For the last couple of years, design has seemingly shifted to being minimal, more contemporary. Brands (both big and beginners) are aiming to create barely-there accents, but fall into a trap of trying too hard in order to stand apart. Not Lohasmith. Much like its refreshing name, this Delhi-based home décor brand is giving functionality a chance while keeping its designs simple. It recently exhibited at Vivanta by Taj in Delhi to a zealous line-up of people.
“Our name is a giveaway…isn’t it?” says Meghna, who started the brand in 2016 with her spouse Karun Malik. Lohasmith (loha meaning iron) makes use of metals such as mild steel, pure brass, copper and stainless steel, complementing them with glass, leather, rope and wood.
What we found interesting in their products—Meghna designs them and Karun translates her designs into functional prototypes—is that they all might be contemporary and clean, but there’s always a traditional touch. “We work closely with a team of artisans and skilled ironsmiths, who have been working for generations.
They not only craft high quality products, but also help us improve the designs,” Meghna says. This is why you will find Matharkaami craft in brass discs at the centre of the Dawn wall art pieces or wire-weaving technique inspired by Bainth, a form of jute rope and cane weaving, in planters and baskets.
Since the designs are anything but cliché, they take a lot of time to take a final shape. “We constantly tweak our designs in the sample stage until we achieve the desired effect, both from design and quality standpoints
The Jewellery Box collection, for example, took a year.” The good thing about working with metals, she says, is that it allows for far more innovation and lends itself exceptionally well to functional designs.
It can be plated or powder-coated, made food safe and rust-resistant. “The only challenge we face is metal’s acceptability in an upscale setting.
We intend to change that perception,” Meghna says. The brand has, thus, been positioned at retail spaces that offer its upwardly mobile customers an outlet to express themselves through modern, well thought-out products.
Priced between Rs 800 and Rs 15,000, it is available at The Second Floor Studio by Punit Jasuja in New Delhi, Saligao Stories in Goa and Maal Gaadi in Chennai, and at Thelohasmith.com, Jaypore.com, HouseofThings.com. “We are now planning to make our presence felt at Mumbai, Bangalore and Jaipur,” Meghna says.