When two’s a party

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It was their like-mindedness and an urge to merge their thoughts that brought young entrepreneurs Mandira Lamba and Ridhi Bhalla together to give birth to their new art venture, Blueprint 12. The pop art gallery hosts private previews where artists and viewers/collectors are given an opportunity to have detailed discussions about their work.

The girls, who happen to be sisters-in-law, have been working together since the last seven years. “Mandira and I have our own fields of expertise and that helps in making a great team. And now to further strengthen the team, my younger sister-in-law, Sameera Bhalla has also joined us. She is studying but we get refreshing and youthful inputs from her,” says Ridhi.
The duo has been working with Mandira’s parents at their gallery, Nitanjali Art Gallery, for a while now. Art and fashion co-existed for them. Interestingly the pop-up gallery follows the duo’s similar concept in fashion, the Fab Connection where designers give a sneak peek of their collection before it goes on the ramp.
“In 2007, we started our pop-up shop as no one in Delhi had really done this before. And this concept took off very well. So when Blueprint 12 was conceptualised, we decided to start it as a pop-up gallery, where we would not do more than two shows a year and each and every exhibit would be an out-of-the box concept,” says Mandira, who holds a degree in fashion from the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York.
When Mandira and Ridhi are not clinking their flutes, they are working with farmers educating them on rural self-development. They have adopted a village called Tilkagarhi near Delhi, where through an organisation called Sustainable Pathways, they are doing their bit to stop mass rural migration to urban areas. “We are not involved in the day-to-day operations but regularly assist the active trustees in trying to find avenues of fund raising. Besides approaching potential fund raising organisations and individuals, we have organised pop-up fashion shows wherein part of the proceeds go towards the organisation,” informs Ridhi.
“All these years, we have been purely working for commercial gains and results but this platform has given us the opportunity to give back to society and it brings a great sense of satisfaction when we get a positive feedback from people,” concludes Mandira.