I read on Celebrations Decor that Bharati Chadha of E'thaan is no more. I had exchanged emails with her only a few months ago when I had purchased a masala dibba from E'thaan. I had written about it here before. Over my several interactions with her, she came across as a genuine, friendly and a really humble person. 

It is with great sadness that I note that this is the second such post on SHP, in the little over a year that I have been blogging. The young shouldn't die early.

My prayers are with Bharati's family.