Design ni Dukaan’s new collection both revives and reimagines endangered Indian crafts

The world of design is a pendulum, swinging between innovation and nostalgia. In recent years, we’ve seen a return to vernacular aesthetics and traditional methods – a shift driven by the demands of climate responsibility, a deepening focus on cultural authenticity, and resistance to the homogenising force of mass production.

India, home to one of the world’s richest design heritages, is emerging as a vanguard of this movement. Across the country, design and architecture studios are reclaiming indigenous narratives and practices. One such practice is Design ni Dukaan, based in Ahmedabad, which works across architecture, interiors, furniture and product design.

Its latest collection, ‘Roop Aroop’, is a bold revival of endangered Indian crafts. But this is not merely an exercise in preservation – the collection seeks to weave the threads of tradition into the fabric of contemporary life. ‘Roop Aroop’ is inspired by ‘Yugan Yugan Hum Yogi’, a verse attributed to 15th-century mystic poet Sant Kabir which meditates on the idea of timelessness – a characteristic that Design ni Dukaan attributes to Indian craft.

The collection revives two endangered methods: Sujani, an intricate form of embroidery and quilting practiced in rural Gujarat, and Pathamadai Pai, a meticulous process of mat weaving using hand-prepared grass from Tamil Nadu.

The former is brought to life in the Rafiq ni Sujani Partition, a foldable screen created in collaboration with design studio Raasleela and crafted by Rafiq Bhai, the last Sujani artisan in his lineage. The piece uses a double-cloth weaving method, where warp and weft interchange to form cotton-filled pockets. This creates a distinctive tactile quality as well as allowing light to pass through the fabric’s dense weave.

Pathamadai Pai is celebrated through pieces created in collaboration with Majja Design Studio, along with the last active craft cluster in Tamil Nadu. The Banu Pai Cabinet features abstract geometric patterns on its shutters, while the Beevi Pai Swing reinterprets the traditional mats as seating elements, with pixel-like motifs cascading from the backrest to the seat.

Beyond textiles, ‘Roop Aroop’ also integrates wood and brass pieces. The Ras Bhari Chair features dismantlable joinery, while the Gyaan Peeu serves as both a study table and a chest of drawers featuring veneer patterns, brass motifs and vibrant panels.

The Sukh Asan – a reinterpretation of the traditional floor-level seating used in Indian meditation, prayer and ritual – is a hand-shaped chair, its contours shaped by the natural grain of the wood. The Sangat Manch table, meanwhile, draws inspiration from a parasol, with its hand-carved curves resting on a single brass rod to create the illusion of weightlessness.

As the design world continues to swing between innovation and inheritance, 'Roop Aroop' offers a blueprint for how the two can coexist.