Nandha Ravichandran, Agam Design Studio
When he started to design furniture three years ago, he began to dabble with metal. He then gradually shifted to wood and theme based furniture inspired from Nature is his USP. A graduate in architecture, Nandha Ravichandran studied furniture design from National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. He wanted to study product design, but he got admission in furniture design and he made the most out of it. He also has a dual advantage of being an architect and a furniture designer. Now, 33, he has curated furniture for celebrities and architects with whom he works are celebrities in their own right.
In an exclusive interview with Nandini Oza for Abir Pothi, he talks about his Nature inspired collection, why he does that and what does one expect in another decade.
Q: Why a studio? There are options of working with big brands.
A: So initially, I worked with a few brands, not really big ones but startups. However, from the beginning, my intention was to do something on my own at a later stage because somewhere I felt that if I go for a corporate brand or something big, I might not have the freedom to explore things or do things that I like. Of course, some companies did give me a good amount of freedom. Also, I found a very peculiar thing in India. Clients really do not know much about aesthetics as compared to an international market, like may be in a European country. I feel that we don’t have clients who have knowledge about how art evolved, how aesthetics evolved around the world, what aesthetics really means, knowledge about aesthetics and even functionality. So, somewhere I felt it was hard to convince clients and make something that I liked. In the process, I would have to compromise a lot and at last I will have to make something that they really asked for. Mostly it might be something from Pinterest that they would ask a replica. Even if I design. something nice, they might not really like or they might not really understand.
Q: When did you launch Agam Design Studio?
A: I registered in 2020. However, the company actually started in 2022. Once I registered the company, I just did a few prototypes of some designs that I already had. Only two of us — a carpenter and myself. We made around 10 to 15 products, like prototypes, in a span of six to eight months. I also designed lots of furniture at that time. I was hit by Corona when the prototypes were ready, catalogue was ready and things were about to be launched. I was in Bengaluru and so I started the company there. It took lots of time in outsourcing. It took lots of time to reach out to a metal vendor and then go to an upholstery person. This was in 2021. It was difficult for me to get things outsourced. It was at that time I decided to have a workshop of my own. I had to rest for one year due to Covid. I had initially started with metal, marble and little wood and upholstery. Those were the core materials. The initial designs were more of metal and I was also targeting PVD coating. PVD coating ( is more like a golden chrome plating of higher and better quality, lasts longer and has more colors) was becoming a trend in cities like New Delhi and Hyderabad. It is loud and shiny. It was a big hit in Dubai as well. I made furniture mostly in metal, stainless steel with upholstery. What I have observed around the design community and the market is that there are architects, interior designers, clients and few furniture designers. The architects mostly decide the interior or sometimes they have interior designers. Even a premium architect will like classic furniture or classic replicas. Indian furniture design/style had not evolved much. So, Indian architects mostly preferred European furniture designs. There will be a template, and the interior of a classic European furniture will be shown. It became a trend. Mostly that model will be there as a 3D model for rendering. The clients used to just ask for the same furniture. Even premium wooden furniture designers would make classic replicas. In South India there are five to six brands and most of them would make solid wood premium furniture and most of them would do replicas.
Q: How did you shift to wood from metal?
A: I saw a good scope somewhere between the client and architect where we can make theme based furniture. The entire house is made on a certain theme of interior. Usually, the furniture is sourced at the end. People would buy a chair or a table from different brands or even get it from abroad just to make the interior style. If they are looking out for something traditional, they would go to Kerala to buy one and then to Rajasthan to buy something else. But in the end it is not justified as the wood is different, the style is different. I felt that a theme based collection of different styles might work and that was the thing missing. That is how I started and I did not push the metal furniture much into the market. Flashy furniture might work in New Delhi or Hyderabad, but in Chennai or Bengaluru, people would prefer wooden furniture — solid wood furniture. One of my friends suggested Auroville or Pondicherry where there are more artisans. There is also reclaimed Burma teak. I felt it would be easier to manufacture and get things done there as I was finding it hard to get cane weaving people in Bengaluru. Using reclaimed wood was more sustainable.
