Featuring label Artisanal Distillery
Every aroma has its saga. Each note reminiscing of the stories of the past or memory so dear.
Some even believe that scents are a way to enjoy tradition and modernity together. The medicinal and spiritual value of aromatherapy dates back to ancient civilizations. From sacred rituals – to a peaceful and healing ambience, fragrances are used to allure oneself into a deep meditative state for higher consciousness. Today the art of traditional perfumery is part of the regal luxury heritage to be preserved. Aromas are a subtle part of our personality. Like animals, humans too have a higher affinity for the sense of smell, sometimes it’s camouflaged in the chaos of other overbearing senses. A unique choice of fragrance describes one’s character better than any other sense.
Fragrances became identities for the royalties. The hunt for the most exotic and premium scents began the trades of the perfume industry. Procuring raw materials from around the world and understanding of mixing the right notes from around the culture became part of the study since Vedic texts.
Folklore and Traditions
Perfumes are mentioned in Ayurvedic texts like Charaka Samhita and Susruta Samhita. Duryodhana mentions the wealth of aloeswood, sandalwood, and perfumes he heaped on as a tribute, in the Mahabharata. Rambha, the celestial beauty, has her face compared to the fragrance of a lotus. Gautama Buddha’s gaze is said to be like the perfume of aloeswood, sandalwood, and mangroves. Sita talks about the fragrances of betel leaves, betel nuts, flowers, and musk all over her bed. In the Mughal period, perfumes were called ‘itra’, ‘Ittar’ or ‘attar’ and were used in huge amounts in the harems of the royals. During this period, Queen Noorjahan created a custom ‘itra’ using over 50 different rose essences and 5 kinds of sandalwood oils.
Archaeologists believe that the art of making perfumes began in India during the Indus Valley civilization. They found a distillation apparatus made out of terracotta which dated back to 3000 BCE. Terracotta vessels were discovered that had plugged orifices and woven material that could be squeezed out to isolate the fragrant oils.
This homegrown brand Artisanal Distillery is preserving and reviving an old tradition of perfumery and reciting back some folklore rich in heritage into the new urban world with their exotic fragrances.
The earliest record of perfume making in India goes as far back as the 6th century BC, in the Bri-hat Samhita, written by astronomer Varahamiriha which is a detailed account of traditional perfumery, the scents, and blends of flowers, spices, aromatic plants, colours. Similarly, the brand derives its scents from natural plants, flowers, and spices to design them around certain experiences, emotions, and muses.
About the brand
They are an artisanal, niche, and luxurious perfumery, one of the first of its kind in India. Art, folklore, literature, colours, seasons, and tales are what inspire them to weave alluring stories with their fragrances. They brew a concoction of the old and the new invoking experiences with aromatic designs. They even create bespoke fragrances to suit and represent one’s style and stories.
Their packaging design focuses on a clean and modern outlook, and a foundation rooted in traditional methods and knowledge of perfumery.
Brand Ethics & Process
The process is completely handmade, slow, and regal derived from the natural millennia-old steam-distilled process of perfume-making that captures the scent of nature in all its complexity. The materials are sourced ethically, directly from homegrown artisans and small businesses. They are a cruelty-free brand, believing in the pure, sacred, and ethical.
Perfumery is an art form, it takes a muse, a vision, a story, and an idea to weave all of these elements together and around. Each fragrance is like a mystery or an adventure you want to explore diving into its depth and nuances.
Insights on Fragrances
All our fragrances are plant-based, and focus on and give prominence to one botanical like flowers, fruits, and other parts of plants. For Orange Blossom, it is Neroli, Floral Explosion is Jasmine, Poet’s Daffodil it is Nargis, Zafraan its saffron, and Cabin in the Woods, it is Khus/Vetiver Grass.
Being plant-based and natural our fragrances settle gently on the skin and remind you of being surrounded by natural beauty. These fragrances are designed to give you a unique olfactory experience.
1. Zafraan, a blend of rich Kashmiri saffron, and cool Chandan.
2. Cabin in the Woods emulates the cool earthiness of nature, being in the forest, connecting with its calmness, and being as if one with the soil beneath our feet.
3. Orange Blossom is a whiff of summer, turning over a new page, a fresh start.
4. Floral Explosion, a burst of sensual floral, the Jasmine and the Gardenia beautifully juxtapose each other.
5. The Poet’s Daffodil, our ode to spring, at the heart of which lies the ethereal Nargis.
