Sonakshi’s ‘Zaat’ Uncovers Hidden Histories”
London-based Indian artist challenges traditional narratives of womanhood in exhibition at British Council New Delhi
NEW DELHI, India – – The Gallery at British Council, Kasturba Gandhi Marg, will present “Zaat” by Sonakshi, a powerful sculptural installation that unravels matrilineal memory through the language of heirloom, metal, and meaning. The exhibition runs from 11 June through 31 July 2025 as part of Study UK: Creative Connections II.
Born in Agra and now based in London, Sonakshi Chaturvedi brings together her expertise in painting, enamelling, and gemology to question how women’s histories are remembered—or systematically erased. The exhibition confronts the inherited roles of bride, mother, and grandmother, foregrounding untold longings encoded within craft traditions of the Indian subcontinent.
Fresh from completing her MA in Jewellery & Metal at the prestigious Royal College of Art (2024), Sonakshi represents a new generation of artists bridging traditional craft with contemporary artistic practice. Her unique background as both a Graduate Gemologist and researcher with Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (Ministry of Culture) positions her with the requisite capabilities to question the cultural significance of adornment and inheritance in South Asian societies.
“Zaat began as a way to fortify my own nostalgia, but it evolved into an act of reclamation—tracing heirloom objects that held the silent resistance of women remembered only as mothers, brides, grandmothers. Through sculpture, I archive their matrilineal inheritance as material memory—for future female ancestors to know them not just by the roles they played, but as individuals with dreams, agency, and voice” explains Chaturvedi.
The title “Zaat” refers to identity or the core sense of being. Visitors to Zaat will encounter a series of sculptural forms crafted in brass, white metal, cold enamel, resin-based enamel, and gemstones—each inspired by objects from the artist’s grandmother’s wedding trousseau. At first glance, these forms appear worn, metallic, and subdued—echoing the weight of tradition and domestic expectation. But within, they burst into candy-like, psychedelic interiors—revealing a hidden world of colour, desire, and youth. These contrasting surfaces act as metaphors for how generations of women, often remembered only as wives, mothers, or grandmothers, concealed vivid inner lives beneath uniform roles. Zaat transforms these heirloom-inspired forms into vessels of material memory—preserving not just what was passed down, but what was never said.
Sonakshi Chaturvedi’s professional experience spans prestigious institutions including The Gem Palace Jaipur, Zoya by TATA, recent internships at Olympia Auctions and the recently commissioned Riverside Studios by Vedanta in London, giving her deep insight into both traditional Indian jewellery-making and contemporary artistic practice.”Zaat” forms part of the British Council’s Best of British series, celebrating UK alumni who are shaping global cultural discourse. The Study UK: Creative Connections II programme highlights the international impact of UK education in fostering artistic innovation and cross-cultural dialogue.Currently pursuing advanced studies in gemology with Gem-A (FGA) while developing her enamelling practice with UK-based artists, Sonakshi plans to pursue doctoral studies to further her artistic practice around cultural and gender identity on a communal level, to contribute to the larger craft based cultural dialogue.
Exhibition Details:
What: Zaat by Sonakshi
Where: The Gallery, British Council, Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi
When: 11 June – 31 July 2025
Admission: Free
Gallery Hours: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
About the Artist: Sonakshi is a multidisciplinary artist, gemologist, and researcher whose work explores postcolonial material memory, gendered adornment, and matrilineal inheritance through craft, metalwork, and narrative visualisation. She holds an MA in Jewellery & Metal from Royal College of Art, London (2024), B.Des in Accessory Design from NIFT Bengaluru (2022), and is a Graduate Gemologist from IGI Dubai (2022).
Notes to editors:
Interviews with the artist can be arranged
Additional background materials and pictures available upon request
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