Nostr notes by Pooja Saxena

Any London folks here? I will be in your city this Friday (June ...

2026-06-08T14:14:28Z

Any London folks here?

I will be in your city this Friday (June 12) to speak at Type&Faces https://www.typeandfaces.com/ about my book India Street Lettering https://indiastreetlettering.com/india-street-lettering-a-journey-through-typographic-craft-culture/.

Get a ticket https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/typefaces-june-tickets-1990449021605 to hear me and other speakers, and come say hi 👋🏽

Breakfast https://anexasajoop.in/blog/breakfast/ ...

2026-04-16T13:49:20Z

Breakfast https://anexasajoop.in/blog/breakfast/

“India Street Lettering, the new book by type designer and ...

2025-12-19T16:16:53Z

“India Street Lettering, the new book by type designer and lettering artist Pooja Saxena, is a warm, thoughtful look at the signs that quietly shape India’s streets... It’s part archive, part love letter, and a deeply satisfying record of India’s everyday typography.”

Beaming about the book being featured in The Nod’s fortnightly roundup of unmissable cultural finds https://thenodmag.com/content/nod-list-ekaya-brocade-tree-christmas-events-mumbai-delhi#a-love-letter-to-indias-street-signs

Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j)

When you’re making a book, not everything you’d like to ...

2025-12-14T13:14:12Z

When you’re making a book, not everything you’d like to include makes the final cut 😿 I had to let many signs go during the development of India Street Lettering https://www.blaft.com/products/india-street-lettering, and among them were advertisements for astrologers.

Here’s my small paean to them on the archive blog 👉🏼 https://indiastreetlettering.com/blog/sun-signs-moon-signs-street-signs/

As @npub1mau…r49j and I inch ever closer to making the INDIA ...

2025-12-01T13:36:13Z

As Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) and I inch ever closer to making the INDIA STREET LETTERING book a beautiful object everyone can hold in their hands and flip through, I’m so darn happy to see a sneak peek being featured in the one and only Creative Boom 💥

Go have a look at what’s coming on https://www.creativeboom.com/resources/why-indias-disappearing-street-lettering-is-unmissable-inspiration-for-designers/ and if you haven’t already, please pre-order the book https://www.blaft.com/products/india-street-lettering.

Another issue I bring up is painted letterforms parroting shapes ...

2025-07-22T14:20:23Z

In reply to nevent1q…fvfk
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Another issue I bring up is painted letterforms parroting shapes brought on by the constraints of moveable type, even when those restrictions don’t apply to them. The example I share is of horizontal conjuncts in Devanagari made using discrete half and full forms, with a visible gap.

If this section of the essay is at all understandable to you, it is thanks to Sam Sam at BLAG (npub1fpx…k29l) who helped me make the text intelligible for non Devanagari type designers and users.

I talk a little about not seeing sign painting in India as a ...

2025-07-22T12:43:33Z

In reply to nevent1q…3y2v
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I talk a little about not seeing sign painting in India as a monolith, but focusing instead on the peculiarities of a city or even of different neighbourhoods within one. That’s allowed me to see lettering styles and trends with a local lens, and appreciate how much a single sign painter can affect a locality’s visual identity.

One of the examples I share is of painted trucks from Kochi, which strike a unique chord even in a subcontinent known for its truck art.

https://bl.ag/indian-sign-painting-a-typeface-designers-take-on-the-craft/

Sam asked me if I’d like to write for the @npub1fpx…k29l blog ...

2025-07-22T12:30:26Z

Sam asked me if I’d like to write for the Sam at BLAG (npub1fpx…k29l) blog when we first met here, but I felt so uncertain about what I would even say about sign painting in India. It is only now, with the India Street Lettering book in the offing, that I buckled down and put pen to paper.

The result is a short essay where I try to unpack how I, as a documentarian and type designer, have tried to deal with the clichés that come with how Indian sign painting is viewed.

https://bl.ag/indian-sign-painting-a-typeface-designers-take-on-the-craft/

INDIA STREET LETTERING is a 🤍 Community Pick 🤍 in the ...

