City tour
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The Andaman Way
Meet a master enamellist. Witness centuries of trade fused in fire. Take home a piece only you could have made.
Rs3500/person
4.9 Tripadvisor Ratings
Responsible Tourism Award Winner
3.5hrs
In a working studio, enamellist Soma Pradhan still practises a craft that once carried Varanasi’s name as far as the enamel houses of Limoges, through the Purple of Cassius and the Persian court. Trained in botany before she ever touched a kiln, and trained again years later alongside some of Asia’s most respected enamellists, Soma leads a two hour and thirty minute session built around one simple idea: let the hands slow the mind down.
You step into a studio in Sheesh Mahal Colony, Kamacha, where the kiln has been lit since morning. Soma Pradhan hands you a sheet of copper and a handful of crushed glass, the same materials that once carried Varanasi’s name as far as the enamel houses of Limoges. You will not watch this craft. You will make it, fire it, and carry it home.
What the Andaman Way Workshop Actually Is
The Andaman Way is a private enameling workshop in Varanasi, created and led by artist Soma Pradhan, built around a two and a half hour studio session capped at eight guests. It is also the name of her book on sensory wellness through tactile art.
This is not a staged demonstration. It is Soma’s own working studio, her own kiln, and a single enamel piece that is entirely yours by the time you leave.
Key Facts: The Andaman Way in Varanasi
Duration | Two hours and thirty minutes |
Pick & Drop | Your hotel in Varanasi |
Group Size | Up to eight guests |
Schedule | Every Saturday and Sunday |
Price | Rs 3,500 per person |
Includes | Studio access, kiln firing, tools, materials, one finished piece |
Lead By | Soma Pradhan |
Language | English |
Your Day
Stage 1- The Studio
10:00 AM
You arrive at a working artist’s studio, not a performance space. The kiln, the tools, the scattered copper and glass are hers, used daily, not arranged for visitors.
Stage 2- The History
You hear how a craft born in Varanasi reached the Persian court, crossed to the enamel houses of Limoges through the Purple of Cassius, and still echoes in the fragile silver heritage of the Andaman coast.
Stage 3- The Making
You spend an hour with copper, glass and fire under Soma’s hand, then watch your own piece transform in the kiln.
Does Mysore Silk tour sound compelling?
What Makes the Silk Route to Mysore Different
Many Mysore day trips pass the cocoon market and end at the palace. The Silk Route to Mysore goes deeper in three ways.
- You begin where silk begins. You step inside a working rearing room with a farming family, not a demonstration shed. The farmer explains the science, the seasons and the risks of a livelihood as fragile as a silk thread.
- You see the price of silk being set. At Ramanagara your guide translates the auction in real time, so a noisy market hall becomes a story you can read.
- You sit with the weavers. You meet families who weave at home.
Every stop connects to the one before it. You leave understanding something real, rather than having seen something impressive.
Travel That Gives Back to the Silk Community
This tour was designed so that the people at the heart of Mysore silk benefit from your visit.
- A visit fee is paid by us directly to the host farming family.
- Groups are capped at 8, so village visits stay personal and never intrusive.
5 Senses Tours received the Outlook Responsible Tourism Award for this approach to travel.
Your Guide for the Day
Every Silk Route to Mysore is led by a 5 Senses guide trained in the history, craft and economics of Mysore silk. Our guides have built long standing relationships with the families, which is why the welcome you receive is warm and unscripted. They speak with farmers and weavers in Kannada and bring every word to you in fluent English, filtered for nothing. They tune the pace and depth of each stop to your group’s curiosity, and they stay with you from hotel pickup to hotel drop.
Pricing chart
4+ persons
Rs8750/person
- Pick & drop
- Travel by Innova
- Guide
- Entrance charges
- South Indian Vegetarian meals as lunch
2 persons
Rs12125/person
- Pick & drop
- Travel by sedan
- Guide
- Entrance charges
- South Indian Vegetarian meals as lunch
Single person
Rs19750
- Pick & drop
- Travel by sedan
- Guide
- Entrance charges
- South Indian Vegetarian meals as lunch
Everything Taken Care Of
From 9:30 AM pickup to 1 PM drop, every detail is handled. Nothing hidden, nothing extra.
Included
- ✅ Personally led by Soma Pradhan
- ✅ Full studio access, kiln firing, tools and materials
- ✅ One finished enamel piece to take home
- ✅ Hotel pickup and drop anywhere in Varanasi
- ✅ Private air conditioned vehicle with an experienced driver
Trip Itinerary
Mysore Silk Tour
9:30 AM - Hotel pick up from Varanasi
Welcome and History Talk
Studio Preparation
Hands On Enamel Making
Kiln Firing
Finishing and Take Home
1:00PM- Hotel drop back
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