As the summer heat rolls in, we invite you to join us for Canvas & Kahani, Central Desi’s first art and open mic event!
On Saturday, June 20th, we are celebrating South Asian creativity at Alfa Art Gallery in New Brunswick by featuring the work of eight local artists. Read on to learn more about them.
The event will also feature an open mic. If you plan to perform, DM us on Instagram (or reply to this newsletter) so we can make sure your name is on the list.
Meet the artists
Hanifa Abdul Hameed
Hanifa is an Indian American based out of New Jersey. She is a UI/UX designer by day and an illustrator by night. Her work is driven by a love for her culture, strong women, fashion, and color. Throughout her illustrations, she explores ideas that feel personal and meaningful.
Janhavi Firke
Janhavi is a self-taught, New Jersey-based visual artist whose work is deeply inspired by nature, adaptability, and the organic beauty of imperfection. Named after the holy river Ganga (Ganges), her fluid artistic approach reflects her upbringing in India, where she developed a deep appreciation for the raw, evolving nature of tribal art. Since relocating to the US, Janhavi has embraced a variety of mediums, with a current focus on pyrography—the art of wood burning. By manipulating heat and pressure across diverse wood grains, she creates textured, sepia-toned pieces that celebrate spontaneity over perfection. Her artwork is regularly exhibited in galleries and art shows across Jersey City, Hoboken and East Brunswick.
Munahil Akhtar
Munahil is a Pakistani-American artist whose work bridges the realms of dreams and reality, inviting the viewer to step into imaginative spaces shaped by memory, emotion and cultural experience.
Mansi Bhatt
Mansi is a graphic designer and photographer whose work explores storytelling, cultural memory, and social impact. Working across portrait photography, publication design and digital media, her practice centers on family, identity and human connection.
Pooja Makhijani
Pooja is the author of “Mama’s Saris,” “Bread Is Love,” “Together For Mama,” and “Aunties.” Her bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, NPR, Real Simple, The Atlantic, WSJ.com, The Cut, Teen Vogue, Publishers Weekly, ELLE and Bon Appétit among others. Pooja is a 2026 New Jersey State Council on the Arts Individual Artist Fellow.
Rushiga Sarveiya
Rushiga is an artist who navigates art between two opposite ends: oil paintings and graphic design. She was born in India, but has lived in New Jersey since the age of two. She graduated with a BFA from Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts. Her most recent work explores the reproduction of memories and the practice of working with photographs, while remaining loyal to her cultural roots.
Pranali Bharambe
Pranali is a versatile visual artist and computer science engineer based in New Jersey. Balancing her technical background with a lifelong passion for creativity, she explores a diverse range of mediums, including watercolors, oil paints, wood-carving, henna and pyrography. Her artistic journey evolved significantly upon moving to NJ, where she expanded her practice into polymer clay jewelry and paper quilling. Pranali’s multi-disciplinary work has earned accolades from organizations such as ArtNBeats and the Lions Club, as well as an Honorable Mention from the Westerhoff School of Music & Art. Having showcased her work in exhibitions like the Virtual WalkBye, she continues to expand her creative horizons and make her mark on the art world.
Zainab Masoud
Art, for Zainab, is an act of devotion and resistance. As a self-taught, Muslim Pakistani-American mixed-media artist, she weaves together politics, satire and spirituality to create paintings and drawings that confront the complexities of our world. Her work is a visual call to action—an invitation to find the courage to speak up and refuse silence.
We hope you will join us in supporting Desi artists and building community. As a treat, attendees will get a special discount at Khyber Coffee & Tea House, conveniently located right next door to the event.🍹
Reply to this email to chat with us, or join the conversation on Instagram.