Sonya Sapru trained as a commercial artist in Bombay, and worked as an art director in advertising in the 90s. She left when she became a mother.

 

She redirected her energy towards her own creative pursuits, and wrote Zaika, a record of Kashmiri Pandit cuisine, drawing on her family recipes. It was published by Harper Collins in 1999. She also returned to painting, working on canvas, glass, and paper. Her works have been exhibited in galleries across India and abroad, held in private collections, and notably, acquired for the Imago Mundi Collection, an archive of contemporary art from around the world.

 

She set up Sonya Sapru Designs in the early 2010s, a studio in New Delhi as a graphic design firm. Though she quickly expanded into homeware, clothing, and art.

 

Now joined by her daughter Sarojini, the studio has taken on a collaborative and multi-generational direction. The mother-daughter duo draw from the notion of 'living legacy', prioritising their Kashmiri heritage as they archive stories, research history and cultural traditions, write and design. Sonya remains the creative director and founder, working on each design personally. Sarojini, is the writer and researcher.