Life & Style

A drishti doll from the book Kolli Kannu: Drishti Paintings of Tamil Nadu by Amar Ramesh
| Photo Credit: Amar Ramesh

It is a known fact that design can never be linear. The process of creating art is spontaneous, flexible, creative — all at once. A part of this process involves designers experimenting with new materials and innovative solutions, and bringing to the fore such creators is Design Mumbai. The upcoming second edition of the design event — founded in 2024 by Ian Rudge (co-founder of UK’s design event, 100% Design), Michael Dynan (co-founder, Design Shanghai), and designer Piyush Suri — will bring together architects and design experts from India and abroad.

A design by Studio Saar at the 2024 edition of Design Mumbai
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Alongside key exhibits by brands, the event’s itinerary includes the Design Mumbai Exchange talks with expert-led discussions on emerging sustainable and intelligent materials, architecture, design and well-being, climate-responsive workspaces, and how to open up cities to the public, among others. 

“We have talks over each day of the show, tackling exciting, meaningful topics with speakers from India, the UK, Italy, and more,” says Piyush, who is excited about the international brands coming to the show this year. “We are hosting brands from all over the world including The American Hardwood Export Council that will showcase their collection of furniture with Phantom Hands, alongside Korean brand Mycel Inc, Covestro from Germany, LUX Temporis, the French lighting company, Baccarat, Swedish icon String, and Natuzzi, Poltrona Frau, Crassevig, and Ceccotti will represent Italy.”

Spanish designer Lucas Muñoz Muñoz
| Photo Credit:
MICHELE MARGOT

Piyush explains how India has always had “this incredible depth of craft, materiality, and storytelling in design, but what we’ve needed is a global platform where all of that creativity can meet the work that’s happening on an international level”. Hence, events like Design Mumbai are vital because they create that space for the exchange of ideas, techniques, and perspectives, he adds.

Here are our picks of Indian and international debutants at Design Mumbai 2025: 

A carpet from the ‘Bahya’ Collection
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Rugs from PET yarn @ Venjara Carpets

A capsule featuring rugs crafted with the brand’s signature hand-tufting process wool, bamboo silk will be the highlight of the Mumbai-based brand’s showcase at the event. “What sets this collection apart is the sculptural finishing. Every rug is hand-carved, featuring curved edges, high and low piles, embossed patterns, and architectural carving,” says Aishaa Nensey, the fourth generation owner of the legacy brand. “It is a deeply personal chapter that captures what I envision for our 1961 brand in the years ahead: a fusion of heritage with a creative twist.”

Also on display will be the recently-launched ‘Bahya’ Collection that features rugs from PET yarn that has been created with recycled plastic bottles. “Engineered for the elements, these rugs can withstand sun, rain, and everyday wear. They are lightweight, durable, and versatile.”

The Divine Light Cabinet
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Artist collabs @ Chacko

At this Mumbai-based furniture and design studio founded by Vipin Joe, the team will showcase a series of collaborative works created with artists and craft studios. “This format excites us deeply and is something we plan to build upon in the coming months,” says Vipin. He has worked with artist Nikunj Patel of Studio Moebius to create The Native Console and The Divine Light Cabinet — featuring brass-etched doors and ornamental detailing — that he will showcase at the event. “We are also debuting our Art Deco wall mirror titled King of Spades, created in collaboration with Ashwin Mallya, along with a wall-hung precious cabinet developed with Italian artist Gaia Cairo and marquetry by Sampigé & Co. in Mysore.”

The Native Console
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Vipin is eager to hear how people respond to the pieces, and to “understand their interpretations, and receive feedback from industry experts”. “We are also looking forward to building new relationships and introducing our studio to architects and designers in the hospitality sector,” says the designer whose upcoming collection will include a three-sided wall mirror, a wall-hung cabinet with intricate marquetry, two brass-etched pieces, and a bench inspired by the historic Port of Muziris, all crafted in reclaimed teak.