Q: Each of your furniture is from reclaimed wood?
A: Yes, most of it. Ninety percent is reclaimed wood. The main reason for it would be the finish and the quality of the wood. There is no wood better than Burma teak in terms of density, finish and grains. Burma teak is only available in the form of reclaimed teak. There is a ban on cutting Burma teak. I stuck to wood for quality and sustainability and did not go back to metal or some other material.
Q: What is the USP of Agam Design Studio?
A: The main USP would be customization and team based furniture collections. I am not sure if many people are doing that. I
design specifically. There is originality. The value is enhanced. Many people design nice furniture but many times it will be inspired by something else. People might not know if it is original or inspired. However, this gives more chances to make more original things and justify the interior setup.
Q: What is your take on trends and do you follow trends?
A: As compared with the global market, I feel there is not really something called a trend. Some kind of material comes online and it becomes famous, it becomes a trend at one place — maybe New Delhi or
Mumbai. So, I feel the trend is very different from place to place and only now people are getting to know about furniture
design and aesthetics. It might change every month also. I do not think there will be a specific trend in India because only now they are learning to know about furniture design. May be in terms of material we might follow trends. Cane and wood are in trend.
Q: From concept to final product, tell us how the journey is?
A: It starts with a certain form. More than the function, I like to start with the form. Function follows. I am more inclined towards the form of it as it is very important because even though it is a functional furniture, if it can emotionally or aesthetically connect with me then I might feel even more comfortable. I might like it even more. Most of the themes that we have made till now are mostly inspired from nature in terms of the form. We have around six to seven themes as of now and most of them have a certain kind of design character in terms of form. One is called the Rime forest. It is more of a theme inspired from the frost, I mean the snow capped mountains and the trees. The basic aesthetics of that. Maybe, we use frosted glass. We use more of a conical shape to get the overall character of the aesthetics. Another theme is inspired by rain and clouds. In it we have black marble and then we have metal lines that symbolize the rain. Somewhere it gives you the feel of
that natural scene. So somewhere I feel like getting inspired from nature would give you an environment that makes you feel being at that place.
Q: Each design of furniture will have how many pieces?
A: All our furniture is made to order. We do not make and sell pieces. We do have some for the display. At times when they order something which we already have on display we will give it, but most of it is made to order.
Q: Do the clients select from the designs that you have?
A: We have a catalogue of our own designs. We also have a replica catalogue. We also do customization in case they want something very similar to another furniture they have already seen. But it is all mostly made to order.
Q: Can you tell more about the Nature inspired designs at Agam Design Studio?
A: Initially when we started Agam, we had four Nature inspired themes. Everything is of different topography. One is inspired by the rocks, other is more of rain and another one is more of snow capped mountains and so on. Even a small element like a ray of light has been taken as an inspiration to make similar kinds of stuff from brass. The theme based furniture collections are not similar and at the same time are not too different as well. That is the biggest task and a thing to crack. It may not
look good if it looks very similar. It might look like the same furniture being repeated. If it is totally different it may not make sense for the whole theme. It will be as if different things are put together. Somewhere we need to have homogeneous aesthetic characters but at the same time there should be variations among them and on the whole it should look like the same place. Nature will be the best example for it. You take any kind of topography; you take a desert and there might be a certain kind of sand, certain colors of trees, certain color of cactus. But on the whole even though they are all different they have similar
characteristics and they bind together. So that is the reason we are taking inspiration. It is almost like copying but it helps us justify the aesthetics.
Q: How do you ensure that you and the client are on the same page and yet your distinct style is not
affected?
A: I have changed with the time. I have evolved. I have learnt to move forward with the client based on their liking. After a point of time I realised that may be my style is of a certain kind and the client is looking out for something different. We have a palette of mood boards –around five to six. We first give them that. So, basically whatever is already there, whatever style is
already there in general, maybe a classic European century style, Japanese style or a traditional Indian style… Some prominent trends. We have a mood board of five to six such trends. We show it to them and ask which one do you like. Based on that we get an idea of their aesthetic sense of what they are looking for and we design based on that.
