In the last decade, the tattoo has become a normal thing than it was ever before. In India, it is no longer just the Om symbol done in some dicey shack. Today, tattooing has become a commercial profession and also the one that stands out to be an instrument to express your feelings. The tattoo parlors in India are equipped with international equipment and meet the standards as well, while the Indian tattoo artists are making a name for themselves globally. They have carved a niche in styles such as dot work, watercolor effect, and experimented with wooden needles. The Indian tattoos of the modern world are thus an amalgamation of what has been passed down to us and the western influence.
In the previous times, when the tattoo still had to gain its footing in India, people had to be certain of their designs, but now, one just needs a great idea in their head and the tattoo artists would use his artistic acumen to create something new for you. The Indian tattoo industry has grown so much today that multiple artists have not only come out to be best in India but internationally too. They have been credited with putting something new to the table. Take a look at the top 10 Indian Tattoo Artists.
1. Lokesh Verma- Devil’z Tattoo, Delhi
Lokesh Verma is one of the most sought after names and has been practicing tattooing since 2003 when he was also doing his MBA. He worked as a freelancer in Delhi for two years after which he opened his own studio in 2005. His specialty? Realism. He makes realistic portraits in black and grey shades and colors. As an artist with a realistic approach, he defines his technique as “more of a reproduction work capturing maximum details from a piece and etch it into the skin forever. If you are striving for perfection in realism, you can put as many hours as you want to get the right details. It’s not easy.”
- Shop Name: Devil’z Tattoo, Delhi
- Address: Delhi: M-37, 2nd floor, Greater Kailash 1 Rd, above CCD, Greater Kailash I, Greater Kailash, New Delhi, Delhi 110048; Gurgaon: Shop# 77, 1st floor, Galleria, DLF-IV, Gurgaon/Gurugram 122002, Haryana
- Email: [email protected]
- Contact: 098765 43285
- Facebook: @devilztattooznewdelhi
- Instagram: @devilztattooz
- Website: www.tattoosnewdelhi.com
- Timings: Mon-Sun 12 PM- 8 PM
Location on Google Maps:
2. Zaheer Chhatriwala- Studio Z, Mumbai
It is quite interesting that Zaheer started his career as an intern in one of the most popular tattoo studios in the city, Kraayonz. He began in 2008 after pursuing his undergrad in fine arts. Clearly, he has come out a long way since then. He says that he does not have a specific style but he loves working on abstract and geometric designs by which he modifies his client’s designs. While he might not have a specific style, but he does offer a unique approach, he says, “giving more importance to composition and structure as it lays the main foundation and then builds on by adding details, effects, color or textures to make it aesthetically beautiful.”
He also says that a lot of his work is freehanded because you might not know what art can bring out and it is rather not predetermined. He loves to borrow from any art form and any culture that he comes across and this is what makes his abstract ideas most unique. He believes in following no guidelines.
- Shop Name: Studio Z, Mumbai
- Address: Studio Z, 4th Floor, Bindiya Society. Opposite Nature’s Basket, Hill Road, Bandra (W)
- Contact: +91-9820967870
- Facebook: Studio Z
- Instagram: @zaheer_c
- Timings: Mon-Sun: 11 AM- 8 PM
Location on Google Maps:
3. Duncan Viegas- Inkfidel, Goa
Duncan’s work began in the year 2007 but he still had a long way to go. He calls his style of art “eclectic,” working with a lot of unique creations. His areas of expertise lie in doing watercolor effect, illustrations, geometric patterns, dot work, and the New School form of a tattoo. He says, “I specialize in creating custom designs in a variety of styles. Almost all of my designs are hand-drawn for each client based on their inputs.” He has a lot of diversity in his work and tries to evade monotony. His strength lies in his intricacy and detailed work no matter if it is an abstract tattoo or a new School one.
- Shop Name: Inkfidel, Goa
- Address: 519/1, Anjuna Mapusa Road, Bouta Waddo, Assagao, Goa 403507:
- Contact: 098204 15684
- Facebook: Inkfidel Tattoos
- Instagram: @inkfideltattoo
- Twitter: @inkfideltattoo
- Timings: Mon-Sun: 2 PM- 10 PM
Location on Google Maps:
4. Sameer Patange- Kraayonz Tattoo Studio, Bangalore/ Pune
Sameer started his mission in 1998 while serving at India’s only tattoo studio then, under Dr. J A Kohiyar, and began tattooing as an assistant to him in 2000. His area of expertise might be in photo realism with colors and black and grey effects, but he is known for his amazing cover-ups. In his terms, “I make peoples messed up tattoos or f…kd up ones worth looking at once again by doing a completely new job on them. But I don’t restrict my creative boundaries to just that, I’d love to work on anything and everything that brings a challenge with it.”
