From Turbans to Top Hats: The Transformation of Magic in India
by John Zubrzycki

Alexander: The Man Who Knows (that You Don’t Know)
by Chris Goto-Jones

Deathly Eyes, Wily Cats: Witchcraft in Eighteenth-century Jodhpur
by Akhila Mathew

The Power of Magic in Bengal
by Biren Bonnerjea

An Exiled King in his Mimic Kingdom
by Mrinalini Vasudevan

A Constructed Fairyland: Wajid Ali Shah and his Parikhana
by Parul Singh

Garden of Unreason: Paula Sengupta on Wajid Ali Shah
by Mrinalini Vasudevan

A Farman of King Wajid ‘Ali Shah of OudhA Farman of King Wajid ‘Ali Shah of Oudh
by Rai Bahadur Prayag Dayal

Finding Traces of One’s Self: Meena Kumari’s Poetry and Biopic
by Neerja Deodhar
Meena Kumari’s verses break through the ‘tragedienne’ mould imposed on her, revealing her sensitive nature and romantic disposition.

Cinema Parables from Bengal and Beyond in Tarun Majumdar's Writing
by Madhuja Mukherjee
The director’s autobiography, Cinema Para Diye, provides valuable insights into the creative labour practices and human networks that shaped the Bengali film industry during the 1950s-1980s.

Make it Large: A (Dialectical) Leap Back into Action
by Damini Kulkarni
Returning in-person for the first time in three years, Mumbai’s Jio MAMI Film Festival has assumed a significantly different identity in its 23rd edition.

Arun Khopkar on Prak-Cinema
by Vasudha Chatterjee
A lecture based on the director’s latest book, Prak Cinema, explored elements from older aesthetic traditions that served as proto-cinema.

How Stage can Serve the Screen
by Prithviraj Kapoor
In this 1952 archival essay, Prithviraj Kapoor addresses the need for theatre and cinema to come together to capture the realities of newly independent India.

Jawan and the ‘Doubling’ of Shah Rukh Khan
by Bindu Menon Mannil
On the melodramatic trope of the double role in Khan’s latest vigilante film, which celebrates the stardom of the actor while delivering a timely political message.

Cigarettes, Scarves and Morality: Dev Anand’s Early Crime Films
by Sucheta Chakraborty
The writer revisits Dev Anand’s crime films of the 1950s during his birth centenary.

Waheeda Rahman: A Screen of Her Own
by Sayandeb Chowdhury
On the journey of Waheeda Rahman, the newest recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke Award.

In Remembrance: Kavita Singh (1964-2023)
by Saloni Mathur, Jyotindra Jain, Parul Dave Mukherji and Deepti Mulgand
Colleagues, collaborators and students remember Kavita Singh's vitality and intellectual engagement iin India’s cultural sphere.

Theatre Mementos: Reading Bengali Theatre Playbills from the 1940s
by Amreeta Das
These playbills provided insights on the socio-political world of the times and the lives of lesser-known stage practitioners. (2023)

Tracing Ravishankar Raval’s Art Pedagogy in the Gujarati Periodical Kumar
by Vasvi Oza
Ravishankar Raval advocated for new approaches to art education in colonial India through the magazine, Kumar. (2023)

The Santiniketan School of Art
by Benode Behari Mukherjee
The article traces the significance of the Kala Bhavan in the evolution of modern art in Bengal while exploring the impact of Abanindranath Tagore and Nandalal Bose. (1935)

Past and Future Lives of an Institution:The Hindu/Presidency College Archive
by Sandipan Mitra
On the processes of maintaining, curating and preserving institutional histories. (2023)

Indian Art and Ideology
by Asit Kumar Haldar
The article explores the close relationship between the study of Indian philosophy, the use of symbolism and the development of Indian art. (1951)

A Great Friend of India: Robert Skelton (1929-2022)
by Gulammohammed Sheikh
From their first meeting at the V&A in the 1960s, Gulam Sheikh reminisces about the legendary museum curator and scholar of Indian art, with whom he shared a six-decade-long friendship.

