In 1996 I undertook a research project entitled "Coinage and Currency System of Bengal Sultans (1204-1576 AD inmy capacity as Fellow of the Institute. A part of this project involved indepth study and documentation of coins preserved in public collections inridge the UK. I applied for a Visiting Fellowship in 1997 and received the award in 1998 which was the ideal time for mto visit the UK after completing the first phase of rsearch work on the coin hoards of the Bengal Sultanate in India.

Fieldwork in Rajasthan and Gujarat, to examine the settlement organisation and architecture of the Chalcolithic period in Western India

Study and research and development of contacts in contemporary art studies in India

I was awarded this grant while pursuing doctoral research, and will submit my dissertation in summer 2001. The grant allowed me to travel to fieldsites, to undertake photography, and to cover other costs of fieldwork and report preparation and to achieve more ambitious documentation of craft and folk traditions than I would otherwise have achieved. It also made me self-confident, and strengthened and boosted my morale. I am planning to publish articles in academic journals and have lectured to American students on these topics.