Editor's Picks

Storm-Gray Designer Floor-Length Anarkali Suit with Printed Golden Bootis and Zari Embroidered Border

The Anarkali-style suit is the Indian version of the western ball-gown. Long and flowing and characterised by voluminous skirts, it is an ensemble fit for no less than a queen. The dress you see on this page is one such Indian Anarkali suit comprising of trousers, dupatta, and a dress-kameez to-die-for. The colour is a soft pale gray that makes for a feminine statement. It brings out the glittering gold of the booties printed along the length of the skirt. Its hem is adorned with dual panels of embroidered gold lace. Note the ample pleats that the skirts of this dress have been gathered in, and how gorgeous it would look as you motion.

It is no wonder that the dupatta is a relatively simple strip of silken fabric; after all, with Anarkali-style suits it is the kameez that is designed to be the showstopping element. It has a miniscule pastel-coloured trim at the hem, and a bunch of tiny white booties spaced out across the field. This Indian suit comes with signature choodidar trousers in matching gray colour. The USP of the ensemble lies in the long-sleeved, beautiful seamed bust. From its high, soft round neck emerges a strip of golden discs of varying sizes that lies in a semicircle over the bust, enclosing more of the printed gold booties.

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A Powerful Vision Of The Ferocious Bhadrakali (Tantric Devi Series)

The image of the solo Bhadrakali is as powerful as it gets. The paintings in this series have been reproduced from the famous Basholi watercolours, all the hallmarks of which are to be found in this one. A naked, barely adorned corpse for a pedestal; portrayals of Shakti-roopa devis from India's tantric tradition against a solid-coloured background with minimal hints of landscape; and a singular shringar and style of crown for the deties in question. The Devi Bhadrakali is dusky, the ashen blue of Her silks blending with Her complexion. Chunks of gold in Her pearls-dominated shringar match the gold on the border of Her garment. She rules over not just the universe as we know it, but also whom we consider the rulers of the universe.

Her head is set with a crown that befits Her heavenly status - it is ornate and made from gold, studded with emeralds and trimmed with three pink lotuses that are just about to bloom. The halo that surrounds Her head is in the form of the sun itself, albeit a solid grey colour that gives off rays of pristine light. From the colour of the moors behind Her, it seems that the sun may have set and the twilight is making way for the dusk. Zoom in on the Devi's face, wherein lies the beauty of the whole composition. A ferocious composure of countenance characterises that beauteous face, with the large bloodshot eyes and the awe-inspiring fangs that emerge from betwixt Her luscious lips. A third eye is to be found on Her vibhuti-smeared brow, on which sits a sliver of the silver moon.

The Four Harmonious Friends Wall-hanging (Made In Nepal) (mthun-po spun-bzhi, Skt. Catvari anukulabhratr)

The motif of the four harmonious friends is to be found in abundance in Buddhist-inspired art everywhere. The four brothers comprise of the elephant, the monkey, the hare, and the partridge; whilst the all-important harmony lies in their position relative to each other. This harmony was established after a period of mutual discord. The brothers had gotten down to discussing the age of a banyan tree in the Himalayan foothills where they dwelt. The elephant had seen it when it was a bush; the monkey, when it was a shrub; and the rabbit, when it was a tender leafless sapling. However, the partridge remembers having carried its very seed in its body and planted it there. His age and seniority were thus established, and mutual respect and harmony restored amidst the four.

The exquisite wall-hanging that you see on this page features this all-important motif. The same is a fine example of Nepalese handiwork, the copper repousse having been done with great skill and labour. Zoom in on each aspect of the work to take in the sheer level of details - the adornments on the elephants and the landscape they are walking on, the series of lotus petals and gems of red and blue that frame the central motif, and ashtamangala symbols laterally arranged on either side of the same. Peacocks and a kirtimukha image are on the lower panel, while the upper one features more complex repousse. The whole composition is framed by more lotus petals that run along all four sides of the wall-hanging.

Garnet-Rose Bedspread from Gujarat with Embroidered Kutch Patches and Mirrors

The right bedspread could work wonders for your space. After all, the bedroom is the inner sanctorum that rejuvenates you each night and should be an image of all that you hold dear. The bedspread you see on this page serves just the purpose. A warm colour palette against the superb cotton make of the spread creates an item that is designed to add comfort and personality to your space. A riot of soft natural pastels, to be found in remote Gujarati countrysides, infused with a vibrant, dominating shade of red is as characteristic of Kutch as it gets. It is a region known for the lively and colourful textiles produced by the women, a fine example of which is this bedspread.

The signature patches that grace this bedspread feature the rustic style of embroidery that has been perfected locally in Kutch. Tender foliage motifs in natural colours are to be found in abundance, the same having been puntuated with miniscule silver mirrors that shimmer against the light. All these are the rage across the subcontinent, which explains how widely coveted are the dupattas, ghagras, and home decor fashioned in the region. Infuse your space with a bit of the essence of India - earthy colours, rangoli-esque motifs, and a disntinctly endemic art of embroidery - to return to each night.