Amod, a cluster lighting installation
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Threads meet metal @ ThreadArte 

Artists Rahul Jain and Gunjan Arora have been creating art out of textile waste and collected threads for several years, and have now included metal to this list. At the design event, the duo of the Delhi-based brand will present Prayaan, a range of sculptural collectibles such as screens/partitions, lighting installations, spatial lights, vases, and planters. Highlights include a brass lighting installation, Avaia, that has been hand-tempered to shape and also has hand carved glass lighting fixtures; a cluster lighting installation called Amod; and Yamal, a set of stainless steel planters. With this showcase, the designer aims at showing that artists “can think practically too and aspire to create conversational forms that can be seen and experienced on a daily basis”.

A product from the Tad Ekam range
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Expressions of Nature @ Sarvata

Known for their furniture and home decor that draws from the vedas, this Chandigarh-based brand by Iteesha Agrawal will present Tad Ekam, a range of side tables, arm chairs, coffee tables, console tables, and couches. The collection is inspired by a hymn from the Rig Veda ‘that contemplates the creation of the universe not as a scientific phenomenon, but as a deeply philosophical and spiritual unfolding’. “Designs have been brought to life by craftsmen of Saharanpur, whose ancestors began this 400-year-old legacy when their handcrafted furniture adorned the royal palaces of the Mughal dynasty. Each piece reinterprets the region’s traditional wood-carving techniques through a contemporary lens,” says Iteesha.

She adds that the designs go beyond direct depictions of Nature such as flowers, leaves, and figurines. “We explore its more subtle expressions, like the flow of water. The collection is crafted from MP Teak, a hardwood sourced from the heart of India,” says the designer who will next explore wood inlay crafts from Punjab’s Hoshiarpur and metal carving from Chamba, Himachal Pradesh.

Placyle Sustainable Studio’s portal arc
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Recycled core @ Placyle Sustainable Studio

At this design-led initiative from Nashik, co-founder Aliasgar Aboojiwala has been at the helm of transforming post-consumer and industrial plastic waste into outdoor furniture, home décor, and lighting. “We reimagine discarded materials into functional art pieces that blend recycled plastic with natural textures and refined detailing to make sustainability aspirational and beautiful,” he says.

At the event, the team will present The Torii Bench that is inspired by the tranquil form of Japanese shrine gates, and crafted with layered recycled plastic lumbers; The Shark Fin Sling Chair shaped after the silhouette of a shark’s fin, and made with a soft sling fabric; and a three-seater sofa with a matching glass-topped centre table designed using recycled plastic sheets. “The collection is complemented by the Portal Arc Lighting Series: a table lamp and a four-foot floor lamp crafted with curved recycled forms and diffused warm lighting,” says Aliasgar. 

Designs by Lux Temporis
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

INTERNATIONAL DEBUTANTS

Robotics meets design @ Lux Temporis

Pia Pijselman brings her love for the sciences, mechanical physics and robotics together at her French design house. “I bring these seemingly opposing worlds into dialogue to create a form of technological poetry that sets matter into motion by designing bio-inspired kinetic light sculptures that bring a sense of life into our interiors,” she says.

A lighting fixture by Lux Temporis
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Signature pieces at the event will include their three signature kinetic lighting modules: Aves, that evokes the graceful flight of a bird; NYCTI, inspired by the opening of a flower; and Sabelli, that echoes the delicate emergence of a sea anemone. “Each of these designs are available in various typologies such as desk lamps, floor lamps, etc. We will also exhibit two of our signature pieces: NYCTI Louvre, a solid-wood piece presented at the Musée du Louvre during the French Heritage Days, and Sabelli Reef ‘Jalaja’ crafted with 25 metres of ostrich feathers and ostrich leather sourced from Maison Hermès.”

Following the brand’s pre-launch at the 2025 Milan Design Week, Pia is excited to showcase her creations in India. “We wish to demonstrate that it is possible to imagine a technological future that neither rejects the human hand nor the memory of gesture,” she adds. 

A product by Mycel
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Materials that breathe @ Mycel

Next-generation biomaterials derived from mushroom mycelium are at the core of this Korean white-bio startup’s creations. “By engineering the natural 3D network structure that mycelium forms as it grows, we create Celmure, a premium sheet-type material designed to replace leather, textiles, and certain foam-based applications,” explains Gigi Jung, the brand’s chief strategy officer. 