2025-07-18T05:26:02Z

INDIA STREET LETTERING is a 🤍 Community Pick 🤍 in the latest Kickstarter newsletter. A big thank you to Mahesh for supporting the project! 🙏

You can support it too https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/

I’ve got some fun photographs lined up for the cemetery zine, ...

2025-07-17T17:13:15Z

I’ve got some fun photographs lined up for the cemetery zine, so I really hope that the campaign for INDIA STREET LETTERING reaches the $20,000 mark.

Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) will send a copy of the zine to everyone who has ordered the book!

Let’s go 💙 https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/

We’re in the last stretch, aren’t we? 10 days to go, and the ...

2025-07-16T12:24:48Z

We’re in the last stretch, aren’t we?

10 days to go, and the campaign is about $1250 away from reaching our final stretch goal — a photo-zine featuring lettering from cemeteries in India for everyone who has pre-ordered the book!

Help Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) and I cross the finish line by boosting the campaign and sharing it with all the typophiles in your life 💙

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/

When @npub1mau…r49j launched the INDIA STREET LETTERING ...

2025-07-12T15:14:40Z

When Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) launched the INDIA STREET LETTERING campaign, I wouldn’t have dreamed that it would be 300% funded with nearly a fortnight to go!

You can still help us reach Stretch Goal #4 — a new zine featuring lettering from cemeteries in India 🪦👻 Everyone who has pre-ordered the book will get a copy!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/

A big thank you to everyone — we hit $17,500 today and met ...

2025-07-11T16:28:42Z

A big thank you to everyone — we hit $17,500 today and met Stretch Goal #3 🥳

That means Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) will match all book donations pledged to the Free Libraries Network 📚 and 1️⃣0️⃣6️⃣ copies of the INDIA STREET LETTERING book are headed to free libraries around the country!

Tell your friends, keep boosting!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/description

Thank you everyone — the INDIA STREET LETTERING book campaign ...

2025-07-11T02:20:19Z

Thank you everyone — the INDIA STREET LETTERING book campaign hit its first two STRETCH GOALS. And that means, the book will come with an embossed dust jacket 🥳

Can you help us reach the next two goals?

💸 $17,500 ➡️ Double the donations 👯🏽 Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) will match all book donations made to the Free Library Network 1:1

💸 $20,000 ➡️ Everyone who ordered a physical book will ALSO get a ✨ 24-page full-colour photo zine ✨ featuring lettering from my favourite Indian cemeteries 🪦👻

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/

The INDIA STREET LETTERING campaign finally has some STRETCH ...

2025-07-09T16:24:40Z

The INDIA STREET LETTERING campaign finally has some STRETCH GOALS —

💸 $16,000 ➡️ Dust jackets

💸 $17,000 ➡️ Fancier dust jacket with embossed title

💸 $17,500 ➡️ Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) will match all book donations to the Free Library Network

💸 $20,000 ➡️ Everyone who ordered a physical book will ALSO get a ✨ 24-page full-colour photo zine ✨ featuring lettering from my favourite Indian cemeteries 🪦👻

So tell your friends please, and keep boosting!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/

Close to 300 folks have helped @npub1mau…r49j and I raise funds ...

2025-07-06T13:30:17Z

Close to 300 folks have helped Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) and I raise funds to bring the INDIA STREET LETTERING book to life ✨ We’re over 250% funded now, and deeply grateful to everyone who has contributed to and boosted the campaign!

We still have two and a half weeks to go, and hope that you’ll pre-order your copy of the book ➡️ https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/

One of my favourite rewards that @npub1mau…r49j and I are ...

2025-07-05T15:18:06Z

One of my favourite rewards that Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) and I are offering on the Kickstarter campaign for ✨ INDIA STREET LETTERING ✨ is a 60-minute online type tour with me.

That means you don’t need to visit India (or walk!) to hear the stories and see the signs I love. We won’t have to be limited to one city or neighbourhood either. What’s more, you can invite friends to join the fun.

Pre-order the book and reserve a tour now and I’ll see you with a hot beverage in the winter ☕ 💻 https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/description

What a day it has been — ✅ Gave a little talk at TypeLab Asia ...