Correspondence between Gulammohammed Sheikh and Robert Skelton (1966-1994)

In the rich exchange of letters between Sheikh and Skelton, we are given insights into Skelton’s travels and research in Indian painting.

The Alipore Museum: Caught in a Grey Zone
by Mrinalini Vasudevan and Namrata Ghosh
The conversion of Kolkata's Alipore Jail into a museum raises important questions about the repurposing of heritage sites in public spaces.

'Renovations' at Jallianwala Bagh

Gurmeet Rai speaks to Gayatri Sinha about the changing attitude to monuments and memorials, Jallianwala Bagh and issues facing the revamping of Sabarmati ashram.

Objects and Their Journeys: In Pursuit of the Provenance of Things
by Jyotindra Jain
The author explores the rising debate around the restitution of cultural heritage, the ethics behind collecting practices in museums and the evolving definition of “provenance” in this context. (2021)

Interview with the curatorial team of the SCO Virtual Exhibition in National Museum, Delhi
by Critical Collective
On the pioneering virtual exhibition showcasing the shared Buddhist heritage of the SCO countries. (2021)

Jane Lombard Prize 2020-22 for Avni Sethi and The Conflictorium Museum
by Sandhya Bordewekar
The writer makes the case for spaces that open up histories of individual and collective trauma. (2020)

"We need to find new ways of engaging the public imagination"
by Critical Collective
Tasneem Mehta speaks to CC about museum and conservation practices in the face of a global lockdown. (2020)

Framing the Grand Historical Narrative of Indian Cinema
by Damini Kulkarni
The NMIC frames cinema less as an art form and more as a national legacy, writes Kulkarni. (2020)

A Tryst with History
by Arundhati Chauhan
A survey of cultural projects and initiatives announced in the last few months that suggest a move afoot to overhaul India’s museums sector. (2020)

Invisible Threads
by Nadia Nooreyezdan
Mycelial Legacies brings together works by 30 women alumna of the Baroda School, allowing us to trace their impact and make connections that might otherwise have remained hidden.

Silent Seasons: A Review
by Gayatri Sinha
Building on her previous engagements with environmental change and the age of the anthropocene, Vibha Galhotra's latest work foregrounds an apocalyptic vision of the plight of the last man standing.

A Review of Postcards from Home
by Bharati Chaturvedi
Through her on project, Manisha Gera Baswani documents stories of Partition from artists who trace their roots to India and Pakistan.

Divergent Horizons: An Exhibition of Contemporary Indian Art from the Regional Centre’s Collection since 1990
by Suresh Jayaram
On the commonalities of genres employed by contemporary artists in the production of their artworks.

Kochi Biennale.. a decade later, a work in progress?
by Gayatri Sinha
The recent storm within the Kochi Muziris Biennale raises the question, is the event too big to fail?

Kochi Student Biennale, 2022
by Sohorpem Kazingmei
The 2022 Kochi Students’ Biennale finds itself in the throes of ‘process’. Where does it lead?

The Opening of the Museum of Art and Photography (MAP): Interview with L N
by Gayatri Sinha
Altering the museum skyline in Bengaluru, MAP draws on a rich personal collection to stage new narratives in art history.

Sheetal Gattani: Flying Below the Radar, with 50 Layers of Pigment
by Gayatri Sinha
The haptic processes that Gattani employs on painted surfaces lend her work a tantalizing depth and luminosity.

Endnote
by Mortimer Chatterjee
The catalogue essay closely examines the art of Aditya Pande which encourages viewers to consider the processes involved in its creation.

Home as Studio
by Sudhir Patwardhan
The artist reflects on the influence of family narratives within domestic spaces on the artworks for his 2011 exhibition at Sakshi Gallery.

Raghav Kaneria
by Critical Collective
Looking at the artist’s body of work which ranges from sculptures, drawings and murals to serigraphy and photography.

