Architect and tastemaker Ashiesh Shah has long blurred the lines between art, architecture and design. As founder of Mumbai-based Ashiesh Shah Architecture + Design, his work spans everything from sprawling penthouses to intimate concept stores and counts a formidable roster of celebrity clients. Underpinning it all is his devotion to Wabi-Sabi, the Japanese philosophy that finds beauty in imperfection, impermanence and things left unfinished. It's this same sensibility that draws him to India's craft traditions. India's cultural landscape is so rich and vast that a new art form seems to appear every hundred kilometres, reflecting the country's extraordinary depth of heritage. This month, as he joins the RR Art Circle, he shares five crafts he believes every Indian should know.
Dhokra casting is one of India's oldest surviving crafts, using the lost-wax technique to create exquisite non-ferrous metal artefacts. The tradition stretches back more than 4,000 years, with the iconic "Dancing Girl" of Mohenjo-daro widely regarded as one of its earliest known examples. The craft takes its name from the Dhokra Damar tribes, traditional metalsmiths originally from Odisha, West Bengal and Jharkhand, whose descendants later travelled as far south as Tamil Nadu and as far north as Rajasthan, spreading the technique across the country.
There are two main approaches for this craft that include solid casting, common in southern India, which uses a solid wax mould; and hollow casting, the more traditional method favoured in Central and Eastern India, built around a clay core.
Artisans shape figures such as elephants, peacocks, owls and religious icons, each piece prized for its rustic, folk-inspired charm. Today, Dokra from West Bengal's Dwariapur and Bikna villages remains especially sought-after, while Adilabad Dokra from Telangana earned a Geographical Indication tag in 2018.
Channapatna woodcraft is a centuries-old tradition of lacquered wooden toys and dolls from the town of Channapatna in Karnataka's Ramanagara district. So closely is the craft tied to its home that the town is affectionately known as Gombegala Ooru, or "Toy Town." Traditionally, artisans worked with the wood of the Wrightia tinctoria tree, which is locally called ivory-wood, prized for nearly two centuries before rosewood and sandalwood also came into occasional use. The craft's rise to prominence is often credited to Tipu Sultan, the historic ruler of Mysore and a passionate patron of the arts, particularly woodwork, though toys of this kind existed even earlier as traditional Dussehra gifts.
The art form evolved significantly over time, most notably when artisan Bavas Miyan introduced Japanese doll-making techniques, improving production methods and reducing the labour involved. Recognised for its cultural and historical value, Channapatna woodcraft now holds a Geographical Indication tag, protecting its legacy under the Government of Karnataka.
Bastar metalwork is a striking tribal art tradition from Chhattisgarh, encompassing two distinct styles: wrought iron craft and Dhokra, or bell metal, casting. Both carry Geographical Indication tags and draw heavily on local folklore, nature and rural life for inspiration. Wrought iron craft is practised by lohar, or ironsmith, communities, including the Gond and Maria tribes, who originally forged tools for hunting and farming. Recycled scrap metal is heated in charcoal furnaces and patiently hand-hammered into shape without any casting or welding, then finished with vegetable oil or varnish for a rustic, rust-resistant sheen. Dhokra art, meanwhile, follows the ancient lost-wax casting method, dating back over 4,000 years. Artisans build a clay core, wrap it in beeswax strings blended with resin and oil to carve intricate patterns, encase it in an outer clay layer, then melt away the wax to pour in molten brass or bronze. Each mould is broken after cooling, ensuring every finished piece is entirely one of a kind.
Longpi pottery is an ancient and distinctive form of black stone pottery, handcrafted by the Tangkhul Naga tribe in Manipur's Ukhrul district. What sets it apart is that every piece is shaped entirely by hand, without the use of a potter's wheel, making it a rare survival of pre-wheel pottery techniques. Artisans work with a unique combination of crushed black serpentine stone, locally called leshong lung, and a specially weathered brown clay known as salla nali, both found only near Longpi villages.
Once shaped, the sun-dried pieces are fired in an open bonfire and traditionally rubbed with special leaves while still hot, giving them their signature smooth, lustrous black finish. Beyond its striking aesthetic, Longpi cookware is valued for its high iron content and its natural ability to help food stay fresher for longer than conventional vessels. The collection spans both utilitarian and decorative pieces, from pots and bowls to vases and tea sets.
Naga elephant grass weaving is a traditional, eco-friendly craft from Nagaland, best known for producing the Enhiye, a handwoven, weatherproof raincoat. The craft is practised chiefly by the Chakhesang Naga tribe in the Phek district, using locally harvested elephant grass or palm leaves as the primary material. The stalks and leaves are first sun-dried over several days, then soaked in water to restore their flexibility before artisans begin working with them. Using simple wooden frames, weavers hand-braid and weave the softened fibres into cloaks featuring loose, overlapping strips of grass on the outer layer. This clever, shingle-like design allows heavy monsoon rain to slide straight off, keeping the wearer dry beneath. Traditionally, the full-length cloaks were worn by men working outdoors, while women adapted the design into practical wrap-around skirts for labouring in wet paddy fields, making the craft as functional as it is culturally significant.