2025-06-28T13:02:23Z

What a day it has been —

✅ Gave a little talk at TypeLab Asia (https://www.youtube.com/live/ep-AHxXI1hM)

✅ Pulp Society’s Paper & Play where my zines are being exhibited is having its preview (https://www.instagram.com/p/DLPsk6VPJZo/)

✅ Just saw that the INDIA STREET LETTERING book is 🥳 150% FUNDED 🥳

Thank you so much for the support y’all have shown me and Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j)!

If you haven’t already, go reserve a copy of the book ➡️ https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/description.

I woke up this morning to find that we’ve surpassed our funding ...

2025-06-27T04:34:16Z

I woke up this morning to find that we’ve surpassed our funding goal in less than 24 hours 🥳

Funding for what, you ask? A brand new book brought to you by Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) and little old me that celebrates the incredible street lettering in India.

Book you copy ➡️ https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book while we think up some stretch goals 🙈

Under nine hours, and we’re 70% funded! Let’s go internet ...

2025-06-26T17:32:06Z

Under nine hours, and we’re 70% funded! Let’s go internet pals 🚀 You’re making your neighbourhood type designer’s dreams come true 💙

Whether you just adore the vibrant lettering in India, or you’re a designer or researcher, there’s something for you in INDIA STREET LETTERING.

Help Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) and I cross the finish line ➡️ https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book

🥁 Welcome INDIA STREET LETTERING, the book! 🥁 I’m working ...

2025-06-26T13:21:49Z

🥁 Welcome INDIA STREET LETTERING, the book! 🥁

I’m working with Blaft Publications (npub1mau…r49j) to bring together my documentation of letterforms from India’s cityscapes into a book — a 200-page hardcover full-colour volume showcasing striking public lettering from around the country.

We need your help to make this book happen 🤝🏼 Our Kickstarter campaign is live. Please chip in, pre-order the book and share the project with everyone you know ➡️ https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blaft/india-street-lettering-a-book/

The Primarium book is now out, and I cannot get over the fact ...

2025-06-04T17:49:15Z

In reply to nevent1q…8psh
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The Primarium book is now out, and I cannot get over the fact that I got to co-edit this remarkable volume!

Read more about it here https://www.type-together.com/2025-primarium-the-book, and get yourself a copy, pretty please https://www.type-together.com/index.php?action=carro/showProduct&itmId=10039&rbrId=139

The week before last I was in Pune to document some of the ...

2025-05-13T07:31:51Z

The week before last I was in Pune to document some of the city’s public lettering. It wasn’t my first time visiting, but finally being in the old parts and around was a treat.

There is a city archive for Pune on India Street Lettering now https://indiastreetlettering.com/city/pune/ that will get populated in the coming months as I sift through and edit photos, but I’ve already posted a taste — beauties like these hotel signs 👌🏽

#IndiaStreetLettering #Pune

Today I saw the first photos of a book I co-edited — seeing ...

2025-04-22T11:34:01Z

Today I saw the first photos of a book I co-edited — seeing one’s name on a book cover is, umm, quite exciting 🫠 💖

Found myself underplaying a significant professional landmark to ...

2025-03-05T10:19:37Z

Found myself underplaying a significant professional landmark to a group of enthusiastic and supportive colleagues, who quickly set me right. Why am I like this? 🙄

Bangalore pals, my short film about the wonderful street ...

2025-01-31T17:31:10Z

Bangalore pals, my short film about the wonderful street lettering on MG Road is part of tomorrow’s line-up at the Sci560 Film Festival. I would love for you to watch it 🥹

More details and schedule 👉🏽 https://bangaloreinternationalcentre.org/event/sci560-film-festival/

I love putting together talks about India Street Lettering ...

2025-01-29T18:27:13Z

I love putting together talks about India Street Lettering https://indiastreetlettering.com/, but it is so different when it is a for a general audience versus folks versed in design and typography.

The former is so much tougher, but very much-needed in this country, where design is still seen by many as icing on the cake, rather than something fundamental to our culture.

