Colours and Craft @ Makkala Mela, Freedom Habba - Vidhana Soudha

Independence - In Dependence - Freedom from Dependency

What if self-driven acts could be expressed with no boundaries of timelines, space and movement? A conversation not through the ears and mouth - but with eyes and a vivid imagination... bringing surprises and self-explorations! For one and all.

band of beads was excited to bring together an exclusive graphic-only instruction kiosk of  origami puppet craft, for Makkala Mela, Freedom Habba. With a hint of band of beads' "Community Art Circle", colours depicting diversity guided the young citizens, "non-verbally". The connect was instant and infectious! A few adults inquired about participation as well! A wonder to witness - mental barriers break and free spirits take self control! 

Silent Converastions

With independent creations in little hands, a bright smile of accomplishment was the highlight - both by the parents and kids. A visual worth a capture!

A capture of emotions!

Exciting preparations beginning a few weeks in advance, each member of the team put in their best foot forward. Thoughtful arrangements along with parallel events at the venue brought vibrance. A single voice by the diverse people - celebration of 80 years of Independent India. That's Freedom Habba, 2026.

band of beads was privileged to pass on the spirit of Independence to the newest generation - the kids! And being accompanied by my family and collegues added to the celebration! Thank you, children and parents for coming over to the kiosk. A special note of gratitude to the Government of Karnataka and Ravi for providing a community celebration platform in the premises of prestigious Vidhana Soudha, on the significant Indepdence Day. 

A celebration with the community

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Event Poster

Media:

https://www.deccanherald.com/india/karnataka/bengaluru/vidhana-soudha-comes-alive-with-freedom-spirit-at-habba-4112742#google_vignette

https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/others/independence-day-special-all-in-place-for-first-freedom-habba/articleshow/133247696.cms

Custom Creation - Rakhi Charm for Maitri from LCJ

Raksha Bandhan.

An expression of love, trust and good wishes...

A reminder that siblings are there for each other...

...communicated with a thread and a charm!

To make this celebration a memorable expression, Maitri at LCJ creates handcrafted rakhis every year, available to be shipped anywhere - distances definitely not a hindrance for keeping the relationships alive! With preparations starting about a month ahead, excitement is in the air! For one order, Maitri was approached for a rakhi with a tiger charm - what a thoughtful way to express through symbols of nature! It was a pleasure to collaborate for this cute little creation...

Tiger Bead Charm

Spreading the Charm!

band of beads is thankful to Maitri and her customer for this wonderful piece of expression. May the bonds be strong for eternity!

Social Media Post

CAC at Bond Over Bindings, Jakkur

"Hi, BOB!"

"Hi, bob!"

Introducing!

"BOB (Bind Over Bindings)" 

     meets...

"bob (band of beads)"

A beautiful venture, managed by welcoming and passionate people; Bond Over Bindings (BOB) offers a range of children's books and workshops. My first offline interaction with Neha and Sahana was at Bhoomi Santhe (https://adiz-artmania.blogspot.com/2026/06/flea-market-bhoomi-hubba-visthar.html). Pursuing a similar passion of narratives with artistic expressions at band of beads (bob), I was excited to be at their bookstore in Jakkur. This time, for the maiden Community Art Circle session!

The child-friendly bookstore is like a trip to a wonderland. With interesting shelves nestled in varying shapes and in branches of a "tree", the books were equally attractive.

BOB - a wonderland!

The workshop area is a perfect platform for the imagination to be set free - little tables for each kid, floor seating on little cushions, and excited kids coming in! We were all set for the session!

All set!

A bit of game. A bit of paper folding. A bit of drawing with basic shapes... ingredients for creating a base for unique stories! There was a sudden pause to enter the world of imagination. A bit of anxiousness about the new territory. A simple example demonstrating the fact that we all have a world inside our minds, wanting to come out!

Imagination... set free!

Imaginative Expression... set free!

After a deeper dive, each paper had a beautiful drawing. This inspired impromptu stories, narrated with excitement and claps... Yes! We all had reached the wonderland! A documentation of the wonderland story on paper followed to capture a snapshot - still not possible by technology! Some chose to make the drawing more realistic by adding interesting colours in objects! Afterall, we were out-of-the-box! 

Unique stories on paper

As parents came over, the kids wanted to continue their journey and take a part of it home - departing was definitely difficult!

band of beads is thankful to each and every child and their parents to participate in this session. A special mention of BOB for hosting bob in this wonderful space. Looking forward to meet again!

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Event at BOB:

Event Poster:

 

Flea Market @Bhoomi Hubba, Visthar

Symbiotics.

A short term, with a deep meaning. 

With various examples found in nature, it brings in a question on the existence of individuals - selfish, selfless or sharing? To find answers, needs a pause....

A celebration of the vibrant eco-system on Earth, Bhoomi Hubba is scheduled every year on Environment Day. Being at the clean and green venue of Visthar gives a perfect pause. The urban landscape of buildings suddenly blur into age-less trees. Grays turn green. Noises fade out, with a nature-led symphony of chirps and rustling leaves. The air suddenly feels cool. All the senses feel at home!

Before the city woke up, the venue was full of action - an "early bird" feeling! Decorations of flowers and leaves at every few steps made it welcoming. The day was planned with performances, workshops, film screenings and an exclusively curated flea market - privileged to be a part of it.

As I was setting up the stall, the wonderful announcements and songs - folk and western - proved to be the perfect companions! Audiences soon poured in - very different this time. Most of them stopped over. Admired with gleaming eyes. Smiled. A sight, which I treasure.

A school girl picking her favorite accessory.

A little girl choosing a "Strawberry" themed skirt and a "parrot" print top with her Grandma. So adorable!

