New Delhi, Sept. 14 -- I am a bit of a pessimist when it comes to Indian interior design. The surfeit of design awards, media, influencers and coverage would suggest that I should feel otherwise. We've never been more obsessed with decor than we are now. And we've never had more choices to make. But in 20 years we'll look back at this phase and be hard-pressed to find distinct voices that have made a defining contextual contribution.

An endless spectrum of choice, resources and ideas has conspired to create a design business that is largely interested in feeding itself, the beast gorging on a buffet of objects. It creates homes and spaces that function as a museum of things, rather than memory and interests. When everyone thinks they're ...