Chain Unchained: Mintathon

Through Chain Unchained: Mintathon, artists, creators and practitioners across diverse fields come together and critically examine NFTs and their relevance to culture. This four-week hybrid experience (September 18th - October 15th, 2023) across Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata critically delves into the challenges and opportunities posed by NFTs, particularly in the context of cultural heritage.

Mentors

André Baptista

André Baptista is a lecturer and consultant in Archaeology, History, and Cultural Heritage, specializing in prehistory, landscape evolution, colonial history, and urban development. He holds a Ph.D. in Landscape and Environmental Archaeology and has led explorations and excavations from prehistoric to early medieval sites, representing academic institutions and the Archaeological Survey of India.

Pankhuri Upadhyay

Pankhuri Upadhyay, with over a decade of corporate law experience in India, founded Maker's Legal, a full-service law firm specializing in intellectual property, media, and entertainment laws. The firm's core mission is proactive engagement with the creative community, quantitative research, and innovative strategies to address evolving legal challenges in media, technology, and intellectual property.

Pixelkar नितान्त

Pixelkar नितान्त, a self-taught computational artist with a background in spatial architecture, melds art, design, and technology, drawing inspiration from nature, Indian art, and craft. His work explores the rules and patterns of the universe, presenting thought-provoking generative creations and installations that prompt viewers to contemplate interconnectedness and underlying structures in our world.

Neekita Singh

Neekita Singh, a painter based in Delhi and Ahmedabad, specializes in figurative art with occasional digital painting. She began creating NFTs in July 2021 and has exhibited her paintings in New York, Miami, London, and India, with works featured on Times Square billboards, and in private collections across the US, UK, Canada, Singapore, and India.

Iftekhar Ahsan

Iftekhar Ahsan pioneered heritage conservation as a sustainable business model and inspired Calcuttans to appreciate their city's architecture, communities, and culture through heritage walks for nearly two decades, preserving the city's character.

Sumangala Damodaran

Sumangala Damodaran, an accomplished academic and musician, has a rich background in Economics, Development Studies, and Popular Music Studies. She's also renowned for her extensive archival work on the Indian People’s Theatre Association's musical tradition and her collaborative efforts with South African poets and musicians.

Varun Desai

Varun, a computer engineer turned multi-disciplinary artist and musician, boasts 17+ years of experience in arts and culture as a producer, label manager, and designer. He specializes in developing innovative art and trans-cultural projects and leads Tezos India Arts & Culture (TIAC), dedicated to fostering blockchain-based initiatives with Indian artists, galleries, and festivals on the Tezos platform.

Partners & Facilitators

Kamya Ramachandran

Kamya Ramachandran (she/her) is an architect by education and public space designer by practice, Kamya’s work has had a keen focus on community engaged design through workshops and events. She is a design educator as well as a program and curriculum designer.

Blessin Varkey

Blessin Varkey is a technologist who works in the emerging technologies space – AI & Blockchain. Since 2015, Blessin has been exploring applied improvisational theatre in mental health and leadership and also teaches improvisation through The Impro Company. He is a NASSCOM-recognized Social Innovator and has been working in the technology space since 2013.