About
To explore, document and celebrate India's complex and rapidly changing culture through public programming, research and community building.
Cultural programming initiative within the Godrej campus at Vikhroli, Mumbai. Public events, performances, talks and exhibitions on Indian culture, identity, sexuality, urbanism and the arts. Known for progressive, inclusive programming.
The Godrej India Culture Lab was established in 2011 with Parmesh Shahani as its head, with a mandate to create a genuine public cultural platform rather than conventional corporate cultural philanthropy. The Lab operates from a dedicated space within the Godrej campus at Vikhroli and is open to the public. Its programming has been consistently ahead of mainstream Indian cultural discourse on questions of gender, sexuality and identity: the Lab was one of the earliest corporate-associated cultural platforms to engage openly with queer culture, hosting events during the period when Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code still criminalised homosexuality. Its archive of public events, available online, constitutes a significant record of progressive Indian cultural conversations from 2011 onwards.
Visit & Access
The Lab's physical space at Godrej One (Vikhroli) hosted free public events. As of 2021, programming is on indefinite sabbatical. The website at indiaculturelab.org archives past events, videos, and projects.
Founding & Leadership
Parmesh Shahani is a Mumbai-based author, curator and activist who has led the Godrej India Culture Lab since its founding. He is the author of Gay Bombay (2008) and Queeristan (2021), and his leadership has given the Lab its distinctively progressive, politically engaged character.
Godrej Industries Limited (parent); no independent board confirmed
Initiatives & Portfolio
Regular public talks, performances, workshops and exhibitions on Indian culture, identity, sexuality, urbanism and the arts. Held at the Vikhroli campus and occasionally at other Mumbai venues.
Consistent programming on queer culture and gender identity, making the Lab one of the most significant corporate-associated platforms for LGBTQ+ cultural conversation in India.
Online archive of all Lab events, including video recordings of talks and performances, creating a significant record of progressive Indian cultural conversations.
Cultural Funding
Cultural verticals
Impact & Metrics
Partnerships & Network
India Art Fair|National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA)|Japan Foundation|Yale Centre for Emotional Intelligence|Stanford Centre for South Asia|Lakme Fashion Week|INK Conference|Dharavi Biennale|The Ladies Finger
Credentials & Compliance
CSR-eligible · Schedule VII(v) — cultural heritage and artforms (potential applicability)
Recognition
Award for Corporate Commitment to Art (inaugural year); widely cited in Indian media as a rare example of corporate-cultural programming with genuine public programming intent rather than image management
The Godrej India Culture Lab is significant as a rare example of a corporate-associated cultural platform that has developed a genuine editorial voice and programming identity independent of promotional corporate interests. Its consistent engagement with progressive social and cultural questions, particularly around queer culture and gender, has made it an important institutional space in Mumbai's cultural ecosystem.
The Godrej India Culture Lab connects on the Culture Atlas graph to Mumbai as its primary location and to the Mumbai cultural ecosystem. It is distinct from Godrej's conventional CSR activities and from the KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival which it has supported. Organisations approaching Godrej for cultural funding should note that the Culture Lab is a programming entity rather than a grant-making body; cultural funding requests should be directed to Godrej Industries' CSR team.