At Mumbai, the brand will present a sculptural work that highlights the materiality and expressive potential of mycelium. “The piece reflects our design philosophy: the harmony between the organic and geometry by showcasing the natural textures, fibers, and structural forms unique to Celmure,” says Gigi, adding that the piece has been crafted entirely from their in-house developed mycelium sheets. In their work, the brand also incorporates other natural materials such as cotton, jute, banana fibre; and pigments extracted from Ott, a lacquer tree native to Korea.

Through a collection of mycelium and joining techniques that both cover and reveal the exhibition space, visitors will be invited to glide their hands across mycelium-covered tables.

‘Able’ by Blå Station
| Photo Credit:
MARCUS LAWETT

Recyclable chair @ Blå Station

From the Swedish furniture studio, founder Johan Lindau will bring products “that work in the so called ‘third room’ — the room that is a mixture for meeting and work in a more relaxed, but still for an inspiring, creative, and progressive mindset”. These workplaces, he says, have emerged post-pandemic.

Chairs by Blå Station
| Photo Credit:
MARCUS LAWETT

He will showcase Able, which he says is “more than a chair”. “We have been addressing issues such as sustainability, durability, and timelessness since we launched in 1986, however, could all questions and demands be addressed in one product? Could one product be sustainable, recyclable, upgradeable, changeable, renewable, dismountable, traceable, serviceable, adaptable, and still lovable?,” says Johan, as he describes the polyfunctional chair that is 100% recyclable. It is crafted with 50% recyclable steel, die-casted zinc, armrests in lacquered or chromed steel tubes, and recycled textiles. 

The Wave by Nuflow Designs
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

3D printed @ Nuflow Design

“Many of our designs are inspired by natural, sculptural forms,” says Alex James-Salehz, owner- director of the UK-based brand that was launched to “push the boundaries of 3D design”. Their 3D printer was built in-house by Alex’s brother Chris James-Saleh over a year ago. “We source 100% recycled plastic and extrude it at around 200 degrees Celsius. The machine extrudes the hot plastic precisely to our design file. The high digital precision contrasts perfectly with the natural forms of our designs,” says Alex. 

He will be exhibiting a 3D printed dining table inspired by coral, a wood-finished coral coffee table, and their Wave lamp. “The latter is made from a plastic called PET-G and is sourced from 100% post-industrial waste. We processed it further to give it a clear finish. The coral table is made from the same plastic and takes around 18 hours to print,” says Alex, who also works with a bio-plastic which contains recycled saw dust.

Design Mumbai 2025 will be held between November 26 and 29 at Jio World Garden, Mumbai

Legendary American photographer Ansel Adams once said, “Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer — and often the supreme disappointment.” It is a line that sums up the quiet brutality of the genre, and one that Chennai-based photographer Srinivasan Periathiruvadi relates to immediately. “The challenge with landscape photography is that it requires a lot of patience,” he says. “You have to think about composition, what to include, what to leave out.”

Srinivasan has been photographing the wilderness since 2005 and has shown his work in several solo and group exhibitions. This week, he returns to The Folly, Amethyst with a new body of monochrome landscapes titled Mountains and Mugil, that were shaped over years of travelling through high-altitude terrains in Kashmir and Ladakh. His friend Jayanand Govindaraj will exhibit a series of abstract photograph that explore intentional camera movement alongside.

Srinivasan’s photographs distil mountains, clouds, and light into something almost meditative, inviting viewers to slow down and stay with the silence between forms.

“I chose monochrome because it’s a challenge. Today, millions of colour images are made on phones every minute. Black and white strips all of that away, and it leaves you with only tones, light, and form. I wanted to experiment and see how people respond to that on the walls,” he says. 

A photograph from Mountails & Mugil
| Photo Credit:
Srinivasan Periathiruvadi

On display are 17 monochrome landscapes, all printed by Srinivasan himself — a final step he treats as part of the creative process rather than an afterthought. “For me, capturing, processing and printing are all equally important. A photograph isn’t finished until it’s on paper,” he says. 

