From The Portfolio Of

Hitanshu Bhatt!

This is one of those posts. In which I go overboard. Which take me an entire day to put together because I can't decide what to leave out. For everything is so striking. Achingly beautiful. The possibilities are endless. I start feeling like a pseudo artist just by the virtue of playing around with the visual boards. It is work that inspires me. Work that makes me feel good that there are such immensely talented and creative folks around us. Welcome to snapshots from the portfolio of Hitanshu Bhatt.

Hitanshu is an artist based out of Bombay, India. I chanced upon his work on Instagram and saw that he was the creative photographer behind the gorgeous product shoots and mood boards for Gaatha, one of my favorite boutiques. He has done some superb work as a visual designer, a graphic designer and an art director apart from his growing portfolio as a photographer. Hitanshu showcases his work on Behance and on Instagram, and I must warn you - both his accounts are a visual explosion - in a good way! Make sure you have time to spare when you click above links as it would be hard to tear yourself away from the gorgeous images.

In Hitanshu's words:

 Design is an endless passion for me. Whether it's visual art, photography, graphic design or art direction. I love to explore different creative areas on a different platform. Music is a source of my creative energy. I get inspired from everything around me - nature, movies, music, people, impression etc. I am creating a beautiful story, which reflects Indian roots merging in to beautiful abstract form. 

 And more here:

ArtAndFound | Elephant Dreamz | Gaatha 

Get in touch with Hitanshu: Email

[Credits | Images: Hitanshu Bhatt, Styling for Gaatha Images: Shivani Dhar, Visual Boards and Story: An Indian Summer]

No-Mad On My Mind

It's a gorgeous summer day here in Stockholm, and after traveling around Europe last few weeks, I am resting my nomadic feet in a cozy garden cafe. Sitting here, as I check into my home on the world wide web, my little blog, it's but apt that I write about another nomad, a nomad that's my favorite home luxury lifestyle brand! A brand that is quintessentially Indian at heart yet enjoys & celebrates global influence when it comes to design and aesthetics. A brand that was like a breath of fresh air when it launched in 2014 and continues to be unique and refreshingly creative with not only it's collections but also in the way that it communicates with us.

[A beautiful space styled by Couleur Locale using No-Mad's furnishing]

Yes, I am talking about No-Mad, the brand that's 97% Indian and 3% Global. As I look around this lovely Scandinavian city, I can see No-Mad fitting in as seamlessly as I have seen No-Mad beautifying spaces in cities across India. It is this seemingly effortless 'citizen of the world' personality of No-Mad that resonates with me and it's many fans, who eagerly await each new launch. And how fabulously creative all the launches have been! From the time when I first shared No-Mad on An Indian Summer, No-Mad has consistently dazzled us with collections themed around colors or innovative product function or a traditional Indian artisan/craft skill. 

A significant part of this global Indian personality comes from the multi-cultural background and exposure that No-Mad's founders bring to the table. Anuj Kothari and Valerie Barkowski are passionate about good design and quality, and have the knack of elevating everyday use items to the next level by enhancing it's form, function and beauty. The latest range from their Table collection is a testimony to Valerie's incredible design aesthetics and Anuj's innate understanding of the environment and the market. And all this goodness is available, to be delivered to your home, across the world, via No-Mad's lovely online store.

And it's not only us, the design enthusiasts and customers who love No-Mad. Since the time of it's launch, No-Mad has received many accolades from the industry for it's products. The Isayu fabric, muddah stool and the thali trays have been awarded by EDIDA and GoodHomes has recognized No-Mad for it's range of Sahaj ceramics. All of No-Mad products are meticulously crafted by hand thereby encouraging the revival of the some key Indian craft skills and providing employment to artisans and craft workers.

I could go on and on about No-Mad...I did tell you that it is a dear favorite of mine! As I wrap up this post, I do have to talk about just how brilliantly No-Mad communicates with the rest of the world. The visuals shared by No-Mad via Instagram and Facebook are stunning and the stories these images tell make me feel as if I have been part of the creative cycle of a product and feel a warm connection to the brand. An innovative medium used by No-Mad is No-Mad Times that's a delight to hold and read. The great news is that you can request for a copy of the newsletter any time that you want! Just send across an email with your shipping address and No-Mad will be very happy to send one across [right now, to mailing addresses in India only]  

A special note for retailers, design professionals and No-Mad customers in the US and UK 

No-Mad will be participating in upcoming trade fairs and you can get a chance to see the products and interact with the team. Click on the posters below for more details:

[All Images: No-Mad. Creative Story Boarding: An Indian Summer]

The sun is still shining bright here in Stockholm. Talking about No-Mad has reminded me of home and India, and I can not wait to get back this weekend. I am bringing with me stories, pictures and some amazing experiences from my travels and the design event I attended. Will see you next week, sharing it all, alive and kickin' from India!