So sorry for your loss, Tejas 😔

2025-01-26T15:51:01Z

In reply to nevent1q…w4ze
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So sorry for your loss, Tejas 😔

I’m in Ahmedabad for a hot minute, and the sign painting game ...

2025-01-19T11:32:04Z

I’m in Ahmedabad for a hot minute, and the sign painting game here is as strong as I remembered 🔥

The hand painted buses in Kolkata are unmissable. I captured a ...

2024-12-23T09:02:15Z

In reply to nevent1q…0dgk
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The hand painted buses in Kolkata are unmissable. I captured a few at a busy intersection, walking up and down the sidewalk whenever the light was red.

I’m back home now, but updates from my Kolkata trip continue. ...

2024-12-22T04:45:39Z

In reply to nevent1q…fffg
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I’m back home now, but updates from my Kolkata trip continue.

Let’s start with the bad news: this larger-than-life neon sign for Elite is now lost as the cinema building was demolished earlier this year 😢 I had featured it in my zine about cinema signs from Kolkata https://www.matratype.com/shop/zine-06-cinemas-kolkata

Lucknow was such a treat, and something exciting is brewing with ...

2024-12-19T11:25:30Z

In reply to nevent1q…nt72
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Lucknow was such a treat, and something exciting is brewing with all the signs and letterforms I’ve documented there in the last year or so. But for now, it is onwards to Kolkata!

One of my quests on this Lucknow trip was to document specimens ...

2024-12-18T14:44:16Z

In reply to nevent1q…r8ev
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One of my quests on this Lucknow trip was to document specimens of this distinctive style of signage I’ve seen on many older Art Deco buildings here. The letters are built in layers, lending them a wonderful dimensional quality.

Several hand painted signs (like the ones below) have been ...

2024-12-18T02:57:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…h2km
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Several hand painted signs (like the ones below) have been replaced with boring black and white flex ones in Lucknow’s Qaiserbagh chauraha. Looks like some kind of signage gentrification/beautification effort 🙄

Being tall, having short hair and dressing rather butch during ...

2024-12-17T15:19:54Z

In reply to nevent1q…lhs0
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Being tall, having short hair and dressing rather butch during this trip has meant that I was confused for a man *a lot*. Usually by other men. They would move me by my shoulders if I was in their way on busy streets and then be horrified that they’d done so to a woman. Being a flâneuse is fun 😂

A long day of walking and photographing, but among the highlights ...

2024-12-14T16:55:49Z

In reply to nevent1q…nv4s
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A long day of walking and photographing, but among the highlights was meeting Islam ji who paints these “trolleys” for Azad Band, probably the best known wedding band in Lucknow.

Ram Kumar ji of Azad Band, who I also met, talked about how they had worked together for decades and over generations, and had come up with this recognisable visual language that used red, white and black, plus the occasional peacock motif.

Day 1 in Lucknow, and already mourning the loss of this dynamic, ...

2024-12-14T02:40:51Z

In reply to nevent1q…aknt
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Day 1 in Lucknow, and already mourning the loss of this dynamic, vertical Devanagari sign sans headline. I had hoped to get a better photograph on this trip, but c’est la vie!

This sign for Pratibha was one of several cinema signs I featured in my newsletter a few months ago https://mailchi.mp/matratype/typographic-eye-13-zines-cinema-signs

Starting my year-end break with some roller coaster travel to do ...

2024-12-12T14:30:46Z

Starting my year-end break with some roller coaster travel to do more documentation for https://indiastreetlettering.com/. Wish me luck!

Lovely to wake up this morning to an essay by Payal Khandelwal ...

2024-12-11T08:16:06Z

Lovely to wake up this morning to an essay by Payal Khandelwal https://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/the-view-from-mumbai-indian-street-typography-graphic-design-101224, where she writes about the work that I have been doing to document and learn from street lettering in India https://indiastreetlettering.com/, alongside similar efforts by tanyatypes (npub1za5…trnz) and Aashim Tyagi 🌻

Thank you 🌻 Seeing you post regularly has been a real ...

