Rare documents, letters, and photographs of the British era are going to be on display at the National Archives from Wednesday till January 31 in an exhibition entitled 'Commemorating 150 Years of Presidency Universities, 1857-2007'.

Amongst the displays is a tabular statement depicting the annual allocation of funds towards education by the East India Company during the period 1813-30. The observations of HH Wilson before the Select Committee of the House of Lords on the establishment of universities in India in 1854 also makes for interesting reading, giving an insight into the minds of those who were opposed to higher education in India.

The Exhibition of Madhubani Paintings, that starts in the capital from January 14th, documents the extraordinary evolution of an indigenous aesthetic tradition of women in the Mithila region of Bihar. Madhubani paintings have been done traditionally by the women of villages around the present town of Madhubani and other areas of Mithila.

The paintings were traditionally done on freshly plastered mud wall of huts, but now it is also done on cloth, paper and canvas. Madhubani paintings mostly depict nature and mythological events, and the themes generally revolve around Hindu deities like Krishna, Rama, etc.

Natural objects like the sun and the moon, and religious plants like tulsi are also widely painted, along side scenes from the royal courts and social events like weddings. Generally no empty space is left; the gaps are filled by paintings of flowers, animals, birds, and even geometric designs.

The Venue: Visual Arts Gallery & Open Palm Court Gallery, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi

The Dates: January 14th–26th, 2007

The Timings: 10am-8pm

The ‘Sarees of India’ Exhibition, currently on at Pragati Maidan, has perhaps India’s largest collection of Sarees on display at any single place and is a must-visit for all the ladies out there.

The range includes sarees from diverse places all across the country like Madhubani from Bihar, Tanchoi from Uttar Pradesh, Chanderi from Madhya Pradesh, Patola from Gujrat, Bandhani from Rajasthan, Gadwal from Andhra Pradesh, Kanchipuram from Tamil Naidu, Sambalpuri from Orissa, Kantha/Baluchari/Tangail from West Bengal & many more types of sarees.

The "Rail Heritage Month'', currently being organized by Northern Railway, aims at providing people a chance to learn more about the Railways by taking them on short trips aboard heritage coaches.

Its time to shop till you drop and also win exciting prizes at the Grand Carnival being held at the Shipra Mall in Ghaziabad. Apart from exciting prizes and gifts for all purchasers, there will also be a special event every single day of the week:

15th January – Laughter Show
16th January – War of the DJs
17th January – Dance Performance
18th January – Fancy Dress & Baby Show

In case you are looking for something unique to add to the décor of your home, do make it a point to visit the North-East Craft & Culture Festival, currently on at the Dilli Haat till the end of this month.

On display would be a wide range of exquisitely crafted bamboo furniture, tribal ornaments, wood carvings, carpets and mats, bed covers and traditionally designed North-Eastern sarees.

The Venue: Dilli Haat, New Delhi

Several puppet theatre groups from across the country will join the Sangeet Natak Academy in organizing the ‘Putul Yatra’ – an exhibition of Indian puppets, being held from January 19 to February 5 at the Meghdoot theatre, Rabindra Bhavan.

The festival will showcase a major exhibition of Indian puppets, international seminar and video documentaries on puppet theatre from the archives of the academy. There will also be live demonstrations of the puppets.

Theatre lovers in the Capital will get another chance to savour good drama this week as a nine-day theatre festival titled ‘Natsamrat Natya Utsav’ opens in the city on January 20. The festival is being organized by Natsamrat, a creative theatre group.

On the first day, director Shyam Kumar's play "Kambakht Ishq" will be staged. It revolves round a doctor whose two patients are facing peculiar problems despite having no disease. Showing the funny side of a man-woman relationship is "Pati Gaye Ree Kathiawar" that will be staged the next day. Also on the same day, a hilarious play, "Bade Bhai Sahab and Sudama Ke Chawal", will be shown.

The Hungarian Information and Cultural Centre is organising a month-long photo-documentary exhibition, titled "World Heritage Hungary" at its Janpath premises beginning January 22. The exhibition will throw light on some of the most enchanting facets of Hungary that have been proclaimed by UNESCO's convention concerning the protection of world culture and natural heritage of its member-States.

Some of Hungary's contributions to the most precious sites of humanity's heritage include the endless plains of Hortobagy, the incomparable panorama of Budapest, the architectural and intellectual heritage of Pannonhalma. Besides the unique dripstone formations of the Baradla Cavern, the Palok houses of Holloko that are considered masterpieces of vernacular architecture, the frescoes of the early Christian crypts in Pecs all contribute to make Hungary an important destination for heritage.

The Venue: Hungarian Information and Cultural Centre, Janpath, New Delhi

The Dates: 22nd January – 21st February, 2007

'Lok Tarang', the Annual National Folk Dance Festival, to be inaugurated by President A P J Abdul Kalam on January 24, will this year showcase 22 dance forms that have been revived under the 'Guru Shishya Parampara', along with other group presentations. Performers from across the country will present their compositions at the six-day annual festival, celebrating the resurgence of the Indian Republic and its cultural heritage.

About 800 dancers will present 41 folk dance forms at the festival which is being organized to preserve and promote the art forms of the country. The festival will have representation from all states and it is an attempt to keep dying art forms alive.

The Venue: Talkatora Stadium, New Delhi

The Date: 24th January – 29th January, 2007

Zak Interior Exterior Expo and International Furniture Fair is an exclusive exhibition designed to meet the interiors and exteriors needs of retail as well as institutional clients. It is unique in every aspect and is the first expo of its kind being held in Delhi.

It is planned as a one-stop to know the who's who of the lifestyle industry and provides a rare chance to exhibit decorative accessories to an audience focused on this segment. On display would be home décor and lifestyle objects from across the globe, and some really exquisite pieces of furniture.

For the first time in India, ten contemporary Chinese artists will showcase their work at Vadehra Art Gallery beginning January 25. The exhibition of paintings, titled ‘Shanghai Contemporary’, will be showcasing the works of contemporary Chinese artists who have already showcased their paintings in galleries in the United States, Western Europe, South East Asia, Japan and China.