.png)
THC brings its 40-year-old artisanal legacy to Mumbai’s Raghuvanshi Mills with Nayab, a 1,300 sqft store
- Style Essentials Edit Team
- 2 hours ago
- 4 min read
For more than four decades, the Traditional Handicrafts Centre has carried the soul of India’s artisans across borders, quietly preserving what mass production could never replicate — the intimacy between the maker and the material. Founded in 1962 by Mahender Gupta, the family-run enterprise began as a modest effort to preserve the wooden artefacts and carvings of Jodhpur’s master craftsmen. What began as a preservation effort soon became a movement, one that took Indian craftsmanship to over fifty countries and connected the work of thirty-two sourcing points across the country. Each object, each carving, each polished chest carried with it not just the smell of wood and varnish but the memory of the hand that shaped it.
Now, with the third generation at the helm, the story moves into an elegant new chapter. Under the stewardship of siblings Priyank Gupta and Vrinda Agarwal, the brand unveils Nayab — a 1,300-square-foot space nestled within Mumbai’s Raghuvanshi Mills Compound. The name itself, meaning “rare,” feels both deliberate and deserved. It is not merely a retail store but an encounter — a living gallery where the handmade, the inherited, and the heartfelt coalesce. With its contemporary-heritage façade facing the main road, Nayab stands as a bridge between the intricacy of India’s centuries-old traditions and the pulse of modern Mumbai — a city that thrives on contrast, where craft and commerce meet seamlessly.
“Nayab is deeply personal to me,” says Priyank, his words carrying a quiet reverence. “I grew up surrounded by artisans who could carve a single block of teak into something exquisite. My dream was to create a space where that artistry could be celebrated in its purest form. With Nayab, we are not simply showcasing artefacts — we are telling the stories of the people and communities who keep these traditions alive.” It is a sentiment that defines the entire space — not as a museum of relics, but as a dialogue between time and touch.
Stepping into Nayab is like walking through a carefully orchestrated silence. The store reveals itself gradually, each zone unfolding a new narrative. The entrance opens into sections dedicated to Uraib, a fashion label by Palak Gupta, and Cahree, a mindful living brand by Tanushree Agarwal — both sister-in-laws of Vrinda — before leading visitors deeper into a sanctuary of heritage pieces. The flooring and wall panels are crafted by the Reclaimed Flooring Centre, a THC subsidiary known for sourcing teak wood from century-old colonial structures. Every panel, every grain of wood is reclaimed from the forgotten and given new purpose, turning the act of flooring itself into a statement of sustainability. In this interplay of history and renewal, the brand’s philosophy becomes visible — that beauty is most profound when it carries memory.
Vrinda, who also designed the space, describes Nayab as “a journey through time, where the past isn’t just displayed but reimagined.” Her interiors are sensitive to texture and restraint — light washes over the pieces softly, guiding the eye toward carved chests, sculptural cabinets, and rare antiques that seem to hum with the echoes of old Rajasthan. The air feels curated, but not staged. Here, teak and rosewood breathe freely beside brass inlays and stone artefacts, creating a rhythm that belongs both to the atelier and the home.
“This store is our way of giving craft its rightful place in contemporary culture,” Vrinda explains. “We want people to experience these objects in a setting that honours their history but also makes them feel relevant to modern lifestyles. Mumbai, with its cultural openness and appreciation for design, felt like the perfect city to begin this chapter.”
Her words mirror the larger transition the brand itself is undergoing — from being an exporter of artefacts to becoming a cultural storyteller. With Nayab, THC isn’t selling nostalgia; it is redefining heritage for a global generation that values meaning as much as beauty. Every corner of the space, every patina on wood, is a reminder that craft, at its best, is not about replication — it’s about continuity.
The opening of Nayab also signals a quiet but confident assertion: that Indian craftsmanship doesn’t need reinterpretation to stay relevant. It needs visibility, context, and respect. By curating each piece with sensitivity, THC allows the visitor to experience how time settles differently on handcrafted surfaces — a lesson often lost in the gloss of contemporary design. Here, every dent is deliberate, every imperfection sacred.
Beyond the craftsmanship, what defines Nayab is its spirit — that invisible thread between artisans and aesthetes, between memory and modernity. In Mumbai’s ever-evolving design landscape, where trends shift as quickly as seasons, Nayab feels rooted, timeless, and quietly assured of its place. It reminds us that true luxury isn’t what’s new, but what endures.
As the brand continues to expand its footprint, Nayab becomes more than a store — it becomes a narrative, a living archive of India’s artistry, preserved through care, passed through hands, and now housed in the heart of a city that thrives on reinvention.
Traditional Handicrafts Centre redefines what it means to be contemporary by returning, gently and purposefully, to its origins. Through Nayab, it celebrates the idea that heritage isn’t something we inherit and keep — it’s something we reinterpret and share. And in this reinterpretation, Mumbai gains a new cultural landmark, where every piece on display holds not just history, but heart.
Website: https://thcindia.in
You May Also Like