This paper examines the curatorial approaches used to display art and artefacts associated with intangible heritage at two museums, the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat (CKP) in Bangalore and the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS) in Bhopal. Curation at CKP seems to be influenced by an art connoisseur's gaze, giving primacy to aesthetics rather than to the socio-religious contexts of objects and their relationship with communities. The IGRMS, on the other hand, engages in a pluralist vision of inclusivity by involving communities in creating exhibits. The paper also examines the success of new models of museological practice and contemporary anthropological ideologies in addressing issues of inclusion and representation in Indian museums. It questions whether these practices have managed to realign power imbalances in museological approaches by shifting them away from a legacy of paternalistic stewardship, exoticism and 'othering'.