Oh, you want to buy a watch? That's great. But before buying any product the first step is to choose a brand. A brand that is good and reliable. Everyone's need is different, so the brand preference may vary but an ideal brand should care about its customer; have great products; should be in our budget and it should be trustworthy.
India has been a hub for Chinese products. They are cheap, easily available and their longevity (product’s lifespan) depends upon our luck. But as you may know, there was a clash going on between India and China, result of which were just devastating, tragic and sad. There’s now a rage inside people and they are eliminating Chinese products from their life.
Now people are realizing the value of made-in-India products and they are starting to promote it. Look, India is a developing country and it has given the world some very brilliant companies i.e. Café Coffee Day, Tata Groups, Indian Oil Company, etc. The Make in India Campaign by government has had some really great effect. It pushed and motivated many start-ups and now we have several excellent Indian brands. Pick a niche and there would be an Indian Company.
But is that the same case with watches? Do we have some excellent Indian Wrist Watch Brands? And the answer is – Yes, we do. So, without any further ado, let’s discuss about some of the Best Indian watch brands or in other words Best Made in India Watch Brands.
1. Titan
Do I have to say anything about this brand? It is obviously going to make it in the list. It is one of the best watch manufacturers in India. The Titan Watches hold more than 60% share of the domestic market and are sold in 32 countries. Titan is not only the best watch brand in India but it also is the fifth largest watch manufacturer in the world. An Indian brand scaling such heights, isn’t it amazing?
Titan has always been a customer-friendly company. It always tries out new things to bring quality products for the customer. The Titan Company Ltd has diversified into many accessories like jewellery with Tanishq, eyewear with Titan Eyeplus, perfume with Skinn and many more. But we are here to discuss about watches. When we hear the word ‘watch’, the first thing to come in our mind is Titan. They produce watches under the brand name Titan (obviously), Fastrack, Sonata, Nebula, RAGA, Regalia, Octane & Xylys. All the leading watch brands in India under one roof.
With over 350+ stores all over the India, Titan watches are diversified. The watches from Titan come in various ranges and in various styles, be it Khadi or EDGE, Titan surely knows to diversify its portfolio. Titan has been in the industry for a long time, which helped it gain customers’ trust. People trust Titan and they know that when they buy a Titan product, it would be of great quality. If you're one of them, you can buy Titan watches from e-commerce websites, their stores or from their official website:
Click here to checkout Titan Watches on Amazon.
2. HMT Watches
Before Titan, one company ruled the wrist watch industry – HMT Watches. Founded in 1953, HMT Limited inaugurated its watch manufacturing unit in 1961 in collaboration with M/S Citizen Watch Co. The first batch of Hand Wound Watches from HMT was even released by the then Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru. But all its glory and greatness came to an end in 2016 as the company (HMT Watches) was shut down by Government of India. In its heyday, it was the largest supplier of wrist watches in India.
HMT was the epitome of stylish mechanical watches. Be it HMT Janata, HMT Pilot, HMT Jhalak or HMT Sona, it knew how to rule in this niche. HMT Watches had been manufacturing several other types of watches like Floral Clocks, Solar Clocks, International Clocks and Tower Clocks, but their most popular clock is the Garden clock, situated in Bangalore.
You must be thinking “If manufacturing of these watches has been closed, then why is he still talking about them? We can’t buy these watch” and here’s the catch. In late 2019, a notification was put up to inform buyers that HMT watches would start selling again but only through their online website and at selected factory-owned brick and mortar stores. So now you can also buy those selected watches through their online website:
3. Maxima
If you are a watch enthusiast or even if you have bought a watch earlier, you must have heard the name of Maxima. It is a true made-in-India brand. Part of PA Group of Industries, the Maxima Watch Company was founded in 1996 by Mr. GS Purewal. It has its own manufacturing and designing plants in India which means all the equipment used in the watch is manufactured in India itself.
Maxima watches are known for their stylish design and strong build quality. These watches give some of the best features in a very low price. They truly are value-for-money watches. Moreover, most of the watches from Maxima are completely water-proof (unlike other watches in same price range). According to some user’s report, the watches can last as long as 5+ years. So, it passes the durability test.
The watches of the Maxima Watch Company are manufactured at Dharampur, Himachal Pradesh. Every watch is tested before the export. The company always makes sure that customer must get a valuable product. So summing up, Maxima is a great and a trustworthy Indian brand. If you want a stylish and valuable watch at a reasonable price, then this company can be best for you. You can buy Maxima watches from other e-commerce sites or from their official webiste
Click Here to checkout Maxima Watches on Amazon.
