EVENT DETAILS

What: Anvaya, an exhibition on India’s historic art, craft and textile traditions

Where: The Folly, Amethyst, No. 239 Whites Road, Royapettah, Chennai – 600014

When: 28–30th April, 2026

Timing: 11 AM – 8 PM

Who: Aabharnam Foundation

Aabharnam, a New Delhi-based craft foundation with a 75-year legacy in India’s textile ecosystem, presents Anvaya, an exhibition that explores themes of Indian mythology through historic art, craft and textile traditions. Curated by Neha Verma, a textile collector, cultural curator and third generation revivalist, this 3 day showcase, running from April 28 to 30, 2026 at Amethyst, Chennai, brings together rare, museum-quality pieces and contemporary interpretations of techniques inherited by 18 master artisans. It is envisioned as an intimate showcase for the city’s art connoisseurs, collectors and cultural patrons, offering them unprecedented access to heirlooms and the makers behind the country’s most enduring craft traditions.

“The exhibition started today on a beautiful and auspicious note with a graceful inauguration, marking the beginning of this much-anticipated showcase.”

“The exhibition,” as explained by Neha Verma, the curator, “is an assertion that Indian art, craft, and textile traditions, when nurtured with integrity, naturally transcends time.” At a moment when handcrafted traditions face mounting pressure from industrial replication and global homogenisation, Anvaya is a response and responsibility, towards the craft and the communities that have sustained it over centuries.

Mythology emerges as a visual system of storytelling, across the exhibition, unfolding through distinct regional practices. In Odisha’s Pattachitra tradition, Apindra Swain narrates episodes from the Ramayana and Krishna Leela in intricate detail on Pattachitra cloth using natural pigments, while West Bengal-based artisan Prashad Acharya renders exquisite Kantha embroidery, meticulously stitching tradition onto a variety of textiles. Made from repurposed fabrics, his work reflects sustainability and resourcefulness as a part of regional folklore and craft traditions.

Naveen Soni’s Pichwai paintings extend the devotional register through compositions centering the life of Shrinathji. Traditionally created as backdrops for temples in Nathdwara, the paintings bring together multiple narrative structured for viewing within a ritual setting. The visual language of mythology extends through Guna Sekhar’s Kalamakari work and Vijay Soni’s Sanjhi art which reimages the lores into an enduring art form.

From Pilkuhwa, in the plains of Uttar Pradesh, Arshad Kafil, whose forebears include Shilp Gurus and National Awardees, brings his reverence for nature as divine through his detailed carving of wood and brass pieces depicting the natural life around him. The intricacy of his work and the narration speaks to those who understand that the most valuable works are those rooted deeply in the history and the culture of a place yet designed for the present.

Anvaya arrives in Chennai as the foundation’s first independent showcase in the city, following two acclaimed editions at Jahan-e-Khusrau in Delhi — inaugurated by Honourable Prime Minister of India Shri Narender Modi ji in 2025 and Honourable Union Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh ji in 2026. At the heart of the exhibition are Aabharnam’s Banarasi and Chanderi saris, developed independently by women artisans who have practiced the weaves for generations. “These crafts haven’t survived by chance, but through the deliberate and quiet resilience of the hands that carry them forward, and the patrons who support them,” says Neha Verma, Aabharnam. Each sari reflects years of dedicated craftsmanship and cultural preservation, enabled through sustained socio-economic partnerships with the foundation.

Anvaya is not retrospective in the traditional sense, nor nostalgic. It draws from its Sanskrit meaning ‘lineage’, to present craft as a rare continuity of the traditions that have come to define India for centuries. In an era when luxury is often associated with speed and scale, Anvaya redefines it through patience, provenance, and permanence. Anvaya is, thus, a bridge between memory and mastery. It is continuity – curated.

About Aabharnam: Aabharnam is an Indian heritage craft foundation with a legacy spanning over 75 years. Rooted in the Verma family’s longstanding engagement with the arts, the foundation supports artisans across textiles and material crafts, with a specialized focus on women-led weaving communities in Banaras and Chanderi.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aabharnamfoundation/

Website: https://aabharnamfoundation.in/

Participating Artists: