The MAP Academy & Nalli Fellowship (2025-27)

After completing a successful first cycle in 2024-25, the second and third cycle of the MAP Academy & Nalli Fellowship programme will open to new applicants in August 2025. A total of four Fellowships will be awarded, each carrying a one-time grant of INR 5,50,000.

This Fellowship programme is a collaboration between Nalli Silks, the heritage textile brand, and the MAP Academy, a platform encouraging greater and more equitable engagement with South Asia’s art and cultural histories.

About the Fellowship

Process  & Funding Cycles

The application process will go live in August 2025, and close in October 2025.

Two fellows will be chosen for the Second Cycle and will be expected to complete their research project between February 2026-January 2027. Funds will be released in February 2026.

Two more fellows will be chosen for the Third Cycle, with the project’s timeline extending from April 2026-March 2027. Funds will be released in April 2026.

Areas of Focus

The Fellowship programme supports research into under-explored textile-related histories, practices, and traditions across South Asia. Applicants may propose projects on any textile-centric subject. The following areas of research are encouraged:

• Histories of clothing and costume

• Community or personal textile archives

• Textiles in religious or liturgical contexts

• Environmental impact of textile production and consumption

• Endangered or disappearing textile traditions

• Critical perspectives on revivalism

• Labour in textile production, with a focus on caste, class, and gender

• Textiles in relation to other cultural forms—storytelling, poetry, music, architecture, and material culture

• Textiles in the context of archaeological study

• Textiles as symbols or metaphors in literature or mythology

• Techniques and tools used in specific textile traditions

Eligibility

The Fellowship is open to early- and mid-career professionals. We invite applications from researchers as well as designers, archivists, journalists, writers, educators, practitioners, and also collectives and non-profit organisations.

Supported Project Formats

The Fellowship supports a range of formats for research outcomes, including but not limited to:

• Journalistic inquiry

• Documentary film

• Archive activation

• Practice-based research

• Archive generation

• Digitisation and documentation initiatives

Expected Outcomes

The grant must be used to support one year of research, which may be part of a longer-term project. At the end of the Fellowship period, the following deliverables are required:

1. Research Dossier — Drafted by the Fellow, and co-developed in collaboration with the MAP Academy. This document will present key questions and findings related to the research process and subject. It will be hosted on the MAP Academy’s website.

2. Project Report — A comprehensive report written by the Fellow, submitted at the end of the grant period.

3. Project Outputs — A set of final works developed through the Fellowship. These may include:Audio-Visual: Interviews or short films
   Visual Essays: Photographic or process-based documentation
   Written Pieces: Essays, features, or interviews
   Curatorial Work: Exhibition or digital curation

Collaborative work is permitted, and Fellows must credit co-creators and contributors, and mention them in their application.