Pura Art Cafe in Mankuttipadam village, is a space to paint, write, think or just exist

At Pura Art Cafe in Mankuttipadam, a picturesque village set at the foothills of the Kodasseri hills in Kodali, 16 kilometres from Chalakkudy town, one finds the kind of quiet artists are quite likely to enjoy. A retreat for anyone who wants to take some time off their busy schedules to work on their art, write, or just exist, Pura would be the ideal place.

he art studio was formerly a part of art teacher Priya KG’s ancestral house. “It was an ageing building and very small. As my family grew, we moved into a larger space next door. But at the same time, I wanted to preserve the old house. That is when I decided to convert it into a space for art,” she says. She got to work and with help from her husband and children Devangana and Devahara, renovated the existing property. They reinforced the tiled roof, changed the doors, gave the mud walls several new licks of paint and did some art work on the walls outside.

“This village has no art galleries or residencies and I thought we could open up an inviting space to those who would like to practise their art in peace,” she adds.