NE NEWS BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, MAY 15
In an age where machines increasingly dominate production and fast-changing lifestyles threaten age-old traditions, Ahmedabad witnessed the beginning of a heartfelt cultural initiative dedicated to preserving the soul of handmade creativity.
The Kanoria Centre for Arts on Friday laid the foundation stone for the Sangita Jindal Craft Shila — a new space envisioned not merely as a gallery, but as a living home for India’s rich and evolving craft traditions.
Art has always held communities together in ways words often cannot.
It lives in shared celebrations, in music that echoes through villages, and in dance forms that carry generations of history, identity, and belonging within them. Whether it is a classical performance on stage… pic.twitter.com/VGhzSasxRy
— Jindal Foundation (@JindalFndn) May 15, 2026
- Kanoria Centre for Arts lays foundation stone for Sangita Jindal Craft Shila
- New space envisioned as a living hub for craft exhibitions, workshops and artisan collaborations
- Project honours Sangita Jindal for her contribution to promoting Indian crafts
- Designed by acclaimed architecture firm Studio Sangath led by Khushnu Panthaki Hoof and Sönke Hoof
- Centre aims to preserve, reimagine and humanise India’s traditional craft practices for future generations
The ceremony, held at the Urmila Kailash Black Box within the Kanoria campus, marked the formal beginning of a project that seeks to reconnect people with the stories, skills and human touch behind traditional crafts.
Named in honour of Sangita Jindal, whose continued support has helped amplify Indian craft traditions on national and global platforms, the upcoming Craft Shila aims to become a vibrant meeting point for artisans, artists, designers, students and craft lovers.
More Than A Gallery, A Space To Feel Craft
Unlike conventional exhibition venues, the Sangita Jindal Craft Shila is being designed as an immersive and interactive environment where visitors can experience craft as a living process rather than a static display.
From live demonstrations and hands-on workshops to collaborative engagements and storytelling sessions, the centre will encourage audiences to witness the patience, labour, imagination and cultural memory embedded in handmade creations.
Organisers say the initiative comes at a time when Indian crafts are moving beyond preservation alone and entering new conversations around sustainability, innovation and identity.
The space will support artisans and practitioners in experimenting with new forms and contemporary expressions while remaining rooted in traditional knowledge systems.
Architecture Inspired By Artistic Continuity
The project has been designed by renowned Studio Sangath, the AD100 architecture practice led by Khushnu Panthaki Hoof and Sönke Hoof.
The firm shares a longstanding association with the Kanoria Centre, having earlier designed the Kanoria Art Shop (Galleria30) and the Urmila Kailash Black Box.
The foundation stone ceremony concluded with the unveiling of a commemorative plaque, symbolising the beginning of what many hope will become a meaningful cultural landmark for artists, artisans and communities alike.
Craft As Memory, Identity And Human Connection
For the Kanoria Centre for Arts, the new initiative represents more than infrastructure — it reflects a continuing commitment to nurturing spaces where creativity, learning and cultural exchange can flourish.
At its heart, the Sangita Jindal Craft Shila seeks to remind people that craft is not just about objects. It is about hands, histories, emotions and generations of knowledge carried forward through human connection.
As construction begins, the project stands as a hopeful reminder that even in a rapidly modernising world, there remains a deep desire to protect the beauty of handmade traditions and the people who keep them alive.
