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Kapil Mathur and his associate Shilpa Budhiraja, both 29 and newcomers to the market, created copper accessories in geometrical shapes. Since he launched his company Aline Design Industry last year, Mathur has been mostly selling his products to Indian shops, but Maison 038; Objet changed it, with international clients getting in touch with the duo. Mathur says Indian designs are suddenly capturing attention in the global bazaar. 8220;Before 2000, what was going out of here was just an imitation of old Indian designs,8221; says Mathur. 8220;Now designers are giving a modern Indian edge to them.8221;

Gunjan Gupta of the brand Wrap is one of these designers. A graduate of the London-based design and art school, Central College of St Martins, she has used old throne-decoration techniques to create silver-wrapped chairs that look radically modern. Gupta says this mix of styles has helped her get international clients, such as Sephora and Swarovski. 8220;People are interested in Indian designs,8221; she says, 8220;but India has yet to make a mark.8221;

True. It is difficult for India to compete with avant-garde designs from France and Italy. Phillipe Chomat, organiser of Maison 038; Objet, agrees: 8220;Nowadays, there is no outstanding Indian designer at the international level.8221; Thankfully, he adds: 8220;But the Indian designers we showcased are to become famous.8221;