Nina Paley

Nina Paley's , Sita sings the blues has done it's round on all of the desi blogs. But it hasn't got the proper gushing at Masala chai. This Brooklyn based animator and the Ramayana would probably have never have crossed paths if it weren't for her brief yet fateful move to Kerala.

Nina's musical explores Sita's side of the epic, in what she calls 'the greatest breakup story ever told'. A curvy, sensous, almost diva like Sita takes centre stage , illustrated in a wild mix of colours and emblems both ethnic & contemporary. Set to the 1920's jazz vocals of Annette Hanshaw, Sita sings the blues promises to be a fiesty visual journey through time.

I can't wait for it to show in India. The trailer looks all action packed and masalafied.

Dhruvi Acharya

From her Website :

Dhruvi Acharya's work is informed by her experiences, emotions and observartions of a life divided between New York and Mumbai (Bombay). Influenced artistically by Indian miniature paintings and contemporary comic books, the artist uses personal, pop-culture and ancient metaphors and symbolism to create the allegorical, narrative paintings.

Nidhi Jacob

I'm glad my friend Baliga, told me about Nidhi or fashionrookie as she is better known. Based out of Pune, her blog is one of the most original Desi fashion blogs I've read. Pretty & quirky , this fashionista , was given the"Most creative" award at her grad show . I've seen enough in her blog to know that this lady is a walking fashion statement as she teams her shorts with her churidar and her victorian blouse with a t-shirt. If this is the future of Indian fashion, I'm interested. Bye bye bollywood.

Indophile

Fashion & Design inspired by religion has always been on the fence in terms of acceptance, but I think if it's interpreted well, why not? I dig the cute Ganesh pillows .I guess it would be quite befitting to shop in a Lakshmi tote, seeing as she's the goddess of prosperity. Found them here via fly

Atish

I found Delhi based photography student Atish's beautifully expressive shots on flickr. I have stalked him since and had him accept to my featuring his images here. I especially love the one of the turbaned man, it's so stunning. You can see more of his images here

Farhad Hussain

Every artist picks symbols to evolve for himself a visual language that he uses to communicate with or express himself. Back when I was a wee lass , I was falsely made to believe that flat colours in a painting meant incompetence and amateurism . Of course this never sat well with me, not with my fixation for bright & simple forms. Today I have evidence to prove those myths wrong.

In a deft play of motifs,colours,pattern and skill; Farhad Hussain's cheery living room scenes arean excercise in complexity and far from flat. They are inhabited by leering beings whose smiles bely their wildly inappropriate co-inhabitants that lie about nonchalantly.While his work has been described as "The theatrical entwining of the sinister and safe",to me it's more of that too-much-candy queasy feeling.

Still, I love the paintings, they're replete with the possibility of many interesting back stories.Thats always a good thing.

Ultrabrown

Thank you Manish for the colourful ultrabrown mention !

Waris Ahluwalia

Indian born New Yorker Waris Ahluwalia might seem like an unassuming type to the average uncle, but he's far from it.

He owns his own design house called House of Waris that makes one-of-a-kind jewelry. We are talking handcrafted , diamond encrusted, made in Rome & Jaipur type one-of-a-kind jewelry. His latest collection consisting of knuckle rings , daggers , orbs, mesh and skulls; is very glampunk.

To make things more interesting - you've seen him here, here & here. The icing on the cake however is that Waris has done extensive charity work for AIDS and has made the cute little elephant pin in honour of the endangered animal.This man is obviously more than just a hip Sardar, he's a rockstar.

Mine

Moments documented on a trip to Mangalore. That dog was incredible.

Prashant Miranda

A couple of months ago, Channel V decided to unveil the face of emerging India. To investigate it's problems , it's pulse and it's possibilities ; they handpicked 6 avid bloggers to carry out a dialogue that spanned the country. These 6 scoured India, visiting it's various cities documenting their journey on a show called My India Report. I didn't really catch as much of it as I'd have liked to but I did catch enough to lead me to this marvelous character - Prashant Miranda.

This man truly lives his life as if it were art. Shuttling between Canada and India, he chronicles his everyday mundanities with such beauty. His words read like poetry and his images embody perfectly India's essence. If you want to know what I'm going on about, see for yourself - Prashant Miranda

Happily Unmarried

The boys at Happily Unmarried seem to be having just a little too much fun making a living. Based out of Delhi, Happily Unmarried creates a range of 'singledom' themed lifestyle products that are desi at heart with a cheeky twist. Although most products revolve around "recreational drinking" , I'll give them this- I'd have never thought of putting a zipper in a coconut & purely for that they get full marks for fun.

1. Sandaas Ashtray 2. Unreal Nariyal (coconut)

3. Lassi da Glass 4. Fridge Magnets




They retail at 47 stores across the country. Check out their website for more madness .

Dipali Bhattacharya

I first saw her paintings at a gallery that I do some freelance work for and I was really drawn to the subtle depth of them. Dipali Bhattacharya, a Calcutta/kolkata based artist creates beautiful visual poetry with her paintings. Her carefully constructed paintings often feature detailed portraitures of stoic women framed in convention. Surrounded by the monotony of an old city , there are gradual signs of progression and change. One wonders , what the deal is with all the flying birds - metaphor for freedom, independence? Probably. Thats the beauty of art, it can mean almost anything you want it to.

I don't know if its the kolkata connection, but her paintings remind me of the posters for The Namesake.

Diya Shankardass

Textile designer Diya Shankardass has been in the business for 10 years. This NID alumna is currently based in McLean,VA. Her design is meticulous and gorgeous. Love the earthy green/brown tones and intricate patterns. This collection, Summer Medley can be viewed in all it's splendour here . I can't wait to see more, maybe next time it will be blues & greens ;)

Kurien Kalarickal

I have the pleasure of personally knowing this young lad from Singapore. He is certainly a force to reckon with, there really isn't a lot he can't do.Photographer/Artist/Maverick Kurien is a self-taught shutterbug . His potraits have always been my favourites. Stark, compelling and sometimes very cheeky - they're just full of charisma and character.

There's more where that came from. Check out Kurien at his blog In the eyes of the beholder.

Chandan Crasta

I stumbled across Chandan Crasta's blog Urban Soliloquy , when I was looking for something else.I'd like to think of it as a serendipitous moment because it so happens that he is a designer and illustrator who does most of his work on book covers. Now I'm one of those design geeks who actually goes to book stores so I can check out whats new & pretty in the land of book sleeves. So you can understand why I love Crasta's work , it's simple, effective and absolute cover candy.

For instance :

You may recognise these :

Illustrations :

Check out Chandan Crasta's blogs here & here.

Nayanaa Kanodia

Mumbai based artist Nayanaa Kanodia has a style that is constantly refreshing and relevant without being contrived. In her latest works , she playfully pokes fun at the trappings of pop culture, the Elitist society that tries to keep up and the semantics of it all. Her works , heavily laden with references to the Modern, contemporary and renaissance masters of the world are both in satire and reverence. If not for anything , her colourful navigation of the common man through the sometimes perplexing world of art is entertaining, vivd and detailed.It's almost like a game of spot-the-master. See if you can.

1.An Obsession 2.Proud owners

3.The Choir 4. A break from the museum

Check out Art Alive Gallery to view more of her works.