London's V&A museum gears up for India Festival

Tribal paintings, a tent belonging to Tipu Sultan and woollen Kashmiri embroidery besides a range of Mughal and other bejewelled objects from India and South Asia dating back to the 16th century are set to be exhibited in London later this year.
Starting this autumn, the Victoria and Albert Museum has planned an India Festival -- a series of exhibitions, displays, events and digital initiatives to mark the 25th anniversary of its 'Nehru Gallery', which displays some of the most important objects from the museum's South Asian art collection produced between the 16th and 19th centuries.
Highlights of the gallery include 'Tipu's Tiger', a life-sized carved and painted wood model seen in the act of devouring a prostrate European figure, the golden throne created for Maharaja Ranjit Singh, a wine cup for the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, and a jewelled sword belonging to Maharaja Holkar decorated with diamonds, rubies and emeralds.

Two of the headline exhibitions at the upcoming India Festival includes "The Fabric of India" and "Bejewelled Treasures: The Al Thani Collection".
The fabric exhibition will see a display of around 200 objects that illustrate the skills, variety and adaptability of Indian textile makers, ranging from the earliest known Indian textile fragments to contemporary fashion.
An Ajrakh inspired jacket by contemporary designer Rajesh Pratap Singh created in 2010 finds its place in the show along with a range of historic costume and prized textiles made for international trade.

The fabric exhibition from October 3 - January 10, 2016, is set to be complemented by an international conference on Indian textiles.

The "Bejewelled Treasures: The Al Thani Collection", which begins on November 21 and continues till March 28, 2016 would present around 100 objects drawn from a single private collection. It showcases jewellery and jewelled objects made in or inspired by, India from the 17th century to present day.
"We look forward to supporting collaborations between UK and India arts organisations under our 'Re-imagine Arts' programme which focuses on collaborative projects between artists and organisations from both countries and helps build stronger cultural relations between the peoples of the two countries" Rob Lynes, Director British Council India said here today.