2024-11-24T04:31:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…mlzn
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Thank you 🌻 Seeing you post regularly has been a real inspiration!

This week I completed a year of writing week notes ...

2024-11-22T06:08:25Z

This week I completed a year of writing week notes https://www.matratype.com/week-notes/, a small attempt to go back to old-school blogging. I missed a few weeks, sure, but I am so happy to have stuck with the habit.

Albeit silly, one of the biggest challenges I faced was having a photograph (or two) to accompany the text every week. It made me realise how rarely I use my phone camera.

Thank you for introducing me to Deepa Iyer’s work. Looking ...

2024-11-18T07:04:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…fr4n
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Thank you for introducing me to Deepa Iyer’s work. Looking forward to deep diving into that.

I’m going back to Colombo after years 🙌🏽 This time to ...

2024-10-31T05:17:07Z

I’m going back to Colombo after years 🙌🏽 This time to participate in the Sri Lanka Design Festival https://www.srilankadesignfestival.lk/ to talk about all things typography with some wonderful colleagues. I’ll be speaking on two panels — one about nurturing design practices that build local typographic communities, and the other about letterforms and cultural and national identity. Thank you Pathum Egodawatta (npub1m30…qxtl) for inviting me 😌

If you happen to be in those parts next week, please come say hi 👋🏼

This Sunday I’m doing an online talk for The Goa Project ...

2024-10-19T05:07:26Z

This Sunday I’m doing an online talk for The Goa Project https://thegoaproject.wordpress.com/. I’ll discuss where I look for visual inspiration when stretching the boundaries of letterforms in scripts from India.

My talk is juxtaposed with one by Sundar Lakshmanan, who will chat about script encoding. Between the visual and the technical, we hope to open up the world of Indic script type design and its possibilities.

The talks are free, just register here ➡️ https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwsc-GvqToiG9DeS6OYGVGYKJcO0Le_fpVr#/registration

✨ Little successes on India Street Lettering this week ✨ I ...

2024-09-27T12:19:20Z

✨ Little successes on India Street Lettering this week ✨

I began adding signs from two new cities — Leh (https://indiastreetlettering.com/tag/leh/) and Hyderabad (https://indiastreetlettering.com/tag/hyderabad/), and in two new scripts — Tibetan (https://indiastreetlettering.com/tag/tibetan/) and Telugu (https://indiastreetlettering.com/tag/telugu/).

Back when I was a toddler, my parents lived briefly in Hyderabad. ...

2024-08-23T07:26:04Z

Back when I was a toddler, my parents lived briefly in Hyderabad. This February, I returned to the city for the first time. No surprise that one of the lenses through which I saw it was typography. I was amazed at how many single-screen cinemas were still standing, even if some were no longer in use. My photographs from the trip have made their way to the zine ♥️ Cinemas of Hyderabad ♥️

Say hello to Priya, Shanti, Nataraj and Sheesh-Mahal, and get a copy of the zine ➡️ https://www.matratype.com/shop/india-street-lettering-zines-bundle-4-6

The heartache of not knowing how to say no 😿

2024-08-22T16:43:45Z

In reply to nevent1q…66kd
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The heartache of not knowing how to say no 😿

Good luck! 🤞🏽

2024-08-20T12:43:07Z

In reply to nevent1q…p87f
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Good luck! 🤞🏽

It has been a while since I prepared a newsletter issue, and ...

2024-08-08T11:54:39Z

It has been a while since I prepared a newsletter issue, and gosh, am I rusty!

Working on a new dispatch for next week, so if you’re not subscribed to 👀 I Spy with my Typographic Eye 👀 yet, now would be a good time to sign up ➡️ https://www.matratype.com/my-typographic-eye

Last week while birdwatching in Shey (Ladakh), I saw the Common ...

2024-08-07T05:55:09Z

Last week while birdwatching in Shey (Ladakh), I saw the Common Rosefinch and Mountain Chiffchaff for the first time — beautiful birds both, though I am partial to the colours of the former.

#Birdwatching #Birding #CommonRosefinch #MountainChiffchaff