Lalit Mohan Sen
by Manu Thacker and G. Venkatachalam
A biographical note on Lalit Mohan Sen and progression of his works from using traditional Indian styles to adopting a more Western approach to this art. (1950)

For Recipients Unknown (bottled message, with return address)
by Chaitanya Sambrani
Jitish Kallat’s 2020 show, Terranum Nuncius explores the theme of conversing with the unknown.(2022)

Altar- A Photographic Exhibition
by Ram Rahman
In a review of the 2009 show Altar, Ram Rahman writes on the relationship between photography and architectural spaces explored by the artist Samit Das. (2009)

Pratima Devi
by Manu Thacker and G. Venkatachalam
The authors profile the painter Pratima Devi and the influence of the Tagore family on her artistic practice. (1950)

Making Emptiness
by Homi K. Bhabha
Anish Kapoor’s engagement with the concept of space, voids and absence/presence points towards a “quality of an excessive, engendering emptiness” prevalent in his work. (1988)

Drifting Threads: Cholamandal Artists’ Village over fifty years
by Ashrafi S Bhagat
Ashrafi Bhagat traces the past, present and future of the Cholamandal Artists' Village in Chennai.

How to Feel a Leak?
by CAMP
CAMP elaborates on their work, THE RADIA TAP(E)S as part of The Ungovernables, New Museum, New York Triennial (2012).

CONA: Points of Reflection
by Hemali Bhuta
Hemali Bhuta on the founding of CONA as a pedagogical structure for artists.

New Group: In conversation with Amitava Das and Mona Rai at New Delhi, April 23, 2014

Amitava Das and Mona talk about the formation of the New Group in 1974.

The Calcutta Group - Its Aims and Achievements
by Prodosh Das Gupta
Prodosh Das Gupta highlights the premise of founding the Calcutta Group in 1940.

Indian Society of Oriental Art
by James H. Cousins

Society of Contemporary Artists, Kolkata, 1960

Calcutta Group, 1943

Conversation with Gigi Scaria
by Sohorpem Kazingmei
The artist highlights the centrality of city landscapes in his work, while speaking of his experiments with printmaking as part of his artistic process.

On Nature and Abstraction: An Interview with Ganesh Haloi
by Namrata Ghosh
The artist talks about how his early life and experiences greatly influenced his practice.

how many songs from a single note?
by Shaunak Mahbubani
Shaunak Mahbubani interviews artist, Rah Naqvi about her recently closed exhibition, how many songs from a single note?

Today is Better than Yesterday: In Conversation with Surekha
by Mallika Visvanathan
Surekha speaks about her recent works displayed at 1Shanthiroad, Bengaluru, made in response to the feelings of stagnation and loss which characterized the first waves of Covid-19.

Pieces of Home: In conversation with Tanmoy Samanta

The artist discusses his latest series of works created in the midst of the pandemic, which reconsider the ideas of home and earthly existence, using pigment, rice paper and shape-shifting collages.

Walking with the Waves
by Gayatri Sinha
Atul Dodiya speaks to Gayatri Sinha about his watercolours on display at the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, which reveal his responses to the pandemic and his views on asceticism, nature and art history.

In conversation with Ravi Agarwal

CC speaks to artist Ravi Agarwal about the relationship between art and ecological activism in informing the curatorial vision of his recent exhibition 'New Natures: A Terrible Beauty is Born'.

In Conversation with Randhir Singh

On photographing buildings across Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, as part of “The Project of Independence: Architectures of Decolonization in South Asia, 1947-1985,” at the MoMA.

The House as Stage: Keyabat Meye and the Lives of Bengali Women
by Namrata Ghosh
The queer-feminist collective, Samuho explores the changing position of Bengali women in 19th-century society.

Women’s Voices in Shah Abdul Latif’s Risalo
by Lara Scaiola
Sindhi and Punjabi folktales with beguiling heroines are transformed into spiritual allegories in the medieval Sufi poetry of Shah Latif.

The Cult of the Old Lady
by Nanimadhab Chaudhuri
The archival essay examines worship of an imageless tribal deity of eastern India and the response of tribal religions to the increasing pressures from Hinduism.

