The Journey from Idea to Form: TGF’s Design Story
9 May 2025, 11:21AM
The Journey from Idea to Form: TGF’s Design Story
Every piece of furniture begins as an idea, not a grand one, but a quiet thought about balance, comfort, and honesty in material. For Tectona Grandis Furniture, that thought is shaped by time, by touch, and by teak.
Reclaimed teakwood, seasoned and strengthened through decades of use, forms the foundation of every creation. It is a material that has already lived a life in old beams, doors, and structures and carries within it the beauty of endurance. When it enters the Ahmedabad workshop, it is reimagined with contemporary clarity, allowing the past and present to meet through design.
The Beginning of a Design Language
The story of this process begins with Dhruvkant Amin, a designer whose journey from stainless steel to solid wood redefined his understanding of form and purpose. A graduate of the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, Amin spent his early years with Jindal Stainless, Delhi, before returning to what felt most natural to him, timber.
His transition to wood was not simply a shift in material but in mindset. Working with teak meant working with memory, imperfection, and natural intelligence. It also meant working responsibly. “If sustainability is one’s priority, then natural materials are the only way to go,” he often says. That conviction became the guiding principle of Tectona Grandis Furniture when it was founded in 2014.
Where Heritage Meets Design
Amin’s first major commissions, IIT Gandhinagar and later Navjivan Trust, Ahmedabad, were rooted in heritage. Both institutions needed furniture that echoed their legacy while embracing contemporary use. His approach was to listen to the space, to the wood, and to the story behind both.
The result was a collection that merged structural precision with simplicity. The Karma Chair, designed for the Karma Café at Navjivan Trust, remains one of the studio’s most recognisable designs. Its clean, stackable form and lightweight structure reflect the studio’s philosophy: make it simple, but make it significant.
Designing through Dialogue
Design begins with conversation. A sketch may capture the first thought, but it evolves through countless discussions between designer, artisan, and client. Each curve and joinery detail is refined through prototypes, revisions, and experiments in proportion.
The design process follows a rhythm:
- Material selection comes first, focusing on the grain, patina, and integrity of reclaimed teak.
- Form exploration follows, where function and emotion merge into balanced geometry.
- Craft refinement comes next, with every joint and edge perfected through handwork.
- Finishing is the final act, using natural, eco-friendly coatings that protect the wood without concealing its story.
Every step reflects patience. The process respects what the wood already is, rather than forcing it into what it is not.
From Prototype to Personality
No design leaves the studio without going through multiple iterations. Each prototype is tested for comfort, strength, and coherence of form. The goal is not to create statement pieces, but meaningful ones, furniture that lives easily in its environment while carrying a distinct identity.
The Ligero Chair, the Oreka Centre Table, and the Ripple Table are examples of this philosophy. Their minimal profiles conceal meticulous craftsmanship. They are light in appearance yet grounded in technique, blending geometry and texture with a quiet rhythm that feels unmistakably Tectona Grandis Furniture.
Today, Tectona Grandis Furniture stands at the intersection of traditional skill and modern design. From a modest 800 square foot workshop to an 50,000+ square foot factory with more than 100+ team members, the brand continues to evolve while staying rooted in its founding ethos.
Each piece designed and built reflects the same promise of endurance, sustainability, and grace. The studio’s in-house design and manufacturing allow it to customise pieces that respond to individual spaces and sensibilities, whether for a café steeped in heritage or a home defined by modern minimalism.
As Amin often says, “Beauty is found in harmony of purpose and form.”
For Tectona Grandis Furniture, that harmony begins long before the first cut of wood and continues long after the final polish, in homes where craft, comfort, and continuity come together.
