Walk into P•TAL’s newly launched flagship store in Banjara Hills and you’ll notice that it doesn’t behave like a typical retail space. There are utensils, yes, but there are also stories of metals that have travelled through generations, of artisans who have inherited their craft. With Dastak-e-Deccan, an evening introducing P•TAL’s first flagship destination in South India, co-founder and CEO Aditya Agrawal isn’t merely opening another store; he’s making a case for why India’s centuries-old brass, copper and kansa traditions deserve a place in modern homes.
For Aditya, the idea behind P•TAL began with observing a larger cultural shift. As wellness practices such as yoga, Ayurveda and natural living steadily found favour with younger generations, he felt traditional metals were waiting for a similar moment. He begins, “The craft was never the problem. People already believed in these metals. What didn’t exist was a brand that could present them in a way that felt contemporary. We wanted to make them functional, aesthetically appealing and relevant to the way people live today.”
That philosophy eventually evolved into what he calls ‘artful utility’. “Art shouldn’t sit behind glass. It should be used every day. That’s when it becomes meaningful. Art becomes utility, and utility eventually becomes legacy,” he says.
That thinking explains why P•TAL’s catalogue moves beyond traditional cooking vessels to include products such as copper bottles, mugs and martini glasses. Aditya explains, “Every generation speaks a different language. We aren’t asking young people to buy something because their grandparents used it. We’re creating products they genuinely want to own while still preserving the essence of traditional craftsmanship.”
The revival, however, extends far beyond consumers. “When we started, the average artisan was about 52 years old. Today it’s around 36. That tells us younger generations are returning to the craft. If we had focused only on growing the business, we may have survived for a few years. Instead, we invested in the ecosystem. The experienced artisans bring mastery, while the younger ones bring fresh ideas and the confidence to experiment. That’s what keeps a craft alive,” he notes.
The decision to launch the brand’s first South Indian flagship in Hyderabad wasn’t driven by market strategy alone. “People kept asking us when we were coming to Hyderabad. (laughs) The city has always shown us immense love online. It celebrates architecture, heritage and, above all, food. We thought if Hyderabad appreciates extraordinary cuisine, it would also appreciate the vessels that make those meals possible,” he expresses.
Looking ahead, Aditya’s ambition stretches beyond India. “These metals aren’t only part of India’s story. They’re timeless materials with global relevance. Our goal is to build a modern global brand around age-old traditions and show that heritage can be just as contemporary as any modern design,” he concludes.