Q: What was the turning point in your career?
A: It was the time when I realised that I should move on from my idea of having a theme based metal collection that is futuristic and instead adapt to the market. It was all about learning in college, my ideal design ambitions and how these were different from the real market. How should I adapt to the market? I was thinking about design and what I thought from a
college point of view was more of a theoretical point of view and than looking at the market and how in reality what really needs to be done. This made me choose wood and other things.
Q: Will there be future for metal as well?
A: Obviously. There is a future in every kind of material. But I would say wood is a bit more of a timeless material compared to metal. Metal somewhere feels a bit artificial. But wood has a timeless character. However, with metal also there is a lot of advantage for functional things. Mass production, strength of the material, a lot of advantages compared to wood. Wood
and metal will always be there. But in terms of premium segment, premium furniture, I feel wood would dominate in the future.
Q: Which strata of the society do you cater to?
A: Mostly it is premium segment, as in, we work with architects who do high-end projects. Mostly the clients are from the upper strata of the society.
Q: What is the price range of the pieces of furniture
designed at Agam Design Studio?
A: It ranges from Rs 6,000 to Rs 2 lakh-Rs 3 lakh.
Q: How do the clients approach you?
A: Till now, most of our marketing, client base is through Instagram. Instagram advertisement. In the last two to three years, we have worked with five to ten architects. Things have worked well and we have repeated projects with them. Most of them are high end, I mean people who work on high-end projects from Bengaluru and Chennai.
Q: Share the team composition at Agam Design Studio.
A: Mostly it is me right now and even from the beginning. I do the design, I take care of the production, most of the things. At times, I have interns who help me. They keep changing. About 12 to 15 people work at the workshop. Six carpenters, six polishers and maybe about four helpers.
Q: Do parents still give furniture to their daughters at
weddings? Do you get such customers?
A: In Pondicherry there are a lot of carpenters. Most of them have small workshops. Their works would be for marriages. Parents would give furniture. As regards Agam Design Studio, parents do not come. The couple comes.
Q: There is an increasing trend of renting furniture. There is a bit of economic slowdown as well. How do
you push your designer furniture in such scenarios?
A: Yes, I have heard that furniture renting is going well. This is a big thing in Bengaluru. I am not sure about other places.
I have my friends from NID working at Furlenco. Renting is really going well. Even brands like IKEA are picking up and so also a lot of other brands. But most of this would not really affect me because that segment and my segment is very different. In my segment, I have not heard of a single person who has rented a piece of furniture or bought furniture from IKEA. These things
would be of mass production setup and they would be mostly of metal and panel wood. Not really solid wood. Even though it is going good, it is not really of my segment and people of my segment mostly never go there.
Q: How did Sonam Kapoor approach you?
A: Through Instagram. She found us and just messaged. So, 99 percent of our clients are from Instagram.
Q: Which are the celebrities for whom you have designed furniture?
A: Our first project was with Anurag Kashyap’s daughter. She came through a friend’s friend. Through that we got bigger. I think she posted a video of our furniture. And then Sonam Kapoor. We got to work with her about five months ago. We might not have many celebrities, but famous architects with whom we work
are almost like celebrities.
Q: There are brands like IKEA or Pepperfry. The list is endless and the furniture looks classy. Is price point
a concern for the clients whom you cater to and how does your furniture stand out from the furniture in
these brands?
A: In India, mostly the general mindset is that people will go where they get the cheapest. Someone might use — like other brands do — Burma Teak and imported oil, the customer will go there. They would not really mind much about the brand.
