Chikankari is a style of embroidery from Lucknow in northern India, and its name simply means embroidery. Its signature is delicate white thread stitched onto white or pastel fabric, so the patterns show through subtly rather than shouting. Most of the work is produced in Lucknow and nearby districts, and the city's Chowk market is the main place to buy it. The craft is among the city's best-known textile traditions, recognised far beyond its home.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.