Made In India

Masters in their craft, building a niche with their one-of-a-kind products, these designers have been making India proud even before the ‘Make in India’ initiative. Let’s get up, close and personal with them...

- Shruti Jain

HITESH SHARMA (SOLID BENCH)

Hitesh was always particularly fascinated with the subject of Engineering and Machine Design. More specifically about the drafting part of it. The designer still remembers holding the school record for making the knuckle assembly joint drawing in about 25 minutes using the good old drafter and a single pencil. An engineer and a B school grad, Hitesh does not have any formal education in the field of design. His partner- Anant- and he started Solid Bench in 2015 with the idea of using the best in class raw material, processes, human skills, and honest intentions. They started the furniture design and carpentry studio after reading about George Nakashima and his work. It took them about 2 years to understand wood as the primary raw material for their products.

While they take lifetime guarantee for their work for a lot of their products, they essentially want to be known as a slow, patient fine woodworking studio. Solid Bench’s aesthetic sense is very minimal and organic. As a general practice, they have shied away from using shiny, artificial material in their products. The furniture is about fine woodworking joints and traditional working of working and they like to work with the same. Their project with Louis Vuitton holds a special place for him. “To be chosen by them, that too when we were very young in this field of woodworking was a very nice experience for us,” the designer proudly states. Dabbling between being new to the field and making a significant mark in the industry, Hitesh finds time for his Bonsais which he is very fond of and has been cultivating for a few years.

RESHMI DEY (GLASS SUTRA)