Our Story
It all started with a dream of Mandakini Mathur, a filmmaker, teacher, writer and poet. Under her stewardship, three ‘Dhokra’ artists from the Naxalite affected Gadchiroli region found a safe space in Panchgani and started work under a Ficus tree at Devrai, in October 2008. Soon, master craftsmen from the Chhattisgarh region also joined in. Devrai Art Village was born.
What Drives Us?
Ours is a living civilisation. As a vital part of this civilisation, art too must evolve to stay in tune with modern sensibilities. In fact, art must lead the way and guide this process of change. At Devrai, we treat this as our mission – constantly evolving new designs and new processes while staying rooted in our tradition. Keeping art vibrant and alive is a core belief. Needless to add, this also ensures the well being of the traditional artist community.
To this end, we have a string of breakthrough products to our credit. Rock Dhokra (patented) is a never before fusion of metal with stone. Organic Dhokra is a process of casting natural materials such as leaves, bark and fruit directly into metal. Even the themes and narratives evolve. Shiva’s Nandi, sitting meditatively for thousands of years, now gets up and dances with his Lord. Our design approach is informed by our rich artistic heritage as well as by trends in modern art.
Vision
We see Devrai Art Village as a space where innovative creative expression of indigenous arts sustains both - the art and the artist.
Founders
Mandakini Mathur
Chairperson, Founder
Atul Mathur
Vice-Chairman, Co-founder
Our Devrai Community
From three craftsmen in 2008, we have now grown to 50+ artisans, men and women. Young people who joined as trainee apprentices are now masters in their own right and teaching others. We work together and celebrate life together. At the end of the day, you can often see the team playing a game of volleyball or kabaddi!