Celebrating With Gulmohar Lane!

There are some gifts that keep on giving. An Indian Summer is one of them. Ahem. Yes, the blog and I eschew all modesty for today. For good reasons, my dear folks, for very good reasons. One, we hit the 15,000 mark on facebook. Two, An Indian Summer and our instagram account got a sweet mention on Apartment Therapy. And Three, one of our favorite brands & friend Gulmohar Lane, is hosting a merry giveaway party right here!

Tis be the season of celebrations and Gulmohar Lane has put together the most glorious giveaway hamper for An Indian Summer readers! Since the last time I blogged about them, Gulmohar Lane has expanded it's repertoire of  beautiful & elegant products to now also include lighting, cushions and more handcrafted furniture pieces. I love the classic, vintage aesthetic of their product range! And not only can you buy their products online, but this weekend, you also have the opportunity to win this generous gift, lovingly put together by the good folks at Gulmohar Lane. 

 

The giveaway, open for readers from any where in the world, includes:

Gulmohar Lane Cushions  .  Gulmohar Lane Vintage Edison Bulbs  .  Gulmohar Lane Linen Bag with Leather Handles  .  Tea Kettle  .  Cups & Saucer  .  Chocolates! 

Yes, all this, to one fabulous reader, from any where in the world!

~ How to Enter ~

1. Tap into your hidden (or not so hidden) poet/lyricist/wordsmith, and pen a little ditty or a verse or a haiku or a paen or a poem, with the words 'Gulmohar Lane' in it.

  

[For my readers who don't understand Hindi, "Gulmohar" is the name of a flowering tree: Delonix Regia]

2. Leave your creative creation as a comment here on facebook and/or as a comment to this post.

3. To gain that extra edge, share the giveaway on facebook, instagram and twitter and tag 'An Indian Summer' & 'Gulmohar Lane'.

4. That's it! The winner will be announced on facebook on the 2nd of December.

See you again, on the other side of the weekend!

Gulmohar Lane: On Facebook, On Instagram, On Twitter

An Indian Summer: On Facebook, On Instagram, On Twitter

 

Oh India!

I have a thing for maps. The thing being that I love them. Political maps, physical maps, road maps, city maps, tourist maps, hand sketched ones, vintage ones - I love them all. And you do know that I have a thing for India. I adore this colorful, eclectic, passionate, maddening country of mine. Today, inspired by both my loves, I put together some visual boards, celebrating maps, colors, India and all her eccentricities. Take a look! 

Putting this post together has put me in the mood for road trips across the length and breadth of the country! I am glad that I have some coming up in the next few weeks to take care of the itchy feet. Make sure you are following me on Instagram as I share tidbits from my travels and life in Goa.
And You, my lovelies, let me know what is it that's inspiring you these days :)

[Credits: Visual Mood Boards by An Indian Summer. Images: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18]

Oh Bangalore!

~ The Tamarind Tree ~

It was a searing hot May day when I got an email from The Tamarind Tree, inviting me to experience their beautiful property in Bangalore. Having already heard many a complimentary things about them, I was very happy to accept the gracious invitation. And in spite of a ridiculously packed month, I was able to work with the lovely Nishi of The Tamarind Tree, who organized everything so smoothly, for me to visit them in the last week of May.  

And what a trip it turned out to be! It began with the warmest of welcomes at The Tamarind Tree, where I got to meet the young team who are now managing the property. You know how there are places that feel like an oasis in the middle of a city and the moment you step into one, you automatically breathe in deep and feel totally relaxed? The Tamarind Tree is exactly like that. It's antique wooden doors shut out the noise of the city as soon as you walk in. As I toured the property, it felt like each pillar, each vessel, every sculpture and every tree had a story to tell. As we sat down for a delicious lunch, I came to know that this beautiful five acres of land used to be a paddy field many decades ago. And then it was a warm home, a home that over the last 22 years built an enviable collection of antiques and artefacts from the South of India. These antiques are now spread over the property and add to the unique charm and character of this place. As the demand for hosting intimate weddings and events at The Tamarind Tree started growing within the circle of family and friends of the home owners, they decided to lease out the venue to the current management, who now expertly manage the property for hosting truly unique weddings. I can't wait to see what comes up next as the new team is very keen to preserve and maintain the current character while bringing in new ideas to allow the venue to host not just weddings but also exclusive cultural evenings and soirees.  

