Arty Vadodara ( Baroda) Breakfast for Nigella Lawson

Velvet cup cakes , Tea and use of the word “Concoction” evoke England. I cannot help imagining a Tea Party in Vadodara using the best Nigella Lawson recipes.

Nigella Lawson is married to a Saatchi. Do you know of the online Saatchi Gallery- it’s quite fantastic. Mr Saatchi has recently started collecting Contemporary Indian Art.

Indian art is moving ( in prices) at a phenomenal rate- the art has always been there. Vadodara has one of the top Art schools in India. In a sense I compare Vadodara to Oxford or Cambridge. A unique university town with students in all disciplines including Music and Singing. The phenomenal Bhupen Khakhar lived here. The formidable, classical and lyrical Raja Ravi Varma art collection is here.

A lot of other artists live there too. I would host a breakfast for Nigella Lawson and  partner Mr Saatchi at Sarjan Gallery in Vadodara. Why? Because Sarjan is a long established gallery by the Ranas. A unique energy exists there.

The guest list would include

Jitish Kallat( one of the top artists in India- art school he was at said "we cannot teach you anything")

Thukral and Tagra( Versace meets Diesel with great depth)

Chintan Upadhyay( Kitch, Big, Funny are his themes)

Subodh Gupta(often at Venice Biennale- creates sculpture from domestic stainless steel utensils)

Jeram Patel( delicate contemporary sculpture)

Jyoti Bhatt( taught at Art school- detail is amazing in his work)

Peter Nagy( an American who runs the most trendy gallery Nature Morte in Delhi)

Dhiraj Singh( Delhi based, New ideas abound)

Sahar Zaman( Presenter of Art show on TV)

Jaideep Mehrotra and his delightful parter Seema( A Mumbai artist. Refined. A gentleman.)

Plus folk artist Bhavesh Zala( from Bhavnagar. Does sparkling Water Wash and Water Colour Paintings using the bright bright colours and nuances of India)

And the menu to also be served to 108 poor artists specially invited for the occasion

Alfonso Mangoes

Kachoris ( round light fried dumplings filled with a tangy lentil paste)

Chana Bhatura( chick pea curry with a nan-based pastry)

Khaman ( a cotton wool light cake made with rice flour)

Indian Tea

And Nigella’s Red Velvet Cup Cakes made in India ( The eggs may become an issue as the state of Gujarat is predominantly vegetarian)

Silver foiled Kaju Katli ( a cashewnut nougat/marzipan)

Picture of a special offering at a Vadodara Haveli