work / Farm8
Farm8
An urban farm, a kitchen and a place for discussion and learning2.5 acres, Aya Nagar, New Delhi · ongoingvisit farm8 — farm8.phime.in ↗
Part edible forest, part studio, worked without tilling and without synthetic inputs on the Aravalli ridge. The Deemak Drawings are made here, and since 2026 the soil has been under independent study by Jawaharlal Nehru University. “This place isn’t just mine — it belongs to everyone who contributes to it.”
at Farm8 and beyond, 2019–2027Events and gatherings
September 2026 – April 2027The School of Environmental Sciences at Jawaharlal Nehru University will conduct Phase I of a research project assessing the agroecological health, sustainability, and soil quality of the permaculture system at Farm8. Led by Principal Investigator Prof. Usha Mina, this initial phase involves extensive fieldwork across two seasonal cycles to evaluate the entire cultivated area of the Aya Nagar site by its permaculture zones.
August 2019 – presentBees for Art and Ecology Practice — initiated by Golden Hive Foundation. Developed Farm8 into a dedicated sanctuary for the Indian stingless bee (Tetragonula iridipennis) and other native pollinators, integrating ecological conservation with artistic practice.
April 2026Ingest and Growth — a talk on Farm8’s practice at the opening of Sentience of Small Beings, presented by NAU Foundation at Khoj Studios, 24 April
February 2026In February 2026, Stefanie Wuschitz completed an artist residency at Farm8, in conjunction with her participation in the Are You Human? exhibition at Khoj Studios. Left to right: Rashmi Kaleka, Stefanie Wuschitz, Maya Minder and Daniela Zambrano Almidón. Photo: Stefanie Wuschitz
September 2025The Travelling Plants, Goethe-Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan — a walkthrough of Farm8 with architect–designer Vidya Tongbram, then a conversation with artist Gyanwant Yadav and farmers from Chila Khadar village on farming the Yamuna floodplains, 20 September
March 2025Acts of Re/Collection — a gathering of old and new friends of AgriForum on the agrarian, art and ecology, with FICA, 11 March
March 2025Art and Permaculture — a four-day course with permaculture designer Rico Zook, facilitated by Quetzal, 7–10 March
December 2024In December 2024, the feminist learning platform The Third Eye hosted a private, two-day internal staff retreat at Farm8 to slow down, connect, and reflect together on the ecological micro-farm.
2024November Noon — handwoven textiles shown among the birds and bees, with a menu sourced from the farm
February–March 2024AgriForum: Art and Permaculture — a masterclass with Rico Zook for FICA’s selection of artists and practitioners
February 2024Smogware and Cascoland (Netherlands) — a performance meal around three food stations, served on ceramics glazed with Delhi’s pollution dust; part of the Ceramic Triennial by Arthshila
July 2022For the July 2022 exhibition Many Acts of Reading at Vadehra Art Gallery, artist Rashmi Kaleka brought her agrarian practice at Farm8 directly into the showcase, contributing to FICA’s collective exploration of ecological care, land-based research, and community knowledge.
February 2020First-year botany students from Khalsa College visit the farm
September 2019A day of talks on permaculture practice in Delhi, joined by ecology artists brought together by FICA
Khoj Studios, New Delhi · 24 April 2026Ingest and Growth
Since March 2020, Farm8 produce has gone out in baskets to artists and friends across Delhi with one request: cook it, send a picture of the finished dish, and say how it tasted. The replies come back as messages, recipes and photographs — mustard saag with garlic chives, hyacinth beans blanched the day they arrived, haak slow-cooked with mutton, a salad of Farm8 fennel and lemon. Every one is kept. Ingest and Growth is a work made of those exchanges, presented at Khoj Studios in April 2026. The soil’s work ends on someone else’s plate, and the picture comes back to the land.
On 24 April 2026 Rashmi gave Ingest and Growth as a talk at Khoj Studios, on the opening evening of Sentience of Small Beings, an exhibition by NAU Foundation. She spoke about her practice and about Farm8, drawing on her work with sound, patterns of habitation and the lives of other species, and on growth, cultivation and attention across both her art and her farming.
Manisha Parekh — 5 November 2020Good morning Rashmi!
Here is the list of goodies I made from your basket.
– Mustard saag with garlic chives burji
– Mooli bhaji
– Baigan tossed in ajwain and garlic
– Mint chutney with green chillies, jaggery and lemon
– Pesto with basil and cashews and garlic
– Moringa leaves parantha
– Lemon grass in chicken curry, and now left some for the tea
– Egg hoppers with eggs
Still have some salad, ajwain leaves and gongura leaves to make something from…
Really enjoyed myself exploring new veggies.
14 March 2026Chicken with Farm8 potatoes and tomatoes seasoned with chilli flakes, oregano, thyme and cheddar cheese slice.
Srinivas Kuruganti — 29 January 2022Veg arrived, thank you, chick with your veggies, love the corn, can’t wait to whoof it down xx
Dr Gulzar — 7 April 2026Gosht haak with masala. Fresh greens were mixed in and cooked until tender. A little water was added if needed, and the dish was slow-cooked until the mutton became soft and all the flavours blended well.
Kana Kitaoka — 20 February 2026Farm8 salad — chopped fennel stem and leaf marinated in olive oil and salt, sliced horseradish, and roasted walnuts. Farm8 lemon juice, honey mustard dressing.
Sveta Sarda — 23 March 2020Hello Rashmi, right now blanching hyacinth beans from your basket. Will decide which size of potatoes to cook. It felt good to know you are growing food to share, right now, that is beautiful.
Vidya Shivadas — 16 February 2026Aloo, soya and tamatar.
visit farm8 — farm8.phime.in ↗
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