Mansi will start by introducing you to the history of the craft, along with showing you the multiple steps that go into producing a finished Baandhani pattern. After a demonstration we will then proceed to tying knots as per everyone’s abilities. This will be done on fabric which Mansi has prepared by washing /scouring and mordanting – the process done to prepare a fabric ready to accept a dye. We will finally dye the knot tied fabric allowing you to go home with a beautiful Baandhani inspired tie and dye pattern. 
No experience necessary.

Bandhani is a traditional resist tie-and-dye technique practised for centuries across Rajasthan and Gujarat in India. This slow and meditative craft  is one of many that Mansi draws on in her personal and community-based practice, reimagining it in a contemporary setting. Through this work, she seeks to hold together the two currents that run through her life—the richness of her Indian culture and heritage, and the everyday reality of her life in England. 

Join printmaker Neera Sehgal in exploring the art and craft of Indian woodblock printing. Learn about the journey and resilience of this craft, explore its beauty and calmness and create something unique in a relaxed, social setting. You’ll be guided to experiment with a range of blocks & inks on paper before moving onto your chosen fabric item, a tote bag or t-towel. No experience necessary, just your imagination and a curiosity to explore.

Neera Sehgal is an artist and printmaker with a deep connection to traditional Indian blockprinting. Her practice bridges cultures, drawing on historic techniques while encouraging contemporary expression through pattern, colour and hand-made process. Neera is passionate about sharing the stories embedded in craft and guiding others to embrace experimentation, imperfection and joy in making, celebrating the craft of blockprinting. 

Explore pattern through the practice of foil embossing with illustrators Kush and Manny. This foil decoration drop in session is inspired by the vibrancy of South Asian adornment, design your own motifs and patterns to create a striking hanging decoration.
 

Our sessions often draw on themes of pattern, embellishment, and storytelling. Recent collaborations include gold foil embossing workshops with the V&A, inspired by South Asian visual traditions, incense holder decorating with Dishoom, and community-led creative sessions with Southall Community Centre and Gunnersbury Museum.

Mush Studio is led by UK-based illustrators Kush and Manny. With our distinct styles of illustration and design, we explore our British-South Asian heritage, reflecting on themes of identity, storytelling, and self-expression through a range of calm, creative workshops.

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Explore sari draping design in a one hour session including one traditional draping style plus contemporary experimental sari styling techniques. Participants can bring their own sari, although saris and styling accessories will be provided. Maximum 15 participants per session.

Nidhi Uppal is a London-born sari stylist and experimental draper who transforms this unstitched garment into a canvas for modern storytelling. Blending a background in Science research with her Punjabi heritage, Nidhi treats fabric as a versatile sculpture. Known as a 'sari scientist,' her avant-garde styling has been featured on red carpets, film, exhibitions, and TV. Her community workshops promote inclusivity, sustainability, and playful, gender-fluid experimentation, celebrating the evolution of this textile art. 

Nita brings a lifetime of lived knowledge of Indian textiles, embroidery and handloom traditions. Her talk places Phulkari, Banarasi silk, Kutchi mirror work, Kantha and Ajrakh resist dyeing into their cultural and historical context.
 

She has spent a lifetime with Indian textiles — collecting, studying, wearing, and understanding fabrics, embroidery and handloom traditions from across the subcontinent. That is not academic knowledge. It is lived knowledge, passed down and built up over decades.

The talk will place everything the audience has seen and made across the day into its cultural and historical context. Where does Phulkari come from? What does the pattern in a Kutchi embroidery mean? What is the difference between a Banarasi handloom and a power-loom copy, and why does it matter?