Fourteen out of the 17 photographs were shot on a digital achromatic camera — a device that captures photographs only in black and white. “There’s no colour information at all,” he explains. “Most people shoot in colour and convert it later, but this camera records only tones, like the old black-and-white film days. It forces you to think about light very differently.”

If Srinivasan’s images chase stillness, Jayanand’s contribution to the show, leans into movement, abstraction and a little bit of deliberate blur. A photographer since 1962 — long enough, he jokes, “to have shot everything from family birthdays to seven continents’ worth of wildlife”. 

A photograph from Pairs
| Photo Credit:
Jayanand Govindaraj

For Jayanand, the shift toward abstraction began just before the pandemic, when he encountered the Field of Light installation at Uluru in Australia — acres of illuminated bulbs that he was compelled to photograph without a tripod. “I had to rethink everything,” he says. Back home, he kept experimenting at night, chasing the way plants, shadows, and passing light could dissolve into painterly streaks. What emerged is Pairs — a series of abstract photographs placed side by side, sometimes clearly linked, sometimes barely, nudging viewers to find the conversation between them. 

Though abstraction is his current preoccupation, Jayanand’s instincts were shaped over decades of photographing living subjects. The shift to non-literal imagery did not erase that history; it sharpened it. “Photography isn’t about sharpness or equipment,” he says. “It’s about what you feel when you look at something.” It is a line of thought he returns to often. For him, the point is not technical perfection but emotional resonance.

A photograph from Pairs
| Photo Credit:
Jayanand Govindaraj

Together, Srinivasan’s monochromes and Jayanand’s abstractions make a good argument for slowing down and looking deeper at landscapes, at light, and at the instinct behind the shutter. In a world saturated with colour and speed, the exhibition makes a simple, almost old-fashioned demand: pause long enough for the image to meet you halfway. 

Mountains and Mugil and Pairs will be on display at The Folly, Amethyst from November 21 to 23, from 10am to 7.30pm. Entry is free.

Published – November 19, 2025 04:01 pm IST

Inside Leon’s Chennai outlet.
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

There is a quiet intensity in how artist Raghava KK speaks — part philosopher, part performer, and part painter, unlearning everything he once knew. His latest series, Figuring the Edge, at Ashvita’s, channels that spirit through abstraction. This is a body of work born not from a narrative, but the undoing of it. 

For decades, Raghava has been known as a storyteller who has blurred the boundaries between art and technology, and emotion and intellect. But here, he steps away from the story . “Stories make us what we are,” he says. “Stories are the cause of many innovations and helped homo sapiens master the world; they are also the source of much destruction, so when you hold on to stories very tightly, they break; I want to show what happens when stories break.”

Raghava KK
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

A few years ago, Raghava’s own story broke. After two decades in the US, collaborating across continents, his life collapsed when he went through a divorce. “I was at the top of my game, doing art camps for Oprah Winfrey, Jeff Bezos, then i went through a divorce and suddenly, everything I thought was me, started falling apart,” he says. “So I came back to India, to my mother, trying to make sense of it all.” 

His brother, Karthik Kalyan Raman, a philosopher and economist, was going through a similar reckoning. “He began asking me these questions — when the stories that make you break, who are you?” These questions became the centre of Figuring the Edge— each work beginning as a written inquiry, then a sketch, and then a painting. “I spent four or five days just writing, thinking, sketching. I have made hundreds of sketches before arriving at this. Each artwork is accompanied by a question, and the painting becomes the answer.” 

Figuring the Edge by Raghava KK
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Thick impastos, shifting pigments, and restless strokes shape the artworks on the wall. “I wanted to create something that allowed me to reinvent myself through the process. After 30 years of painting, I felt the need to paint as if I were starting all over again — to break every rule I have set for myself and make something entirely new.”  The ‘edge’ in the series is a stage of being. “While doing this series, I realised that artists are supposed to live on the edge of society, we are never designed for the centre, we are designed to push the boundaries.”