All that is trending in the art, entertainment, and culinary world

From boundary-pushing exhibitions to nostalgic menus and bold new cocktails, there’s plenty brewing in India’s cultural scene this season. Here’s a curated guide to what’s new—and worth your time—across art, food, and design.

Solo Show

Kallol Datta’s latest exhibition, Volume IV: Truths, Half-Truths, Half-Lies, Lies, delves into the legacy of historical regulations on women’s behaviour and attire, drawing inspiration from the Han dynasty text Lessons for Women by Ban Zhao, China’s first known female historian. Through a series of textile-based interventions, the exhibition interrogates patterns of censorship, morality, social alienation, and class divisions embedded in global cultures. This edition of the exhibition unfolds in four chapters—Truths, Half-Truths, Half-Lies, and Lies Our Clothes Told Us—each examining the complex narratives woven into garments and societal expectations. Datta’s exhibits will be on display at Experimenter Colaba in Mumbai till August 20.

Collective Effort

The 8th Edition of Delhi Contemporary Art Week (DCAW) is all set to take place at Bikaner House, New Delhi, from August 30 to September 4. An initiative by six women-led galleries—Blueprint 12, Exhibit 320, Gallery Espace, Latitude 28, Shrine Empire, and Vadehra Art Gallery—it will feature curated exhibitions, a sculpture show, and a collective showcase by gallery artists.

Toy Story

Emami Art, Kolkata, presents Play-Forms, a solo exhibition by artist Partha Pratim Deb, running till August 9. Featuring works from the past two decades, the show highlights Deb’s vibrant paintings, expressive drawings, and rare fabric sculptures—playful, hybrid forms that blur boundaries between art object and toy. Deb’s unconventional and experimental approach sets him apart from the dominant art movements of his time. His recent creations reflect a profound synthesis of wit, imagination, and critical inquiry. Play-Forms offers a rich glimpse into his style—bold, irreverent, and deeply personal.

Artistic Link

Opening August 9 at the Jaipur Centre for Art (JCA), Non-Residency is a group exhibition that delves into the evolving aesthetics of the Indian diaspora. Curated by Rajiv Menon, founder of Los Angeles-based Rajiv Menon Contemporary, it features 16 artists working across painting, sculpture, and textiles. Non-Residency explores how dislocation and cultural hybridity fuel innovation in contemporary Indian art. Artists such as Chitra Ganesh, Rajni Perera, and Baseera Khan interrogate identity, memory, and belonging. The exhibition will run till September 8.

Culinary Heritage

Khyber, Mumbai’s legendary restaurant, is marking 65 years of culinary heritage with a special tribute to its enduring appeal—a curated menu of 65 signature dishes. This celebratory menu features favourites like the smokey tandoori raan, creamy paneer korma, soul-soothing maa ki dal, and buttery smoked chicken, offering both vegetarians and non-vegetarians a nostalgic journey through the restaurant’s legacy. Nestled in the cultural heart of Kala Ghoda, its art-filled interiors and Mughlai warmth make it more than just a dining destination.

Taste of Bombay

Bombay Club has reopened in a larger and thoughtfully reimagined space at The Dhan Mill—it is now a 40-seater café but with the same old charm that made it a favourite. Led by Amanda Bhandari and chef Anahita Dhondhy, the menu remains rooted in Mumbai’s rich culinary heritage—from comforting Parsi dishes like salli boti and keema pav to coastal flavours and street-style favourites. The interiors blend nostalgia with sustainability, featuring salvaged mosaic pillars and hand-painted Parsi motifs. New additions include a reading pod by Kunzum, a live food counter, and a retail corner offering homemade chutneys, snacks, and baked goods.

Material Memory

What Am I Made Of? , opening 21 July 2025 at Latitude 28 in New Delhi, brings together artists Hasseena Suresh and Pradeep Thallawatta in a poignant exploration of material as memory. Rather than treating material as a mere medium, the exhibition positions it as a vessel—capable of absorbing time, presence, and movement. Suresh and Thallawatta delve into how the physical can carry the emotional, the remembered, and the erased. Their works question whether the act of making is also an act of remembering, and whether textures and surfaces can retain personal or collective histories. Curated by Kashish Kochhar, the exhibition asks: what happens when material becomes a storyteller? When memory becomes form? What Am I Made Of? challenges viewers to engage with the unseen traces embedded in the tangible—remnants of what has passed and echoes of what still lingers. It’s a reflection on art as archive, and material as living record.

Suite Art

India’s only pan-India hotel art fair, Artix, is making its much-awaited return to New Delhi with Artix 4.0 on August 2 and 3 at The Claridges Hotel. This edition brings together contemporary vision and tradition, spotlighting emerging talent, indigenous crafts like Chikankari and Jamdani, and the intersection of art and luxury. Organised by Payal Kapoor, Malvika Poddar, and Sethu Vaidyanathan, the fair transforms hotel rooms into immersive, private art spaces, offering an intimate alternative to conventional gallery settings. Visitors can explore works from celebrated galleries and artists such as Ashvita’s, Art Nouveau, Arushi Arts, and 108 Art Projects, along with textile and jewellery showcases by Aadyam Handwoven, House of Tarina, and Lotus Art de Vivre.

New Menu

Kaméi, a premium Asian restaurant and cocktail bar in Delhi’s Saket, has unveiled its latest cocktail menu, Odyssey Vol 2. More than just a drinks list, this new offering is a curated storytelling experience inspired by East Asia and the symbolic journey of the turtle—Kaméi’s spirit animal. Representing longevity, wisdom, and perseverance, the turtle’s path is traced through six life stages, each brought to life as a unique signature cocktail.

Myth Busting

This monsoon, an exhibition in Bengaluru brings myth and nature into vivid, contemporary focus. Mythic Matrices (August 25–September 22), a retrospective of Seema Kohli at NGMA Bengaluru, presents two decades of her multidisciplinary journey. Kohli’s works—layered with goddess forms, yantras, and gold leaf—explore myth not as static narrative but as a living grammar of ritual, feminine power, and spiritual ecology. She reclaims myth as a method of seeing and being.

Global Flavours

Set along the shores of Anjuna, Jolene by the Sea is one of Goa’s most evocative dining destinations. This season, it unveils a dreamy new daytime offering—a thoughtfully crafted lunch menu served within a striking glasshouse overlooking the sea. Spearheaded by renowned chef Suvir Saran and backed by industry veterans Shakeel and Amrita Ladak, Gaurav Batra, and the True Palate team, Jolene’s menu features 18 signature dishes inspired by flavours from Kashmir to Kyoto. The standout dishes include a bold kasundi aglio e olio, the playful misal ramen, and the indulgent rhalassery biryani in phyllo. The space, bathed in natural light with earthy textures and brushed metal details, offers an elegant yet relaxed atmosphere perfect for lingering afternoons.

Nostalgia on a Plate

As monsoon sets in, Saltt at Oleander Farms, Karjat, unveils a seasonal menu that captures the essence of rain-soaked comfort and regional nostalgia. Highlights include the smoky litti chokha, a classic street food reimagined, and the jacko taco—crisp panko-crumbed mashed potato with a sweet chilli kick. Those with a sweet tooth will find joy in the jamun cheesecake, layered with fresh fruit purée, buttercream, and nuts. Set against the serene backdrop of Oleander Farms’ 180-acre estate, this menu brings together bold flavours, local ingredients, and the soul of the monsoon.

Lead image: Courtesy the brands.

This article originally appeared in Harper's Bazaar's India June-July print edition.

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