Bharat Floorings and Tiles celebrates its centenary with a range of lifestyle products

From everyday household decor items that add playfulness, to rugs that lend character, BFT’s newest venture aims at becoming a one-stop shop for all things decor in India

For over a century now, Bharat Floorings & Tiles has been lighting up the ground beneath our feet with uniquely designed cement tiles that lend character to the spaces they are introduced in. In 2023, the Mumbai-based company marks its centenary year by foraying into a range of lifestyle products that boast a collection of terrazzo mirrors, lamps, clocks, rugs, candelabras, and coloured cement décor items.

“We wanted to come up with a décor range that would match our tiles. The idea is to make the home aesthetics and design more cohesive. If someone buys the patterned tiles, then the BFT home range aligns well,” says Firdaus Variava, Vice Chairman at BFT. This endevour has led the brand to collaborate with Name Place Animal Thing, a Mumbai-based design studio that specialises in furniture, lights, installations, and decor, as well as Ecru Design, a design consultancy brand based in Mumbai.

These tie-ups signal BFT’s aim to scale up as a one-stop solution for all things interior decor, as Variava also emphasises the brand’s vision of forefronting indigenous design and craftsmanship to conserve and cultivate Indian legacies.

The seed was planted in 2021, and in July 2023, the collection has finally come to life to be purchased online from BFT’s webstore. “As a homegrown design powerhouse, our intent spotlighted the desire to go beyond just flooring and expand the range of home products,” says Variava.

Back to your roots

Imagine cladding a beautifully patterned floor with rugs that make your feet sing—designer Shibani Shetty of Ecru Design was aiming for just that with the Taru collection of hand-tufted rugs in collaboration with BFT. “In crafting this collection, I drew inspiration from the organic world and the vitality found in living beings. ‘Taru,’ a name derived from the Sanskrit word for ‘tree,’ was conceived as a tribute to the majestic essence of these living forms, with its design mirroring the raw contours, grooves, and imperfections found in nature. Through Taru, spaces are transformed as elements of nature are brought into homes, adding depth, texture, grandeur and life,” says Shetty. She believes in designing products that urge people to create their own collections as an extension of their lives and personalities. The rugs use New Zealand wool, jasmine silk and silk rayon that are hand-tufted by Indian artisans from traditional backgrounds whose families are still carrying forward the legacy of their crafts.

Shetty adds that the “textures play a significant role in this collection, exemplified by the intricate tree rings that symbolise growth and life—a touch of much-needed positivity during the challenging periods of the two pandemic-induced lockdowns,” and by reconnecting with our roots and “embracing the significance of these rings as markers of identity and the passage of time, this collection offers a sense of tranquility and harmony that make these rugs true collectibles.”

Pops of colour for terrazzo 

Principal Designer Priyam Doshi at Name Place Animal Thing believes terrazzo is making a comeback, and the first opportunity he got to bring this unique—yet once commonly-used—material to life with BFT, he ran with it. “In today's design landscape, terrazzo has become ubiquitous in almost every interior and architectural project, which is why I chose to incorporate it,” Doshi says. What also attracts him to terrazzo is its playful and fun nature, where the medium looks “like a collection of little chips, each with its own unique colour, shape, and size, coming together and interacting with one another. That moment is captured in time when the cement is poured during the terrazzo-making process. I love how each piece is unique, making no two terrazzo pieces alike,” says the designer.

The idea was to bring an element of “fun” into the functionality of everyday objects like mirrors, lamps, clocks, and a variety of desktop items, resulting in a collection that cuts through the clutter of domesticity. In the same vein, the products flaunt equally curious names like Candy, Jell-o, Tic-Tac-Toe, Mt. Terra, Donna, Olio, Polo, among others, in order to evoke a sense of joy while aligning themselves to the eccentric nature of terrazzo.

However, the more interesting aspect of this collaboration lies in how it elevates what the material already brings to the literal table, by adding pops of colour reminiscent of the distinct BFT aesthetic, where every flooring tile has its own identity. “The products from the TerraPop collection may appear simple and minimalistic, but a significant amount of time was devoted to research and development. One of our key considerations was creating designs that are production-friendly rather than one-of-a-kind bespoke pieces,” Doshi says. While adding colours to his products, the designer aimed for a sense of freshness and a contemporary appeal to an age-old technique that consumers may once have grown weary of.

“What makes it even more thrilling is collaborating with BFT, a company that has been in the flooring and tiles industry for over a century, constantly adapting and exploring new designs and products,” says Doshi, spotlighting the fact that the home is as much about creativity, as it is about familiarity, and BFT is stepping into its second century to accomplish just that.

Next in line is furniture, says Variava, as he takes the brand to its next milestone to further expand their goals of becoming the country’s one-stop solution for all things home.

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