Vocal For Local

August 16, 2020

It has been 74 years to the day we finally called India our own.

A lot has happened in these years – we have won world cups, launched space missions and whatnot. But something remains unchanged in the face of all the changes – the indomitable Indian spirit. We house half a dozen religions, hundreds of communities and thousands of dialects, but when the tricolour flies unfettered, all of our hearts beam with pride.

India is not just about our modern towns, ancient monuments and invaluable literature. It is about the spirit of empathy and freedom, a promise of kindness and love to the world from a young nation whose values are as old as time.

But is it just limited to monuments and literature? Or is that just the tip of the iceberg? As we move towards becoming "Aatmanirbhar Bharat", it makes you wonder what are the things that can make India truly Aatmanirbhar, what are the things that are so unique that for once we would want to flaunt the local with pride.

One such opportunity was presented to us by Mandi Sir. Swadeshi Mandi was an event that was organised by the Marketing Interest Group (MIG) of National Institute of Industrial Engineering, Mumbai. There are states whose delicacies that represent history. We have states who have clothes that represent culture, but what can we say about our National Capital? Craftsmanship. Kirti Nagar is one of the biggest furniture markets and if you are a Delhite, looking to buy furniture, Kirti Nagar would be your go-to place. This made us think, what if we could show the world the craftsmanship of Delhi?

When we talk about some of the most renowned brands of furniture around the world, we think of names like IKEA, Ashley Homestore, Kartell but there is not even a single Indian brand in furniture that is known globally. It isn't the lack of craftmanship or designs that is stopping India from leaving a mark but rather our vocal appreciation for such brands.

We have shown a certain lack of empathy towards what truly speaks about our culture. We have tried to embrace the Western world. We are not perfect, we know. We have problems we need to solve, the goals that we need to achieve, and promises we have to keep. And we will get there, one constructive change, at a time.