Home to over 400 scripts and countless languages, India is the ideal destination for artists who wish to explore and play with the craft that is typography. What was initially a foundation on which vast sources of literature and academia relied eventually evolved into an art form that artists and designers found their niche within. Typography today has grown into a cultural art form that finds its fit within every culture, language, and region.
India has been seeing a revival of typography artists that are bringing an alternate perspective to Indian scripts and are also melding linguistic influences to birth unique and distinct types. We take a look at Homegrown typography artists that are changing the font game, one letter at a time.
I. Kimya Gandhi
Mumbai-based type designer Kimya Gandhi is renowned for her experiments with Indic fonts and the Devanagri script. Gandhi who derives her inspiration from India’s rich cultural history and visual landscapes immortalises the whimsical yet distinct nuances in her type designs. Kimya’s latest typeface design, Lini also happened to receive a Certificate of Excellence from the Type Directors Club.
II. Noopur Datye
A veteran in the type game, Noopur Datye is a type designer and a traditional calligrapher who co-runs a collaborative design studio called Ek Type. Datye’s work primarily holds influences from Bengali, Devanagari, and Latin scripts. Noopur is also an active member of Aksharaya, an NGO that is striving to preserve and promote Indian scripts.
III. Chandni Poddar
Raised in Mumbai and based in New York, Chandni Poddar is fast approaching the line of frontrunners in the typography community. A pop of colours and whimsical design dominates Poddar’s work who currently works for The Working Assembly in New York, a leading branding and creative agency.
IV. Khyati Trehan
Delhi-based type designer and 3D illustrator Khyati Trehan has been making news lately for her recent project for the coveted Academy Awards. Trehan often derives inspiration from human emotions, movement and identity for most of her work. Primarily a 3D artist, Khyati’s work has extended into type design in recent years.
Another type wizard from Mumbai’s Ek Type studio, Panchal is an art director and graphic designer who has over 8 years of experience in the space. Panchal does not conform to a single style of creating a typeface and is rather fluid and explorative in his style.
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