Scent per Scent Indian

The burgeoning industry of India's homegrown luxe fragrances has finally hit a heady note.

- RIAAN JACOB GEORGE

"In India, perfume has always been a luxury, given the handcrafted nature of its composition, and, of course, the ingredients. We’ve seen perfumes mentioned in the Ramayana, the Mughals patronised perfumers during their reign and royal families across India were our loyal customers,” says Mukul Gundhi, seventh-generation owner of Gulab Singh Johri Mal, Delhi’s oldest perfume shop, that has been around for 206 years in the capital’s old quarter, Chandini Chowk. While the culture of attars and roohs may have declined in recent decades, what makes India’s perfume culture special is that it has seamlessly transitioned to a vibrant, thriving-contemporary industry.

Indian Parfum Artists 

On the scent trail, we found some familiar and many new names, each telling a scent-sational story of their own. For instance, Mumbai-based wiSDom Fragrances by Sheetal Desai is loosely inspired by the olfactory tale of Jo Malone and sells gorgeously crafted fragrances in 2ml vials, or 50ml bottles. These fragrances are specially customised for Indian skin and tropical climates. Then there is Lucknow-based Isak Fragrances, which pays tribute to the nazaakat and tehzeeb to the city of the Nawabs. Isak is an artisanal fragrance house, which focusses on handcrafted potions and traditional distillation methods to extract essences from ingredients.