New Delhi, Aug. 14 -- India's consumer-tech landscape has long been defined by an utilitarian and pragmatic visual aesthetic. If you stepped into an Indian kitchen or an office a decade or so ago, you were greeted by a familiar taxonomy of beige, grey and black, and predictable slabs of glass, plastic, and metal. And even if an Indian brand attempted a stylish, it was frequently a derivative riff of whatever was trending in California or Shenzhen.

Consumer gadgets and home appliances were built to meet a price point, not a design ambition. The bestselling products borrowed cues from global brands, followed safe templates, and rarely attempted to express anything beyond utility.

Recently, things have changed.

A new generation of brands ...