Foregrounding Women's Realities in Documentary Cinema: A Conversation with Uma Chakravarti
by Umara Zainab
Uma Chakaravarti unpacks her own journey as a feminist filmmaker.

Reclaiming the Aging Female Star: Zeenat Aman and Rekha
by Mrinalini Vasudevan
Two recent Vogue cover stories provide fertile ground for revisiting the actresses' lives and careers, while championing the female gaze and voice.

The Adventurous Career of Ghasiti Begam
by Krishna Kanta Misra
A biographical profile on the life of Ghasiti Begum and her political interventions in the court of Siraj-ud-Daulah, Nawab of Bengal. (1949)

Three Moghul Ladies
by N A Khundkar
Examining the positions of female figures in the Mughal imperial court, the author elaborates on the lives and contributions of Nur Jahan, Mumtaz Mahal and Jahanara Begum. (1947)

Chand Bibi of the Deccan: Falconry, Feminine Power and Mobility
by Sarah Waheed
On the association between the empress Chand Bibi and falconry in poetry and painting as symbolic of her sovereignty and female agency.

Anandavardhana's Treatment of Aprastutaprasamsa
by P. K. Narayana Pillai
The essay discusses the degree of novelty in Anandavardhana’s theory of dhvani, and the rhetorician’s opinions regarding the contributions of his successors towards the theorization of dhvani. (1957)

A Critical Survey of the Ancient Indian Theatre Accordance with the Bharata Natyasastha and its Commentators
by Subba Rao
Construction of ancient Indian theatre, as propounded in Bharata's Natyashastra is interpreted in an objective manner by comparing the theoretical with the practical aspects. (1953)

An Outline of Indian Aesthetics
by Nagendra
On the various speculations pertaining to the nature of Beauty in the Indian context and the contribution of Indian poetics and philosophy in its formulation. (1934)

The Dynamism of the Indian Concept of Rasa
by K S Ramaswamy Shastri
On the concept and origin of Rasa in Indian aesthetics and the development of its elements. (1935)

Some Modern Critics and Ancient Texts on the Aesthetic Value of Hindu Images
by N.V. Mallavya
On the aesthetic and iconographical aspects of ancient Indian sculpture as outlined in the Agamas and Shastras. (1942)

Anandavardhana’s Treatment of Pratibha in Relation to Dhvani
by K. Krishnamoorthy
On the concept of Pratibha or creative imagination brought about by the agency of Dhvani. (1950)

Peculiarities in the Alamkara-Section of the Agni-Purana
by Suresh Mohan Bhattacharya
On the unique modes of treatment accorded to Alamkara and its constituent elements in the Agni Purana. (1960)

Studies in Dhvanyaloka, the Adivakya in Dhvanyaloka
by V.A. Ramaswami Sastri
On the importance of dhvani in communicating the essence of emotion inherent in poetry and drama. (1955)

Parvez's performative gestures:The subversion of the capitalist art economy
by Deeksha Nath
The author writes on performance and lens based artist Parvez’s seven month long project in Switzerland questioning the presumptions around audience interaction and the sites of art presentation.

Restless Creations: Adeela Suleman's Art for Social Change
by Virginia Whiles
Virginia Whiles speaks with sculptor Adeela Suleman on her use of found objects and dark humour in her work, as a way of exploring social and ecological violence, tragedy and censorship in Pakistan. (2021)

Positionings
by Salima Hashmi
With Bani Abidi's nomination for the Böttcherstraße prize, Salima Hashmi writes on a generation of Pakistani women artists' work "as a site for mutinous content and personal empowerment.” (2020)

TANTRA: Enlightenment to Revolution
by Virginia Whiles
The author reviews the ongoing exhibition at the British Museum through a ‘socially distanced’ critique, following online talks and exchanges with colleagues. (2020)

Contesting and coalescing voices from Dhaka Art Summit
by Mustafa Zaman
In its 5th edition, DAS invited the voices of different communities, giving them a chance to articulate in their own terms, the legacies of colonial/postcolonial modernity. (2020)

