Here are the 'before' & 'after' pictures of the malkha shop. What was a grim & gloomy cellar has now become light and airy. Consultant architect: Golak Khandual.

We're planning to hold an exhibition and sale of Kondapally figures by Nageswar Rao and his son at the Malkha shop on May 5,6 & 7. Nageswar Rao was one of the group of Kondapally craftsmen who was trained in wood painting using natural pigments by Jagada Rajappa, and we hope in this show that at least 50% of the stock will be naturally coloured. On the 7th at 5.30 pm, Shri Ravindra Sharma of Kala Ashram, Hyderabad will give a talk based on his wide experience of the folk culture of the Adilabad region.

Sales at the shop have increased since we put up the signboard on the main road, and we hope that production can keep up. As usual production is hampered by power outages and occasional glitches in the Gramaspinner software. The exciting news is that sarees are expected sooner than we thought, in about a month from now. Meanwhile, stock of 5 more prints has just arrived, one of which is pictured above

Again, amazing how different colours change the look of a block print... here are 3 of the 10 variations of the leaf print.

Life goes on in Tokyo: Ruiko from Gaya-Tokyo writes: "We are making shirts with your fabrics. Our customers are very happy with that. I think it's very fun to see the working women wearing your fabrics in Tokyo." She promises to send pics.

Here are pictures of the bamboo racks in the malkha shop ... ideas from friends welcome