EDITOR’S PICK
Started out of passion to create pieces that ooze personality and uniqueness, Tulika Bhatnagar, Founder, Parrot & Lily talks about her love for classic designs
Tulika Bhatnagar of Parrot & Lily extols on her love of classic design
What made you enter the creative field?
There is only one way to create classics - the right way. I have always harboured an adoration for XVIII century French furniture. I have been consumed by it. I found none in India which addressed these sensibilities with accuracy and authenticity so I set up my own atelier.
What do your designs reflect the most?
The task of a revivalist is never easy. It is to breathe life into dead stone, to bring the past into the present and give it relevance. My designs and work reflect a lust for the unattainable, passion of boundless desire. All Parrot and Lily pieces are designed for pleasure, comfort and delight. For intimacy as well as splendour.
Please tell us about your furniture collection.
Each and every piece of furniture that we create is designed to be a ray of pure delight. We create pieces that are eternal. It doesn’t matter if they are in vogue or not. They should be classic, authentic, surreal and sublime. We are purists for art, artisanship and materials. From precious woods to rare and ancient techniques, we create pieces which are fit to be heirlooms. With a nod to the age of enlightenment and nostalgia for a lifestyle that has never truly vanished, the pieces presented, all exude the heady scent of the XVIII century.
Being an avid traveller, what would you say is the difference between Indian & international trends in terms of design and aesthetics?
I have always believed that to understand thoroughly the art of living, it is necessary to have passed some time amongst the historic and the forgotten places, and to have studied the customs of that social and conversable people. I feel that in India, the consumers still are not educated upon importance of authenticity, subtlety and pure materials. Coming from a country that was known for its artisanship, I notice that a lot of the prevalent decor trends in India are fast fashion, cheaply made, easily replicable things with an unnatural finish. It is true that these trends exist everywhere, but are somehow more pronounced in India and Asia as a whole. My experience is that in Europe, U.K. and the U.S., there is a strong revivalist culture which is capable of discerning authentically made and intelligently designed from the expendable and ephemeral designs.