Two teenage girls browsing the accessories and choosing a birthday gift. The excitement was contagious!

A Grandma choosing a gift for her one-year old grandchild - a finger puppet and a baby's name tag. Her daughter dropping in after a while and choosing a few more puppets and some accessories - surprised by the fact that her mom had purchased from the same place! After a few hours, returning again with her child, browsing the collection - a wonderful family.

Kids and adults seeming to be zoning out in a wonderland, looking at the "noise-less" windchimes and a book-character wall hanging.

A guy looking for a gift for a girlfriend - asking curious questions!

A lady adorning the recently purchased "native American-Indian" theme bracelet - encouraging two more people for a purchase!

Each visitor showered kind words and respect for the products - handmade at home! Some had a keen interest in the sustainable practices followed, process of making, the time spent in making and a curiosity to connect by picking up the visiting card and scanning the insta QR code. This audience clearly understood handmade, sustainability and kind human behavior - something quite rare.

band of beads is thankful to each and every guest for stopping by and taking home a part of the handmade world. A special mention of the wonderful host, Visthar for this thoughtful celebration. A day, reminding of symbiotics and the joy of being a tiny part of this Bhoomi.

Flea market space - a section

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Stall Poster

Event media coverage:

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/bhoomi-habba-returns-to-bengaluru/article71051093.ece

https://experiences.highwaydelite.com/visthar/speciality-events/bhoomi-habba-2026

https://www.festivalsfromindia.com/festival-detail/bhoomi-habba---the-earth-festival

https://www.indulgexpress.com/events/bangalore/2026/Jun/07/bhoomi-habba-2026-spotlights-community-led-climate-action-through-art-food-storytelling-and-more

https://www.karnataka.com/culture/bangalore-hubba/

Visthar Website:

https://visthar.org/bhoomi-habba/?v=13b5bfe96f3e

"The Roar and The Squeak!" at Atta Galatta

It's a great to have a partner in the world of stories. The world is understood. And celebrated. Together.

A pleasure to be back at the wonderful venue - Atta Galatta! Offering a wonderful collection of books and a dream-come-true platform for artists, this space invites creative expressions.

Scheduled on Mother's Day, my daughter and I were all set to meet the other mothers and kids! Fathers were there too! A celebration together!

"Wonderful auditorium!", I heard one of the parents say, as I sat behind the mini-stage of the puppet show. Thanks to the venue, Atta Galatta!

After the audience was seated, their excitement was in air for a glimpse of the puppet characters! A few of them attempted a peek! With perfect a sing-along songs chorus and prompts, the Lion and the mouse were in awe! 

As the curtains closed, "Mama, the lion and the mouse won't come back?" asked a curious child. The fear of parting transformed into the joy of meeting when the characters jumped off the stage! The expressions continued in the art activity that followed - now with pencils on paper, with friends! What resulted was a collective art inspiring stories! Impromptu recitals by kids were admired by each and everyone. What a wonderful world to be in!

A perfect end to the celebration:

coming up to shake hands!

band of beads would like to thank all the kids for participating in this event. A special "thank you" to all the parents for choosing to revisit the traditional stories. And, last but not the least, Atta Galatta - for giving a platform to make all this happen!

event poster

Urbanaut ticket booking platform: https://urbanaut.app/spot/the-roar-and-the-squeak-puppet-show

Atta Galatta Website: https://attagalatta.com/event_page.php?eventid=EVT1745

"Hello", Thirsty Crow @ Coro, Domlur

 

A sunny afternoon. The Thirsty Crow was all excited for a sip at Coro, co-working space - ticketing on Urbanaut.

After a very tight timeline to setup the stage, the voices of excited kids arriving in the room was a sigh of relief!

The chatter turned into silence as the crow started to interact. The kids were completely in the story and the best part is - after the show, there was still a silence! A sign, that the travel to the "Crow Land" was in progress!

Engrossed!

A puppet-making origami session followed to continue the travel! Little hands started folding coloured papers, and after a while, a bird was looking at them!

Puppet-making activity

band of beads would like to thank each and every participating child and the parents for making this imaginative re-visit a reality! The journey to our roots and back is joyous experience - every time! The kids wish to stay at the venue, even after the session is over - thanks to Coro! 

Looking forward to more memories together!

Event at Urbanaut: https://urbanaut.app/spot/hello-thirsty-crow-at-coro

Event Poster

CAC at Atta Galatta, Indranagar

A sunny Sunday afternoon. Refuge in the vibrant bookstore, in a very urban area in Bengaluru - Indranagar. Seems like a perfect combination!

The Atta Galatta bookstore entrance looks inviting! I spotted the Community Art Circle poster in the series of workshops and events! "The vector image of children in the poster would soon transform into real-life!" I thought.

Seated in the workshop space, watching the previous event of young adults wrapping up, I spotted a couple of kids entering the space - as excited as I was!

The room was a mix of books, a cafe space and workshop. This mix slowly blurred, as we entered the imagination zone. All we could see were characters, a setup and the story! The sounds of chatting almost disappeared when the pencils were in action on paper. The magic of expression had taken over - worth a capture!

 An hour later, all of us had a story in hand - both visual and in written! All excited to share these, we were amazed at how different each one was! 

band of beads would like to thank the kids and the parents, captured the "silent" process and made the hot afternoon seem like a gentle breeze. A special "thankyou" to Atta Galatta for hosting the workshop. An afternoon well-spent!

Event poster

Event details:

UB: https://urbanaut.app/spot/the-community-art-circle-wonders-of-team-work

AG: https://attagalatta.com/event_page.php?eventid=EVT1746