However, it is changing with the time. I think, slowly there is value for the brand. However, there are also very basic brands. There is not really much patenting that works in India. I have seen my own furniture being posted by someone
else. They will just remove the logo or they would even make a replica. Albeit, the replica would not be the same as the original. Proportions would be different. I know of big brands who do it. India does not have strong crediting. It does not work. But other than that, anyone can make replicas of classic furniture. Anyone can have the rights for it. Even we do classic replicas. Having said this, furniture looks classic or even if they replicate our own designs, they might not be able to get the quality. Moreover, even if they get the quality, they might not be able to sell at our price. Furthermore, even if they are able to sell at our price, they might not be able to design the whole space justifying the theme. This is one of the reasons that we are doing theme-based furniture collections with at least three materials in each theme so that it cannot be easily replicated by others.
Q: How long does it take to design a particular piece of furniture, especially considering that you are the
only one who designs?
A: We give a timeline of 45 to 60 days for any kind of order. Initially, it took a lot of time for us to make new products. But we have enough products in our catalogue by now and so we do not do too many new designs. Mostly it repeats from our catalogue. It is easier to work now. Earlier, a lot of time went into designing. Prototypes have been made for most of the designs. We do not make prototypes if something is very easy. We directly make the piece of furniture.
Q: What is the story behind the name Agam?
A: In Tamil, Agam literally means internal space. Most of our South Indian cities are based on temples. Each famous old city will have a temple in the centre of the city. Inside the compound periphery it is called Agam and outside of it Puram. That is why you have most of the names as Thiruvanathapuram or even Nagpur. Pur is a short form of Puram.
Agam and Puram are famous Tamil words indicating inside and outside. That is the literal meaning, but there is a spiritual meaning to it as well. That is more of an internal space. I am a bit into spirituality and it sounds like that as we are designing the internal space of the building.
Q: What is the future for Indian furniture designing? What are the changes you foresee in another decade?
A: The market is growing rapidly. May be last decade saw one of the major growth for the Indian furniture industry since PepperFry, Urban Ladder and many other companies have come. I feel premium segment would start growing more from now on compared to the mid-range furniture. And there are a lot of Italian brands, a lot of imported brands that are getting into the Indian market. Hyderabad is just one example. IKEA is also becoming famous. Earlier, people were fine with spending so much money on the building. Then came the interior and furniture was the last. They would even spend on a car or something. But, now I feel that people have started realising or giving importance to furniture, the quality of it. So, I
feel, people would be spending more money on furniture, willing to spend more on quality. They will start looking for furniture that will last long. May be in Bengaluru they would want furniture just for six months and leave the place. This would change. I feel they would even carry their furniture to a different place if they really like it.
Q: In a setup like yours, how long does it take to reach break-even and start earning profits?
A: It is very subjective. I know people who tried and who quit the company. It all depends on the capital, your brand, your design, your marketing. For me, I would say that if a brand is able to scale up to 20 people, it will become profitable for sure. When you have five people working, you might not really be able to make profit because of the scale of work you are doing. But if you are able to start with a big brand with 20 people, you can make a profit even from the beginning.
Q: Had it not been for the NID, you would not have ventured into furniture designing? Your comments.
A: I would not have done furniture design. I learnt furniture design and I am also an architect. I like architecture even more than furniture but the reason I ventured into furniture designing was that I felt there is less competition and there is more scope in India at this point of time for furniture than architecture, which has more competition and is very tough to set up a
studio. Even furniture would not be that easy. I would say even that is hard because out of 15 people from my batch from furniture design, only two are really into it. Most of them have moved into UAVs or something else which gives them better salary or money. So, even furniture is very hard to survive. But I felt it is little easier or better than architecture.
Q: How does this combination of furniture design and architecture work? Does it help in scaling up
your products?
A: It actually helps a lot. You are able to understand the architect and the architect is able to understand you. You are able to understand the layout of the place and what would suit the best. It is obviously a good advantage. And it is also an advantage if you are doing both architecture and furniture. There are a few architecture studios that do both furniture and architecture altogether. So, if you are going to do something like that, it will be very helpful.
Image Courtesy: Agam Design Studio
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