Heritage Preservation

There is nothing like a quirky, offbeat, or just plain strange museum to add a twist to your travels. Here's a list of fifteen out-of-the-ordinary museums in India that are sure to leave you fascinated!

The Sandur Kushala Kala Kendra is an art center in Sandur working towards bringing national and international recognition to the traditional Lambani art. This organization markets the Arts & Crafts made by the women in local villages.

The sound of moving water—be it the waves of a sea hitting the shore, or the gentle flow of a river—has always enthralled the best of us. To commemorate the essence of life, Nazariya brings you Jalatarangam, a percussion instrument that is tuned with water, not strings!

In the narrow lanes of the historical city of Jodhpur, a community has been creating the signature Jodhpuri chappals tirelessly for generations.

With its winding cobbled lane, mud-plastered walls and slate-roofed heritage houses, this village offers what most destinations can only dream of promising -- a return, if briefly, to the simple life of an erstwhile era.

Industrialisation and rising consumer demand have severely affected a lot of traditional art forms and handicraft industries. Anokhi Museum in Rajasthan is trying to preserve such a dying handicraft and art form – hand printing.

Many of Kolkata’s heritage buildings are in dire need of renovation. Archaeologist Tathagata Neogi’s new initiative seeks to empower the city’s residents to save and spruce up these remnants of history.

Conservation architect Vikas Vedprakash Dilawari is the brains behind the restoration of several Mumbai gems, including the Bhau Daji Lad museum, Flora Fountain, Esplanade House, Alpaiwala Museum and the Lal Chimney Compound.

For centuriess, hundreds of megalithic stone sentinels or menhirs have stood guard in the little hamlet of Vangchhia in the Champhai-Farkawn mountain range of Mizoram. Called the Kawtchhuah Ropuithe, these mysterious megaliths may hold the key to hitherto unknown facts about a lost civilisation.

While some folk theatre forms like raslila, nautanki and ramlila are recognized all over the country, there are some which, in spite of being equally amazing, remain largely unnoticed. Here is a list of 12 beautiful yet lesser known folk theatre forms from across India.