He says that what makes his art unique is the fact that he fuses multiple art forms to create a new one and each time it creates something new. It all comes down to how much the client is willing to because, in the end, it is the client’s body that he is working on. His experience in tattoo making has definitely given him an upper hand when it comes to his skills and his work and testimonials by his clients speak for themselves.
- Shop Name: Kraayonz, Bangalore, Pune
- Address: Bangalore: Shop No. 8, ground floor, Raheja Arcade, Next to City Bank ATM, 5th Block, Koramangala, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560095; Pune: Sapphire Apartments, C2, Lane Number 6, Koregaon Park, Pune, Maharashtra 411001
- Contact: 095387 21267
- Facebook: Kraayonz Tattoo Studios
- Instagram: @kraayonz.tattoostudios
- Website: kraayonztattoostudio.com
- Timings: Monday-Sunday, 11 am- 8 pm
Location on Google Maps:
5. Mykel Kumar, The Pumpkin Patch, Bangalore
Mykel Kumar is one such success story and he started working towards it when he was just 21 for what he calls “willing, and now that I think about, very trusting friends. I started with very simple designs and nothing too complex to not bite off more than I can chew, so to speak” he says.
He likes to work on designs that are a combination of fine lines that are clean as well as raw. His idea of making a tattoo is for it to be as creative and illustrative as possible. While he likes to add some fantastic elements to his designs, he also loves to do realism work. His favorite work till now? A space turtle that he is essentially proud of. In his words, “Really far too many to name but a few would be a space turtle I did, a Jack Skellington piece, a Cheshire Cat. I’m always on the lookout for volunteers for certain pieces I want to do. There are a Yoda and Joker on waiting if anyone’s interested, just saying.”
- Shop Name: The Pumpkin Patch
- Address: No. 409, 1st Floor, 2nd Main, J, Post, Ramaiah Reddy Layout, Chelekare, Kalyan Nagar, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560043
- Facebook: The Pumpkin Patch Tattoos
- Instagram: @inkpatch
- Timings: Monday-Sunday, 11 am- 8 pm
Location on Google Maps:
6. Mo Naga, Godna Gram- The Tattoo Village, New Delhi
This guy is as tribal as it can get. If tribal or Celtic ink is something anyone wants, Mo is the best in the field. Besides tribal designs, Mo also specializes in geometrical and abstract tattoo designs. His style of tattooing is strong and bold and he makes sure that his designs are too. He loves to work with thick and sharp lines with a lot of dark inks or straight-up black ink.
Some of his designs spring up from his creativeness and the others from his interest in human anatomy. He gives great importance to the placement ideas as well. In his words, “I studied design, and my obsession with human anatomy and aesthetic means that my tattoos are art designed to flow or break the edges of the body. Getting the right proportion and balance with on the body and the parts specifically is my priority.”
- Shop Name: Godna Gram- The Tattoo Village, New Delhi
- Address: 1st floor, 253-a/3c, Shahpur Jat, Siri Fort, New Delhi, Delhi 110049
- LinkedIn: Mo Naga
- Facebook: Godana Gram
- Instagram: @godanagram
- Youtube: @godanagram
- Timings: Mon-Sun: 12 PM – 8:30 PM
Location on Google Maps:
7. Eric D’Souza, Iron Buzz Tattoos, Mumbai
Eric D’sSouza has been practicing this form of art for over a decade. His specialty lies in 3D art and geometrical patterns, along with realistic portraits. The realistic tattoos include replicating whatever the customer brings in, like a portrait or a picturesque scene exactly like it is in the picture. But what makes it unique is the fact that he likes to add a certain twist with geometrical patterns, mandalas, and other abstract patterns so that it fits the original design and the body part perfectly.
Eric has been working with black and grey shading effects most of the time, however, he has also won the best Color Tattoo Award for a particular design which shows that he might be the master of both worlds.