Lahore Biennale: ‘between the sun and the moon’
by Virginia Whiles
The second Lahore Biennale stages a polyphony of artistic voices weighing in on the shared cultural and political history of South Asia and the Middle East. (2020)

Bani Abidi: Funland

Curators Hoor Al Qasimi and Natasha Ginwala on a major survery of Bani Abidi's works exhibited at Sharjah Art Foundation. (2019)

Sharjah Diaries | In Conversation with Nidhi Mahajan
by Gayatri Sinha
The curator on her installation-performance "Silences and Spectres of the Indian Ocean." (2019)

Doing History at a Slant: Remembering the Kasauli Art Centre
by Arushi Vats
A review of Belinder Dhanoa’s Kasauli Art Centre (1976-1991) (New Delhi: SSAF-Tulika Books, 2023)

Book Review: Postnational Perceptions in Contemporary Art Practice
by Kamayani Sharma
Bindu Bhadana examines the art of Chitra Ganesh, Tejal Shah and Nikhil Chopra.

Pushpamala N. and "the Artistic Ways of Viewing the Sacred"
by Annapurna Garimella
The book is a collection of articles reflecting on Pushpamala N.’s reimagination of popular images within the framework of nationalism and motherhood.

Book Review: The Vanishing Point
by Hemant Sareen
The Vanishing Point, edited by Rashmi Devi Sawhney, brings together filmmakers, theorists, and moving image artists to trace the peripatetic afterlife of celluloid in India.

Modernism/Murderism: Remembering a ‘Forgotten Debate’ on Modern Art!
by Sandhya Bordewekar
The book looks at the debate on Modern Art between Pherozeshah Rustomji Mehta and Jyoti Bhatt, from the pages of Kumar.

Readings on the Temple: Review of Marg's 75th Anniversary Volume
by Pika Ghosh
This review focuses on a volume of Marg's archival essays on the evolution of temple-building, iconography and worship in India.

Moving Beyond Pain: Review of Vasudha Thozur’s Diaries, Projects, Pedagogy
by Meera Menezes
Conceptualised as “montaged text and image documents”, the book provides insights into Thozhur’s painterly concerns and thought processes.

Review of 20th Century Indian Art (2022)
by Sandhya Bordewekar
The book traces almost 150 years of art historical events that informed the evolution of Modern, Post-Independence and Contemporary Art across South Asia.

Media / Materiality / Comics: Conversations with Three Graphic Artists
by Arunava Banerjee
The author interviews three artists on the potential of comics to generate different trajectories for art, media and reportage.

What’s Going Wrong with Thanjavur’s Chola and Maratha Legacies?

Even as cinema screens light up to Chola supremacy, their material heritage needs urgent attention.

Drawing Dissent: The Evolution of Editorial Cartooning in India
by Neha Yadav
With their potential to speak truth to power, political cartoons in the print media represent the last stand in a severely compromised media landscape.

Resistance of the Everyday Kind

Artist Orijit Sen speaks with Srinivas Aditya Mopidevi about satire and resistance over time and how new avenues of circulation such as Instagram have altered his approach to art making.

Comics, Cartoons and the Politics of Censorship in Digital India
by Debanjana Nayek
Granting a substantial amount of liberty to cartoonists to create and share their work with a large audience, digital viewership also generates new forms of censorship and bullying.

Current and Future Imprints in Jaipur’s Textile Landscape
by Mrinalini Vasudevan
On the hand-block printing industry that has grown around Jaipur, the problems that plague the artisans and recent government and private initiatives working towards its revival and preservation.

Crafting Cultures at Good Earth: An Interview with Anita Lal

Anita Lal, the first Indian to collaborate with Christie’s on their design collection ‘Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds’, talks about the cusp of geography and culture that inspires her work.

Nila House - A Vision in Indigo
by Critical Collective
A generous studio-workshop-gallery space, Nila House is currently host to the Corona Quilt Project installation.