Viraj Khanna
Viraj Khanna
Viraj Khanna (born 1995) is an Indian contemporary artist based in Kolkata. His work incorporates embroidery, textile, and sculpture. He is also the Creative director of the fashion label AK-OK, founded by his mother, designer Anamika Khanna..[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]
Early life and education
Khanna was born in 1995 in Kolkata, India. He is the son of fashion designer Anamika Khanna. [1]
He studied Business Administration at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles and completed his degree in 2018.[2] He later completed a Master of Fine Arts at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2025. [8]
Career and Artistic Practice
After graduating, Khanna worked in the finance and embroidery departments of his mother’s fashion label, AK-OK, before transitioning to a career in art.[9] [10] [11] [12]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Khanna began producing collage works using images from fashion magazines and social media[13]. These early pieces were shared online and led to his developing a parallel practice as a visual artist. [13] [14] [15]
Style and Themes
Khanna’s works combine textile, embroidery, collage, and sculptural elements. He uses three-dimensional threadwork to transform photographic and digital imagery into layered compositions [10].His work often references documentation and performativity on social media and the ways images are curated for online presentation.[10][16].His themes explore societal behavior, curated identities, and emotional vulnerability, often with satire and surrealism.[17][18][19][20]
His works incorporate traditional Indian embroidery techniques such as zardozi and aari, often produced with textile artisans.[21][22]
Khanna frequently uses “khakha”, a stencil material used in embroidery tracing, to create distinctive visual effects.[23][19][24]
Exhibitions
Khanna has presented exhibitions in India and internationally, including:
- Why Did I Say Yes? (2025) – Rajiv Menon Contemporary, Los Angeles[21]
- BRAIN ROT: The Life You Live? (2025) – Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai[11][19]
- The Personal is Mythical (2025) – LATITUDE 28, New Delhi[25]
- What My Mother Didn't Teach Me: Part 2 (2022) – Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai[26][27]
- In My Fever Dream (2022) – Bikaner House, New Delhi[28]
- What My Mother Didn't Teach Me (2021) – Gallery Art Exposure, Kolkata[29][19]
Recognition
Khanna was included in the Forbes India 30 Under 30 in 2024[30]and the Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 in 2025 in the art category. [31]
His work has been featured in publications including Vogue India, Elle India, Architectural Digest, and Hindustan Times.[15][28][26]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Viraj Khanna - Biography".
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Viraj Khanna". Latitude 28. Retrieved 2026-01-22.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna hopes to extend a personal connection with his new textile collection". 8 February 2023.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna - Biography".
- ↑ "Forbes India 30 Under 30 2024: How Viraj Khanna became an accidental artist".
- ↑ Kaur, Amarjot (10 January 2025). "Artist Viraj Khanna explores brain rot with fibreglass sculptures and embroidered textiles". The Hindu.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna". Latitude 28. Retrieved 2026-01-22.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna – SAIC Graduate Exhibition 2025". Retrieved 2026-01-22.
- ↑ "Everything is AKOK". Everything is AKOK. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 "'My average screen time is seven hours': Visual artist Viraj Khanna on digital dependence and its influence on art". The Indian Express. 2025-02-03. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Sinha, Ekta (2025-01-14). "Viraj Khanna's 'Brain Rot' Brings Out The Digital Chaos We Live In". Elle India. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ Aggarwal, Asmita (2020-04-08). "AK-OK: How Anamika Khanna's sons are stepping up to carry forward mom's work | AK-OK: How Anamika Khanna's sons are stepping up to carry forward mom's work". www.asianage.com. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 "The world, according to artist Viraj Khanna". Le Mill. 2025-03-07. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna is becoming kind of a big deal in the art world". thenodmag.com. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Siganporia, Nadezna (2022-05-06). "Viraj Khanna: Carving His Own Path In The World Of Art". Elle India. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ "Why Viraj Khanna's Art Shows A Mirror To Our Complex Relationship With Social Media". Esquire India. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna – BEOPEN Art". Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ "Shubhi Gupta in Conversation with Emerging Indian Textile Artist, Viraj Khanna". MADE IN BED Magazine. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 Fervour, Art (2025-04-09). "Viraj Khanna Is Everywhere Right Now - And He Didn't Even Mean To Be! - Art Fervour Viraj Khanna on Art, Embroidery & Digital Obsession". Art Fervour. Archived from the original on 2025-04-22. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ Bijolia, Disha (2025-01-24). "'Brain Rot' Is Indian Artist Viraj Khanna's Scathing Take On Our Digital Decay". Homegrown. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Sen, Subhadrika (2025-07-08). "Viraj Khanna uses traditional embroidery to focus on the big, fat Indian wedding at his recent art exhibition in Los Angeles". Indulgexpress. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ Decor, Elle (2025-01-24). ""To try things that my mind is telling me not to" says Viraj Khanna on being an artist in the era of urgency". Elle Decor. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ Decor, Elle (2025-01-24). ""To try things that my mind is telling me not to" says Viraj Khanna on being an artist in the era of urgency". Elle Decor. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ Dmello, Zara Flavia (2025-01-11). "Viraj Khanna's Exhibit 'BRAIN ROT' Masters the Art of Calling Himself Out". Luxebook India. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ "The Personal Is Mythical | 25 July - 18 August 2025 - Overview". VIRAJ KHANNA. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 Gurung, Swareena (2022-03-30). "Viraj Khanna's exhibition explores the politics of identities through his collage art". Architectural Digest India. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna's artwork is a pleasant reminder of India's rich heritage of embroidery". Free Press Journal. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 "Artist Viraj Khanna explores complexities of human nature through textile art". Hindustan Times. 2022-12-03. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna - Biography". Art Exposure. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
- ↑ "Forbes India 30 Under 30 2024: Meet our young disruptors and trailblazers". Forbes India. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
- ↑ "Viraj Khanna". Forbes. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
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