- Shop Name: Iron Buzz Tattoos, Mumbai
- Address: Bungalow No. 21-A, New Hindustan Society, Linking Rd, behind Thomas Cook, Bandra West, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400050
- Contact: 082919 21990
- Facebook: Iron Buzz Tattoo
- Instagram: @ironbuzztattoo
- Youtube: Iron Buzz
- Pinterest: Iron Buzz
- LinkedIn: Iron Buzz Tattoos
- Website: ironbuzztattoo.com
- Timings: Mon-Sun: 12 PM- 10 PM
Location on Google Maps:
8. Sheena Deviah
The journey of tattoo for Sheena began when she was introduced by her friend to “homemade” Indian tattoos. In her words, “I’ve always had a love affair with tattoos and I’d been wanting to tattoo myself but buying a machine seemed a bit intimidating. So (don’t try this at home), I gave myself a small dot tattoo with a sewing needle and Indian ink. I wasn’t terribly pleased with the results. Off then, I went on to the internet, did a bit of research, found a local tattoo supply store, and bought myself some basic supplies.” And honestly, this is where it all began for her.
For her, her tattoo journey was a hit and error method that made her sure about her working style. Her style can be said to be pretty simplistic and minimalistic which is quite a trend these days. She does a lot of illustration inspired black line drawings using sterilized tattoo needed that comes in different sizes. She swears by the tattoo ink that she uses.
Although it takes a bit longer than the mechanical tattoos, it is quite a meditative experience and it is exactly what she wants her clients to feel too. She hand draws the rough sketch on the skin and then starts poking it a dot by dot which eventually forms a line.
Sharing her experience, she says, “I find that it hurts a lot less than a tattoo needle but of course, some areas of the body are more painful than others. As a style, I really like clean line tattoos and the way they look. I find that shading often gets lost on Indian skin.”
- Shop Name: Desi Creative
- Email: [email protected]
- Facebook: Desi Creative
- Instagram: @sheenadeviahaha
- Twitter: Sheena Deviah
- LinkedIn: Sheena Deviah
- Website: desicreative.com
- Timings: Mon-Sun: 11 AM- 8 PM
9. Karthik Benegre- Sculp Tattoo Studio, Bangalore
For Kartik, it was rather a different approach than many. He did some self-analysis and searched for something which he thought would give him inner happiness and inner purpose in life. All he wanted to be was content with what he does and rather come back to his roots.
His style is thus inspired by the folklore of his birthplace, Mangalore, where he also spent some time amidst the local artists who carved and painted and that is exactly what he imprints in his tattoo style too. Needless to say, he is a fan of contemporary style.
He snapped out of his corporate career to invest his time and energy in what he actually loves- Tattooing, in Bangalore. He was quite unstoppable.
Karthik Bengre, presently, is an exultant founder and owner of Sculp tattoo studio in Bangalore which he opened in 2015. Naturally, he has his own unique style that is abstract and contemporary look. He also likes to amalgamate various other styles and genres in his tattoo designs. “Art is my soul food and I hit rock bottom to be where I am today, happy and content,” he says.
- Shop Name: Sculp Tattoo Studio, Bangalore
- Address: D.NO, 467, 17th C Main Rd, KHB Colony, 5th Block, Koramangala, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560095
- Email: [email protected]
- Contact: 080 41466727, +91 8197318518, +91 9738563204
- Facebook: Sculp Tattoo Studio
- Instagram: @Sculptattoos, @he_artist_
- Website: sculptattoos.com
- Timings: Mon-Sun: 11 AM- 7 PM
Location on Google Maps:
10. Amritraj Sachdev- Insane Tattoo Studio, Mumbai
Many people think that art is something that is not here to stay and does not realize its potential until they finally do. This is the story for Amritraj Sachdev too. This tattoo artist did not let his childhood interest in art fade away but incorporated his forte in sketching to earn bread and butter out of it.
However, he was interested only in sketching and his love for tattoos did not wake until later in his life when he took up a course in tattoo making in Mumbai. He began as a freelancer but his hard work leads him to be as successful as he is today. He owns not just one but two studios in Mumbai (Mulund and Thane) and named it Insane Tattoo Studio. His area of expertise is combining realism and abstract concepts into his work.
- Shop Name: Insane Tattoo Studio, Mumbai
- Address: Address 1: 132 / A Avior, Nirmal Galaxy, Opp johnson & johnson, Lbs marg, Mulund West, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400080; Address 2: INSANE TATTOOS, Shop no. 18, Sunrise Shopping Complex, Behind Hiranandani Meadows, Manpada, Thane West, Thane Mumbai 400602
- Contact: +91-9769681007, +91-9769681007
- Facebook: Insane Tattoos
- Instagram: @insanetattoos.in
- Pinterest: Insane India Ink
- Youtube: Amritraj Sachdev
- Website: insanetattoos.in
- Timings: Mon-Sun: 10 AM- 9 PM
Location on Google Maps:
