Behind The Scenes

“Colour is my day-long obsession, joy and torment.” - Claude Monet

 

Vision

To inspire a global appreciation for the enduring beauty and cultural significance of Madhubani art by seamlessly blending tradition with contemporary aesthetics.

 

Mission

To shape Creatively Dynamic, Culturally Rooted and Socially Sensitive leaders!

 
Deepti_Headshot.jpg

Deepti Agrawal

Founder

Deepti Agrawal is an award-winning artist, cultural educator, and arts leader whose practice centers on Madhubani (Mithila) painting, a traditional visual art form from Bihar, India. Working with the form since 1992, she explores how heritage art can evolve as a living visual language for contemporary audiences.

A 2022 Washington Governor’s Arts & Heritage Award Honoree and Washington State Arts Commissioner (2026–2029), Deepti has been recognized for her contributions to arts, culture, education, and community. She is a TEDx speaker, a celebrated speaker on the Washington State Speakers Bureau, Washington State Heritage Master Artist, and a board member of Humanities Washington, and has taught and presented her work at institutions including the Seattle Art Museum.

Through Deepti Designs, founded in 2015, she has engaged thousands of students and community members through art education, exhibitions, public murals, and collaborative cultural projects. She is also the co-founder of Kathith, a heritage-art curriculum and certification initiative, and founder of SpeakTank, a youth public-speaking and leadership program.

Her work bridges tradition and contemporary expression, connecting cultures and generations through art.

Nikita Thakalth

Director
Events & Outreach

Capable of seamlessly blending artistic prowess with unwavering advocacy, Nikita stands tall as a distinguished art ambassador. Exceptionally passionate about the heritage art and all that we do, she wears multiple hats in our organization. As an artist, an art educator, an outreach pro, an events lead, programs coordinator, she has fostered strong creative connections both within and outside communities for our youth artists.

After Graduating in Naturopathy with specialization in Homeopathy she practiced for a year in Mumbai before moving to Seattle. Love for art started in elementary school when she explored different art forms on and off throughout the school years. Nikita continued her passion for art with multiple workshops in ceramics, hand pottery, wheel throwing at Kirkland Art Center.

She worked as an art Docent at NSD for 4+ years and was instrumental in designing, planning and executing end of year auction project in elementary school.

Meet the Team

  • Shilpa Sherigar

    ADMINISTRATIVE HEAD

  • Nikita Thakalath

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Vrinda Rathi

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Anushka Bains

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Anvika Bheemarasetty

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Prisha Mundra

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Srinidhi Kodemala

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Sai Keertana Ganta

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Aadya Bommineni

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Omshri Raghavendra

    Omshri Raghavendra

    TEACHING ARTIST

  • Dhiya Souresh

    TEACHING ARTIST

KALAKRITI

Where it all began, 3 decades back...

In the year 1992, a foundation was laid for an accelerated and everlasting growth of one of the finest art-forms from the rurals of Bihar known as Madhubani Painting. The origin of Madhubani Painting a.k.a Mithila Painting is shrouded in antiquity. Some say, it dates back to the time of Ramayana and has been passed down through generations since then. Whether or not that's true, the baton of raising awareness about this beautifully intricate and detailed art was taken up by a husband and wife duo - Priti Agrawal and Rajat Kumar Agrawal, almost three decades back.

They started an institute called Kalakriti at their home in Darbhanga, Bihar, which worked towards empowering and promoting the local less-privileged womenfolk. It began with a group of twelve women who worked together to learn, unlearn and fine-tune their home-grown art skills. After 2 years of hardwork, some samples were made ready which, with much skepticism, were taken to the up-market boutiques and store owners in the metros across the country. The response was incredible. Orders started pouring in and this group rose exponentially in strength, confidence and artistic caliber. 

Today, the first of its kind, Kalakriti stands tall, in the same exact house, doing exactly what it did then, BUT with much more confidence, valor and pride in its 25th year.

Following the tradition of the art-form, Priti and Rajat Agrawal passed this legacy down to their daughter Deepti who is based in Seattle and runs her own label Deepti Designs internationally. She practices, trains and exhibits Madhubani Paintings by self and her students at the most prolific and diversified platforms to help raise its awareness at a global level.