Been there, seen that

Krsna Mehta's designs for The Elephant Company say, aamchi Mumbai is bright, kitschy and fantastically functional. So what's new?

Krsna Mehta's designs for The Elephant Company say, aamchi Mumbai is bright, kitschy and fantastically functional. So what's new?

From author Suketu Mehta to designer Neil Dantas, Mumbai has played muse to many creators. Yet for no one else does the statement ring so true as it does for artist and interior designer Krsna Mehta.

Cushions sporting backsides of water tankers and gola bottles
(Rs 675 for the covers; Rs 175 for the cushion). PIC/ Prathik Panchamia

As excited as we were to see his designs for the newly launched The Elephant Company, we returned disappointed seeing a rehash of his previous works. The ubiquitous taxis and rickshaws, the clich ufffd Gateway of India and the overused Mother India images were all bunked up next to a couple of new designs. But did the d ufffdj vu prevent us from taking home another Krsna Mehta product? Of course not!

The digital table clock was interesting. It resembled a tin sporting prints of a Mumbai local train, the Gateway of India, gola sherbet bottles and the posterior of a water tanker -- images that are commonplace on our Bombay streets. The colourful gola bottles make appearances in a very Andy Warhol-esque manner on cushions, a round wooden tray, postcards and tees.

Place your delicate Margarita coupe on coasters that sport the desi nimbu-mirchi, birds sitting on overhead wires and colourful bus tickets superimposed with a BEST bus, that reminded us of the Bus Ticket Chest rolled out by Neil Dantas. It's not too late to pick up the colourful, spiral bound India Circus 2011 diary. Spot these designs (as well as lots of elephants and icon-sized images of landmarks like the Taj Mahal and the dabba) on watches, mantel clocks, rectangular and circular trays, table runners, white totes, tees, cushions and pillows. Though the brand is available only at The Bombay Store as of now, expect to see it at other retail outlets soon.