M: If you have to pick one; which object could represent india?
A: India is a large country and it is difficult to identify one product that represents all of India. However I can imagine that at one point a Navtal Godrej lock was an iconic Indian product that every house had. This continues to be made even now-and perhaps ironically in China.
M: It’s hard to find the “Indian-ness” in your work, is there any specific reason?
”I was and continue to look for design that will stand for the purpose it is meant for..”
A: I am a product of the National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad. I am from the 1982-1987 batch. During my second year of design I was exposed to the Memphis furniture movement started by Ettore Sotsass and his friends. I was influenced not just by the outcome of the movement in terms of the forms and colours they presented, but I was overwhelmed by the spirit of this movement. In my later years I also found myself exposed to serious furniture design where the outcome of a product was calibrated carefully and the design represented industrial production used to the hilt. During those years of learning, the only design that I saw here in India was craft driven and hence it did not fall in my horizon. I was and continue to look for design that will stand for the purpose it is meant for; without attaching meaning of Indian-ness to it. Even now I am unable as a designer to relate to the kitsch applications I see around me that pass off as Indian designs. However I am beginning to notice efforts by Indian designers who have found a base in other countries such as UK, now looking at traditional practises, materials and processes from India and giving it a new twist. This I think is interesting and explore worthy.
