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75 years of Triveni: from a teaching institute in a flat to city icon

One of Delhi’s most well-known and bustling cultural complexes, Triveni Kala Sangam will mark its 75 years with an exhibition, from February 27 to March 15, chronicling its golden past — from its very inception in 1950, when classical dancer Sundari Shridharani founded it as a teaching institute in a two-room apartment in Connaught Place.

5 min readNew DelhiFeb 3, 2026 08:34 AM IST

Triveni Kala Sangam turns 75, with artists recalling its legacy as Delhi’s iconic hub where visual arts, theatre, dance and music converged.

Artist Arpana Caur recollects having her first exhibition at Triveni Kala Sangam in 1974 at the age of 20. “This was a group show featuring works of young artists selected by M F Husain. That exposure led to another group show and eventually a solo at Shridharani Gallery at Triveni in 1975,” recalls Caur.

“At that time, there were only a handful of private galleries in Delhi and everyone would visit Triveni for the arts. One would find actors from National School of Drama, hear the sound of ghungroos from dancers practising, music classes being held upstairs, and artists’ studios where I would often just go to meet friends,” she adds.

One of Delhi’s most well-known and bustling cultural complexes, Triveni Kala Sangam will mark its 75 years with an exhibition, from February 27 to March 15, chronicling its golden past — from its very inception in 1950, when classical dancer Sundari Shridharani founded it as a teaching institute in a two-room apartment in Connaught Place.

“She began with only two students. There would be days when I returned from school and my mother would tell me that no student had turned up. But gradually it drew attention, as the word spread,” recalls Amar Shridharani, general secretary of Triveni and Sundari’s son, who has been more actively involved with its operations since her passing in 2012.

Envisioned at a time when a young independent India was still finding its cultural footing, Sundari managed to get a plot allotted from the Jawaharlal Nehru government under a scheme to promote art and culture, but building it in a manner she had imagined was another challenge.

Architect Habib Rahman, whom she first contacted, was occupied with government projects and reportedly referred her to Joseph Stein, who designed the building that has won acclaim for its modern design — stone lattice screens, large galleries, high-ceiling rooms and green spaces. “Though there was a paucity of funds, she never compromised on design or quality. Monitoring the construction on-site, she looked into every detail,” recalls Amar.

Inaugurated by the then President Dr S Radhakrishnan in 1963, ‘Triveni’ — meaning confluence of arts — was named by flautist Vijay Raghav Rao, who also taught there in its early years. Its other faculty has included artists KS Kulkarni and Rameshwar Broota, photographer OP Sharma, Bharatnatyam dancer Ramaswamy Pillai, Manipuri dancers Singhajit Singh and Charu Mathur, and sitarist Uma Shankar Mishra.

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While photographer Dayanita Singh recalls stopping by for shammi kebabs at its cafe and taking flute and Odissi lessons in the late 1970s, Caur notes how the place was meticulously managed by Sundari and how the cafe then run by Puran Acharya was a regular meeting place for artists. “Extremely reasonably priced, artists often gathered there. I remember A Ramachandran singing for all of us on one occasion. In the 1980s, Kekoo Gandhy of Chemould Gallery and Husain called a meeting there to initiate a signature campaign demanding a national gallery in Mumbai, which did not exist then. Delhi hardly had art collectors, and this campaign became instrumental in the formation of the National Gallery of Modern Art in Mumbai.”

Thespian Feisal Alkazi recalls virtually “growing up” in Triveni. A student at the nearby Modern School on Barakhamba Road, he would often drop into its cafe for a snack, and in the 1980s his parents, Roshen and Ebrahim Alkazi, opened an art gallery, Art Heritage, in its basement. “I am personally grateful to Triveni for the kind of exposure it gave me to different arts. That kind of experience tends to stay and comes up in one’s own work,” notes Alkazi.

He recalls attending productions by veterans such as Habib Tanvir, Om Shivpuri, Sai Paranjape, Sheila Bhatia and Slawomir Mrozek. Later curating several ceramic exhibitions at Art Heritage, his Ruchika Theatre Group has staged many performances at Triveni and now conducts theatre classes for children there.