The Birth of Andhaka, From Devi Parvati's Playfulness Upon Mandara Parvat (Superfine Painting)

On a warm and clear blue-skied day, Lord Shiva sits on the mount Mandara. He has assumed the poorna-padmasana on a tiger-skin, and is steeped in dhyana. The conscious depths He is in could be gauged from the depiction of His form - five heads, ten arms, complexion like the polar dusk, and all the chakras of the body prominently shining through. The little Ganesha, His son, is sitting on His lap. He is enjoying a laddoo - no picture of the Lord Ganesha is complete without a laddoo in the periphery - and is lovingly held in place by His father. The trusty Nandi and a tiger have been painted in the foreground, quietly sitting on the flowers and verdure of the region. There is nothing to disturb the calm of the situation, till Mother Parvati arrives on the scene. Gorgeous as She is, She is a most playful mood the morning of the painting. She creeps up behind Her husband, who is too consumed by dhyana to notice the rustling of Her silks and the tinkling of Her shringar.

Mask of A Lion (Large-Sized Wall-Hanging)

The lion holds a place of pride in Indian culture. The most ferocious creature of the wilderness, it serves as the vahana of Devi Durga Herself. Even Narasimha, an all-important Vishnu incarnation, is half-lion and half-man. Lions are also an indispensable aspect of Buddhist symbolism - they grace stupas and pillars and entrances to places of worship across South and Southeast Asia. The wall-hanging you see on this page depicts the face of a lion in all its ferocity. Mounted on your wall, it would be sure to add to your space an aura of the raw and the rustic, the brute and the invincible, the powerful and the indomitable.

The sheer degree of skill that has gone into this work could be gauged by zooming in on the mane and the face amidst the same. Each strand of the man, the alternating black and gold streaks, and the realistic ends of each clump of hair make this a one-of-a-kind sculpture. The musculature of the face is so lifelike. The eyes convey fierce anger, and the jaws are set to make the onlooker go weak in the knees. Note the curves of the whiskers beneath the fiery nostrils of the lion. Hang up this formidable work of art to add an aura of the wild and the otherworldly in your space.

Turbaned Ganesha Silhouette Pendant

This pendant is a must-have if you are fond of Ganesha. The most widely loved and revered of the entire Hindu pantheon, His unmistakable silhouette has been captured in this perfectly smithed glimmering gold pendant. It is His adorably chubby form, coupled with His propensity to bless and grant boons, that make Him the favourite of most devotees. The son of Shiva and Parvati, there is more to Ganesha than His childlike innocence and the love for laddooes that unmistakably creeps up in His iconography (note the mound of glittering silver gems in one of His gold-smithed palms). As the son of Shiva, He is warrior of dharm and was responsible for the efficient allocation of the amrit yielded by the samudra-manthan (Bhagavata Purana).

This pendant is a simple but substantial piece of adornment. From the delicately fingered palms and the pot belly, to the signature trunk that dominates the image and the tilak on His temple, the defining curves have been fashioned from gold. The dhoti that clothe His legs brought together in the seated posture, the laddooes in the one hand that is not raised in blessing, and kingly turban that sits on His brow are a glittering silver colour. Despite the minimalistic handiwork of this pendant, it would stand out in your jewellery box as a piece of devotional jewellery that is as complete as it gets.

Tango-Red Stole from Kashmir with Aari Hand-Embroidered Flowers and Butterflies

Layering could transform the entire mood of an ensemble. Pick this stole for a practical yet beauteous piece of layering. An inimitably gorgeous red for the foundation colour makes this the perfect addition to one's trousseau or a statement addition to one's wardrobe. The aesthetics and sensousness of a Kashmiri woollen is unmistakable. A statement-making base colour, high-precision embroidery that is also endemic to the valley (ari, in this case), and an aura of the regal about the moment you put it on. From the monotone tassels along the edges to the natural colour palette employed for the embroidery, everything about this stole is irresistibly beautiful and flirtatious.

It is fashioned from the pure homegrown wools, and is a fine example of the highly coveted Kashmiri handiwork. Signs of the latter could be gleaned by zooming in on the luxuriant, richly coloured ari embroidery that dominates the foreground. Team this with your choicest Indian suit or saree, preferably a neutral-coloured one that is low on the embroidery, in order to bring out the best of this number. Such a stole would serve to keep you warm yet fashionable-looking when the galas run a tad late into the evening.

Devi Bhadrakali, The Trimurti Bowing Before Her (Tantric Devi Series)

There is much to Devi Bhadrakali that is captured in Her name. In Sanskrit, the syllable 'bha' means 'maya' or 'illusion', while 'dra' stands for 'maha' or 'that which is superlative'; which explains why some people refer to Her as Devi Mahamaya Kali. She is the wife of Veerbhadra, and the supreme deity of the Shakti sect of Hinduism as well as one of the das mahavidyas. In this skilfully done Basholi-style watercolour, the all-powerful Devi is being paid obeisance by the Hindu trimurti, Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva. Despite being sole-responsible for running the complex dharmic cycle of creation-preservation-destruction respectively, these three deities themselves bow before the fierce Bhadrakali.

The rich red of Her silk dhoti brings out Her unmistakable ashen blue complexion. Her long silver hair is complemented by the white translucent dupatta around Her head and shoulders and the streams of pristine pearls that constitute Her shringar interspersed with studded gold. From Her protruding fangs and the third eye popping out from the vibhuti on Her brow, to the fact that from Her body language She barely acknowledges the trimurt's homage, everything about Her exudes a divine degree of power possible only for a Hindu devi. What sets this apart from the other watercolours in this series is the soorya-roopi mandala within which the Devi and Her worshippers are contained.

12" Seated Krishna, Making Music That Makes His Devotees Break Into Ecstatic Dance | Brass Statue | Handmade | Made In India