2016. Trove’s founder, Nayantara got in touch with me to shoot some of her traditional Indian hand-painted homeware. The blue Indian filter coffee dabara set with the kolam was one of the first I shot and it took my breath away. I loved everything about it. The colours, the inspiration, the idea of using this South Indian traditional art form on a coffee that is a quintessential part of the same region was so original! So beautiful too.

Trove Craft India calls themselves a modest design studio based in Hyderabad, India, that aims to create unique, elegant gifting concepts with an ethnic flavour. They seek is to revive traditional art forms by pairing them with unusual canvases to make them relevant for the fast-changing consumer market, much in line with their philosophy… Giving traditional motifs a contemporary appeal.

The brand has grown from strength to strength and continue to experiment new traditional Indian art forms. Nayantara remains the same earthy, rooted, beautiful person who was fortunate to meet in Hyderabad at a food styling workshop at Taj Krishna in 2019, and we still speak often.

Styling & shooting : Deeba Rajpal