God Lies In The Details’: Studio Kilab’s Pursuit Of Meaningful Design In Kashmir

At Studio Kilab, ‘meaningful,’ ‘artisanal,’ and ‘emotional’ transcend trendy buzzwords – they are the bedrock of a multi-disciplinary practice dedicated to circular, sustainable product engineering. Set against the lush meadows of Srinagar, this multidisciplinary design crucible is ensuring that Kashmiri handicrafts like ‘kar-i-qalamdan’ (papier mâché) and ‘aari’ embroidery aren’t confined to the fossilised Golden Age, instead treated as a living, breathing discipline. To explore what underpins this revival, DP got in touch with Studio Kilab’s co-founder and creative director, Burhan ud din Khateeb, who is not afraid to dig deeper than surface-level or aesthetically pleasing design. His work interrogates the larger schema at play—how do we create a more sustainable economy when confronted with the bulimia of hyperconsumerism? This is the quandary that’s kept Burhan on the path of reinterpreting our emotional dynamics with everyday essentials. “There’s a lack of meaningful relationships between people and their products when the market is saturated,” Burhan observes astutely. “It’s led to a use-and-throw economy.”

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He also speaks with refreshing candour about how legacy crafts, like the handloom and the canonical Kashmiri shawl, have begun to stagnate as designs remained unchanged for years, allowing cheaper, machine-made imitations to fill the void. “The idea of the craftsman has to come back into people’s minds.” His response isn’t nostalgic; it’s a call to action. “We can’t be just artisans, we have to be active thinkers and only then can we progress.” The urge to experiment keeps Studio Kilab at the cynosure of contemporary handicrafts while consistently dipping its toes in the springwell of tradition. 

Design Pataki: Can you recall your earliest memory of Kashmir?

Burhan Ud din Khateeb: Actually, I was born and brought up in Jammu, not in Kashmir. I’m from a place called Bhaderwah, which is culturally quite similar to Kashmir. I only started spending more time in Kashmir during my school days because my dad was posted here. Some of my fondest memories are of summer vacations in Kashmir. It was always fantastic. You would arrive in the summer when everything is in full bloom—the rivers, the mountains and everything that comes with it, right?

Design Pataki: Did those memories influence you to return home after NID?

Burhan: After NID Ahmedabad, I did my internship in Dubai. But it sort of felt a little monotonous, very disconnected. It made me realise there’s still a world back home where handmade is a way of life. I started thinking about how I can take the product design expertise I’ve gained and go back to see how we can add value? During my research, I came across the Craft Development Institute (CDI), which, interestingly enough, was started by a former NID senior, Mohammad Sharique Farooqi. He had set it up to revitalize Kashmir’s crafts sector. So, I ended up doing my final graduation project in Kashmir with papier mâché as the medium. And after that, there was no looking back.

Design Pataki: After that, how did Studio Kilab come about?

Burhan: We began Studio Kilab in 2018, but only got about a year of real work in, most of it exploratory. We were trying a bit of everything, with sustainability at our core. We were thinking about eco-friendly buildings, raising chickens, and even experimenting with permaculture. It was very broad, very horizontal. I was in partnership with Ishfaq Mir, whose family has long been involved in home furnishings and carpets. They were among the biggest exporters back in the day. But even they realised that design had become stagnant in Kashmir, especially after the turmoil of the ’90s, when things took a downturn here. And then to add salt to the wound, COVID happened, which gave us some time to pause and reflect.

Design Pataki: Are there any artists you follow who keep you inspired, or brands you admire for bringing Kashmiri handicrafts into the mainstream?

Burhan: You’ve touched upon one of my challenges. I usually don’t start with a vision board. Our clutch bags, for instance, were inspired by the seasons of Kashmir. Inspiration is all around us. 

“If you just open Pinterest and scroll through a bunch of images, it creates an echo chamber in design. Especially now, with AI, it just adds to the noise. It’s the little things that matter. God lies in those details, indeed.” 

You just have to be observant enough to see the gaps in conventional design. The craft comes in where the gaps are. The material should come after. 

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Design Pataki: You work extensively with willow wicker, walnut wood, and papier mâché. What draws you to these particular materials?

Burhan: We are always trying to figure out newer techniques, improve the craft, standardise production and get quality products. For example, in willow wicker, a lot of our products now have bases made through laser cutting. We’re also trying to make new materials. For example, we have something in the works we like to call ‘graché’, which is essentially made from waste grasses and other vegetation that grow in lakes and ponds. The real mission was to bring crafts back into the mainstream fold. So, a couple of things we made to showcase this included a Bluetooth speaker crafted using scrap office paper pulp, because I feel, technically, it’s viable. Right now, where we’re at is—okay, we have these working prototypes. You can make samples, but can you produce and supply at scale? So it’s all about striking that balance and collaborating with people who understand that these are artisanal products.

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Design Pataki: In what ways do you think Kashmiri identity has evolved across generations, and how has your understanding of it shaped your art?

Burhan: We have lived in this bubble for a long time—it has shaped the way we eat, dress and communicate. As simple as the ‘kangri,’ a fire pot we keep under our clothes for warmth in the winters. We have these long tunics called phirans. So geography plays a big role in how our ways have evolved. It’s information coming subliminally, and it impacts the things we make. Tourism has also left an impact. Kashmir was part of the Silk Route. An exchange of music, food, and ideas has influenced us—and will keep influencing us—for generations to come.

Design Pataki: Can you shed some light on some of the challenges of working in Kashmir?

Burhan: Eight months here, it’s cold, right? So production varies. And then, you don’t have access to a lot of materials. As an example, nobody is doing powder coating in Kashmir. So the paint quality in our metal furniture suffers. Similarly, there are challenges in terms of human resources. We’ve had lots of interns from different colleges come in, but we’re struggling to build a long-term team. There are security concerns, especially from parents and families. There are some government schemes, as far as funding is concerned: the MSME (Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) schemes, for instance. But the whole system around it is not fully functional. The bureaucrats don’t know how to implement them or partner with the right people to execute projects properly.

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Design Pataki: How have artisans responded to your interventions, especially when you introduce unfamiliar materials or techniques?

Burhan: Initially, there was definitely some resistance. But it really comes down to building trust over time and understanding the challenges they face. The wicker artisans mostly come from Ganderbal, which is about 45 minutes to an hour from Srinagar. Right now, for instance, a couple of them are developing prototypes. At that stage, it’s still very open-ended. But once we’ve narrowed down the technique and the process, and they get hands-on with it, they begin to see the value of what we’re doing.

Design Pataki: Tell us more about your most recent and exciting B2B collaborations.

Burhan: One of the interesting things we’re doing right now is touch-based switchboards in collaboration with a Mumbai-based brand called Digital Dreams. They’re working with alternative materials for switches and asked, “Why do switches always have to be these ugly plastic buttons?” So we’ve been exploring more unusual options, and surprisingly, our papier mâché switches have gotten a great response at exhibitions. We’re also working with People Tree and Good Earth.