The Tamarind Tree takes on a magical hue as night descends. Twinkling fairy lights, diyas, flowers, music and if a wedding ceremony is taking place, then joyous festivities! The Tamarind Tree has hosted many a beautiful weddings with ceremonies from different regions of the country and the world. It is rapidly becoming one of the most sought after venue for couples who are looking for an unique ambiance and a memorable venue. The character of the place, so wonderfully captured by wedding photographers, is as warm and homely as it is fabulous.   

~ Basava Ambara ~ 

My next stop was at Basava Ambara, the splendid boutique located in one of Bangalore's oldest neighborhoods, Basavanagudi. It is run and curated by Aravind Kashyap and Venkataram Reddy, who is also the owner of The Tamarind Tree. Housed in the outhouse of a sprawling heritage home, Basava Ambara has a hand picked collection from a cross section of designers, craftspeople, textile connoisseurs and antiques sourced over the years by Venkataram. Over a healthy lunch of farm fresh salads at The Rouge Elephant, Venky, Aravind and Cynthia - the lovely creative manager at the store, and I chatted about all things creative and beautiful. It's amazing how good food and good conversation can be so engrossing that you don't even notice how much time has passed!  

I, of course, couldn't help but go back to the stunning antique jewelry at the store and tried on as many as I could, just a tad short of looking like a Christmas tree. It was with great effort that I took the jewels off and handed them back. But I know where I will be headed when I decide to treat myself to some antique sparkles :)

~ And then some more ~

The rest of the week was spent in a whirlwind of catch-ups - old friends, ex-colleagues, friends-of-friends now turned friends, the many lunches, dinners and drinks, the 12:00am creative brainstorming inspired by the storm outside and the wine inside, the 2:00am gossip/singing/crying/laughing sessions, again inspired by the thunder outside and oh-my-god so much wine inside! I/We hopped bars, all in happy anticipation of an upcoming birthday, experimented with Kokum cocktail recipes one late night at an organic farm, with four large dogs and one tiny cat keeping a watch over us as we downed each of our experiments. Inspite of all the intoxicant induction, I also got more work done; I visited a wonderful textile studio and factory and spent hours selecting fabric. This place is a linen heaven and as much as I would like to shout the name from rooftops, the owner has requested me to keep quiet about it, for now. He is gearing up to open a retail outlet in sometime, and for now, I guess I was lucky to have the opportunity to spend time looking through his fabulous collection and making my pick for the wildlife project that I am working on. And as promised, I live blogged it all people! Shared the goodies over at my instagram account as it happened.   

 

Oh, and the grand finale of the trip was, my first ever football match! Not as a player, peeps, not as a player. The closest I can get to the players is that I can now proudly announce that the coach of the Bengaluru FC team is my friend. Ha. But but, what an exhilarating evening it was! I loved the Bangalore crowd! The chants, the flags, the synchronous abuses hurled at the referee ~ all very very loud but not rowdy, at all! It was such a pleasant surprise for someone from the big bad city of Delhi. And then, to complete the football experience, we headed to the local post-match pub in pouring rain and met up with more friends, celebrating a good game. I was one of the boys, in my blue XS BFC jersey, though I zoned out as soon as the technical football talk started. So the boys very kindly made me feel at home and we argued till late in the night about the North-South divide and staked strong claims on Goa and the Himalayas. An eventful end to a wonderful week, and I have to say Thank You Tamarind Tree for pulling me to Bangalore. I will be back...yet another city that I have come to love, not just for it's places and what it has to offer, but also for all the splendid people I met and the friends I made. And the friends I did not get to meet this time, the readers who invited me to visit them, who sent me tips of what to see, where to eat ~ I'll be seeing you soon!    

 

[Image credits: My Images are tagged such; Other images: 2nd & 5th from top: Manoj Masand; 10th & 11th from top: The Tamarind Tree; 12th from top: Tina Nandi]