While its location in the heart of Delhi has been an asset, Amar notes the constant efforts at upkeep and renewal. “It was beautifully handled over the years, with some of India’s best names teaching here. We have managed to maintain the high standards and have also made conscious efforts to modernise. More recently, new classes have been introduced and renovations carried out, including overhauling air-conditioning, fire systems and so on,” he says.

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Several aspects, though, remain unchanged. For instance, ticketing for events and performances is still not permitted. “My mother envisioned it as a place that would be accessible to everyone and we want to carry forward that vision,” he adds.

Vandana Kalra

Vandana Kalra is an art critic and Deputy Associate Editor with The Indian Express. She has spent more than two decades chronicling arts, culture and everyday life, with modern and contemporary art at the heart of her practice. With a sustained engagement in the arts and a deep understanding of India’s cultural ecosystem, she is regarded as a distinctive and authoritative voice in contemporary art journalism in India. Vandana Kalra's career has unfolded in step with the shifting contours of India’s cultural landscape, from the rise of the Indian art market to the growing prominence of global biennales and fairs. Closely tracking its ebbs and surges, she reports from studios, galleries, museums and exhibition spaces and has covered major Indian and international art fairs, museum exhibitions and biennales, including the Venice Biennale, Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Documenta, Islamic Arts Biennale. She has also been invited to cover landmark moments in modern Indian art, including SH Raza’s exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the opening of the MF Husain Museum in Doha, reflecting her long engagement with the legacies of India’s modern masters. Alongside her writing, she applies a keen editorial sensibility, shaping and editing art and cultural coverage into informed, cohesive narratives. Through incisive features, interviews and critical reviews, she brings clarity to complex artistic conversations, foregrounding questions of process, patronage, craft, identity and cultural memory. The Global Art Circuit: She provides extensive coverage of major events like the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Serendipity Arts Festival, and high-profile international auctions. Artist Spotlights: She writes in-depth features on modern masters (like M.F. Husain) and contemporary performance artists (like Marina Abramović). Art and Labor: A recurring theme in her writing is how art reflects the lives of the marginalized, including migrants, farmers, and labourers. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) Her recent portfolio is dominated by the coverage of the 2025 art season in India: 1. Kochi-Muziris Biennale & Serendipity Arts Festival "At Serendipity Arts Festival, a 'Shark Tank' of sorts for art and crafts startups" (Dec 20, 2025): On how a new incubator is helping artisans pitch products to investors. "Artist Birender Yadav's work gives voice to the migrant self" (Dec 17, 2025): A profile of an artist whose decade-long practice focuses on brick kiln workers. "At Kochi-Muziris Biennale, a farmer’s son from Patiala uses his art to draw attention to Delhi’s polluted air" (Dec 16, 2025). "Kochi Biennale showstopper Marina Abramović, a pioneer in performance art" (Dec 7, 2025): An interview with the world-renowned artist on the power of reinvention. 2. M.F. Husain & Modernism "Inside the new MF Husain Museum in Qatar" (Nov 29, 2025): A three-part series on the opening of Lawh Wa Qalam in Doha, exploring how a 2008 sketch became the architectural core of the museum. "Doha opens Lawh Wa Qalam: Celebrating the modernist's global legacy" (Nov 29, 2025). 3. Art Market & Records "Frida Kahlo sets record for the most expensive work by a female artist" (Nov 21, 2025): On Kahlo's canvas The Dream (The Bed) selling for $54.7 million. "All you need to know about Klimt’s canvas that is now the most expensive modern artwork" (Nov 19, 2025). "What’s special about a $12.1 million gold toilet?" (Nov 19, 2025): A quirky look at a flushable 18-karat gold artwork. 4. Art Education & History "Art as play: How process-driven activities are changing the way children learn art in India" (Nov 23, 2025). "A glimpse of Goa's layered history at Serendipity Arts Festival" (Dec 9, 2025): Exploring historical landmarks as venues for contemporary art. Signature Beats Vandana is known for her investigative approach to the art economy, having recently written about "Who funds the Kochi-Muziris Biennale?" (Dec 11, 2025), detailing the role of "Platinum Benefactors." She also explores the spiritual and geometric aspects of art, as seen in her retrospective on artist Akkitham Narayanan and the history of the Cholamandal Artists' Village (Nov 22, 2025). ... Read More

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