The Future of Indian Design: 20 Studios to Watch

The seven studios featured in Design Destination: India represent just the beginning of a much larger movement happening across the country. From Mumbai’s experimental metal work to Rajasthan’s traditional woodcraft reimagined for contemporary spaces, a new generation of Indian designers is reshaping how the world sees creativity from the subcontinent.

These twenty studios, spanning from the featured Design Destination selections to thirteen additional voices on ADORNO, reveal the extraordinary diversity of contemporary Indian design. Some work with ancient techniques passed down through generations, others experiment with cutting-edge hydroforming technology. Some embrace minimalism, others celebrate maximalist storytelling. What unites them is a shared commitment to creating meaningful objects that honor their cultural roots while speaking to global audiences.

Together, they represent more than individual success stories. They’re part of a movement that sees design as cultural inquiry, craft as living knowledge, and tradition as a springboard for innovation rather than a constraint. This is Indian design today: confident, diverse, and unafraid to define itself on its own terms.

House of Creatomy, Bangalore

Founded in 2014, this studio uses advanced CNC machinery to achieve intricate forms and engineered precision, then finishes each piece by hand. Technology enhances rather than replaces craft, allowing artisans to focus on expressive details. Their pieces often hide complex technical feats within cultural references and functional elegance.

Jagdish Sutar, Pune

Rooted in Rajasthan’s intricate woodworking legacy, Jagdish refined his craft in Italy before establishing his Milan-based studio. Bridging Eastern heritage with Western aesthetics, he collaborates with local artisans to create furniture that tells stories of tradition, craftsmanship, and contemporary elegance.

Josmo, North Goa

Creating furniture that responds to how Indians actually live – multigenerational homes, tropical climates, spaces where function meets feeling. Their approach is both playful and deeply considered, aiming to evoke sensory memories while adapting to different lifestyles with distinct personality.

Kohelika Kohli कारखाना, New Delhi

Specializing in 21st-century interpretations of classical and sculptural forms. Kohélika Kohli draws on India’s deep traditions of materiality and craftsmanship while incorporating modernist principles. Collaborations with skilled artisans in carving, inlay, and metal casting create furniture that balances heritage with contemporary needs.

LMNOH, Gurgaon

Dedicated to the ethos of play, creating unique and timeless pieces without compromising playfulness and individuality. They believe in the power of color, texture, material, and pattern to transform spaces, redefining Indian traditional crafts in contemporary contexts through meticulously handcrafted functional objects.

MANUHITA, Mumbai

A hands-on studio seeing design as a way to give everyday objects character and meaning. Working closely with materials, form, and function through sketching, prototyping, and detail refinement, they create lighting, furniture, and uncategorizable products driven by creative excitement and challenge, most comfortable with metal but experimenting across materials.

Murubi, Vadodara

A contemporary design-driven brand specializing in furniture and products that enhance quality of life. The name blends Tamil words meaning “complete and wholesome” with “be,” signifying living and feeling. Each product is meticulously handcrafted with focus on timelessness, utility, and simple, honest beauty.

Nama Home, Moradabad

Founded by Namit Khanna with an aim to put Indian furniture design on the global map. Creating minimal yet playful designs that defy the ordinary, pieces tell stories through observations and simple geometry. With dedicated production facilities in metal, they cater to interior, hospitality, and public space projects.

Nitush and Aroosh, Gurgaon

India-born artist brothers creating a new language of design through sculptural textures and unique expressions. Using environmentally friendly hydroforming techniques, they coax stainless steel into dynamic organic forms, then handcraft surfaces to create sculptural furniture and objects that transcend mere functionality.

Objects by Aku Zeliang, Nagaland

Building rural creative economies through traditional bamboo and cane craft. Zeliang works with indigenous artisans to create lighting, furniture, and textiles that have reached luxury clients like Loewe while sustaining entire craft communities. His planned Craft School of Excellence will preserve and advance loin loom weaving, natural dyeing, and lost-wax casting.

Objectry, New Delhi

Led by Aanchal Goel, this studio blends contradictions with familiarity, rooted in Indian heritage richness. Drawing inspiration from local crafts and materials, they create contemporary pieces celebrating beauty in imperfection. Each handmade piece carries human touch variances, embodying commitment to quality and longevity.

Project 810, New Delhi

Founded by Vritima Wadhwa, this studio takes a research-driven approach to furniture and interiors grounded in contemporary India. Their process begins with material exploration and emotional resonance, creating work that carries craft’s soul without being overtly traditional through collaboration with local artisans and a philosophy of restraint.

ray barn, Ahmedabad

Bringing precision into practice across every scale, creating “real things” that become part of users through superior finish and precision married with comfort. Their re-invented furniture-making processes result in instruments that meld material beauty with pleasing shapes for complete user experiences.

Room Therapy Collective, Hyderabad

Curator Sona Reddy’s gallery showcases exceptional Indian design as future heirlooms. Each year, she selects pieces from independent designers and small businesses for their ability to transform spaces through craftsmanship quality and distinct style. Available in limited quantities, these pieces celebrate craft as both intimate and public experience.

sāar – The Functional Art, Pune

Founded in 2020 by Sneha Jajoo, this studio merges traditional and modern aesthetics through experimental minimalism. Deeply rooted in storytelling, each piece embeds symbols reflecting cultural and historical nuances. Their exploration of the “border zone” between harmony and disharmony creates thought-provoking, handcrafted wood furniture.

Spero Furniture, Indore

Crafting solid wood furniture that reimagines sustainable woodworking practices through age-old traditions using natural finishes and polishes. They pair designs with additional raw materials like metal, contrasting woods, and local arts, creating contemporary art furniture that introduces Indian heritage to global audiences.

Stem, Noida

Led by Aman Bhayana and Sugandhi Mehrotra, this contemporary studio creates handcrafted objects focused on storytelling and deep connection. Their philosophy revolves around creating immersive experiences where art integrates into everyday living, with sustainably crafted pieces that age gracefully and connect generations.

Studio Indigene, Mumbai

Creating minimally designed objects that aspire to form identity through clean lines, curves, and volumetric experimentation. Working with skilled woodworkers traditionally accustomed to wood carving, they devise techniques that challenge craftspeople to transform paper designs into singular, handcrafted art pieces.

Tectona Grandis Furniture, Ahmedabad

Known for minimalist teak designs accented by hand-worked stone. Founder Dhruvkant Amin’s “functional minimalism” strips away the unnecessary to reveal each piece’s essence. Artisans bring expertise in carving, joinery, and mixed materials, resulting in furniture with quiet luxury and impeccable detailing.

WANNAS, Surat

A design dossier where form, materiality, and spontaneity converge to create objects that transcend conventional functionality. Their open-ended approach allows fleeting ideas to evolve into sculptural realities, crafting pieces that challenge traditional notions of use and blur the lines between art and design.