As the harbingers of the most dramatic and romantic season of the subcontinent, rain-laden clouds have become an integral part of the artistic vocabulary of the literature, art and music depicting Varsha rtu
Prakriti
The heat of the summer sun and the occasional respite from it have inspired several compositions in the Indian classical tradition, which has ragas for specific times of day, and for seasons as a whole
The magnificence, drama, and whimsical nature of Basant rtu are beautifully represented in deeply moving ragas that have constantly evolved over centuries. These ragas seem to give voice to all the joy, the hope, the beauty of Basant that words fail to describe
Shiva is among the oldest of the gods of the subcontinent. He is represented and described in so many different ways. And in each representation, in each nuance of the iconographic detail a different attribute, a different aspect of Shiva comes to light
From kings to fakirs, the legend of cashmere has enthralled them all. The story and the history of this fabled fabric, as it travelled from India to the rest of the world, mesmerising everyone who encountered it along the way, is a fascinating one
There are many examples – across art forms – of the effect that the Indian Monsoon has on the land, and its people. In music, it has inspired both, traditional folk and the classical styles of music, and it has inspired them for centuries
Lotus has been known by many names in the subcontinent. Across artistic genres - literature, painting, music and rituals, the Lotus flower has been seen as a sacred symbol of fertility, birth and spirituality for centuries
When a 16 year old climate campaigner—Greta Thunberg—has to stand before seasoned politicians in the US (and the world), telling them “This Is The Time To Wake Up”, calling out a nation, the largest emitter of greenhouse gases for their inaction - you know that we live in a world of ecological ignorance and environmental neglect
Sharad or Autumn in India is the season of sustenance. Sharad rtu consists of the time span encompassing the Indian calendar months of Ashwina and Kartika
In The Sentiment of Flowers by Robert Tyas, Jasmine is described as the flower that seems to have been “created to express the quality of amiability”