New Generation Indian Origin Watch Brands
India has highest number of youths in the world and day-by-day the start-up trend is growing in India. The brands/companies discussed above are older watch brands established before 2000s and every ecosystem or industry needs some newer elements within them. Many entrepreneurs have come up with watch related start-ups, following their love and passion for watches. So, let’s discuss some of the Best New Generation Indian Watch Brand which can totally change the industry.
1. Jaipur Watch Company
Finally a premium watch brand in the list. And when I say it’s premium, I really mean it. Do you know about coin watch? A coin watch (especially in this case) is a watch with a coin in its dial. Fascinated with ancient coin and watches, the founder Gaurav Gupta in his childhood modified a watch with an ancient coin in the dial which got lot of appreciation from his friends. This idea got stuck in his brain and later emerged into India’s first private, micro-brand watch company, the Jaipur Watch Company, in 2013.
Following the ideology of Make in India, Gaurav Gupta set up the manufacturing unit in Bengaluru. The watches produced by this company display tradition with a subtle hint of contemporary design. Every watch is a piece of fine craftsmanship. Take a look at the watches and you will be mesmerized by its beauty. They started out with coin watches but now they also produce bespoke watches, hand painted watches, 3D watches and peacock watches.
The best part is the clients have all rights to their watch, they can customise the watch in whichever way they need. The watches are waterproof and the coin used in them come from personal collections and numismatists all over the world. These premium watches start from 16,000 Rs and can go as high as 60,000 Rs. If you are fan of artistic, exquisite or traditional crafts then these watches can be best for you. And spending this much money is worth it as you get a royal and contemporary watch which will grab the attention of a viewer.
Gaurav Gupta used his Risk Management degree to give India something, it never knew it wanted. So, if you want to buy some custom made watches in India, this is the brand for you. You can check out the watches by visiting their stores or through their official website - https://www.jaipur.watch/
2. AIQON
Chinmay Shah always loved history and encyclopedias, so when he started this company, he made sure that all of his watch must reflect the history of India. Most of the watches produced by Aiqon are strongly India-centric. He designed the first watch, Maximum City 1888, in 2014 which was inspired by the architecture of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai. There are some more watches inspired by the wonderful sculptures in India and around the globe. If you would like to wear a bit of India on your wrist, then these watches can turn out to be your favorite.
The watches are designed by Shah himself which makes every watch a unique piece. The business model of this company is targeting the core middle class of India who can spend between Rs 2,000 to Rs 19,000. There is watch for everyone. The lower price point watches are designed for the conscious youth while the higher price range are designed for mature customer, looking for some value for money. You can check out the watches from e-commerce websites like Amazon & Flipkart or through their official website - http://aiqonwatches.com/
3. Bangalore Watch Company
Nirupesh Joshi and his wife Mercy Amalraj were living a good life in Hong Kong and were working at an IT company. They used to visit the boutiques of some of the finest watchmakers in the world and wonder why fine watchmaking was not so popular in India? So in January 2017, they decided to set up their company to give India its own finest watchmaking company – Bangalore Watch Company. The duo has invested their life saving on this company and yes, it was worth it.
They launched their debut, the Renaissance Automatic in early 2018. There are 6 models of this debut series and is limited to only 500 pieces. The watches are magnificent, stylish and every angle of them gives a premium look. These are premium watches and their pricing starts from 28,000 INR. Check out the watch’s review by definitelycurry here. They also launched MACH 1 series based on Aviation theme, starting from 48,000 INR.
Yes, these watches are priced high but the quality and the feel these watches give will just take you to another level. They have shipped watches to over 29 countries and 35% of their clients are based overseas which is remarkable. They do not have any retail stores at the moment, but if you want to buy check out their official website.
https://www.bangalorewatchco.in/
Now there are some other brands, but those will be discussed sometimes later or else this post would become very long.
Honorable Mentions :-
Horpa - https://horpawatch.com/
Jean Fendi - https://www.jfwatches.in/
Thanks to all these brands/companies, watch industry in India is growing at a steady rate. Most of the new brands are leaning toward premium watch brands. So I hope, some new player enter this market and provide us some Indian watches at a reasonable price.
You can check out our other posts. They might help you in making your decision towards buying a watch. If you have any query related to the brands mentioned or suggest some new Indian Brands which are not included in this list, you can email us by joining our email list (yes, you can reply to our email) or comment down below. Thanks for reading.