Indicus Paints Unveils Neote, India’s First Luxury Paint Brand Inspired by Tamil Cultural Heritage

Indicus Launches Heritage-Inspired Luxury Paint Brand

Cultural Celebration
The Neote packaging strikes a balance between heritage and modernity. Anchored in a rich purple that exudes confidence and contemporary elegance, the design incorporates visual elements that serve as cultural touchstones from Tamil Nadu and broader South India, each rendered in traditional, vivid colours.
The packaging features Bharatanatyam—rooted in the Natya Shastra—alongside iconic instruments such as the Veena, Nadaswaram, and Mridangam. Artistic traditions like Thanjavur dolls, Kolam, and the martial art Silambattam showcase the region’s creativity, while architectural landmarks including Madurai’s Meenakshi Temple and the University of Madras anchor its built heritage. Living traditions such as boat races and Jallikattu, the Pongal event that safeguards native cattle breeds, keep Tamil identity vibrant and enduring.
Speaking at the launch, Gokul Basker, Brand Founder, Indicus & Partner, VNC Group, said, “With Neote, we wanted to do more than create a luxury paint—we wanted to honour the richness of Tamil Nadu’s cultural heritage. Bringing these timeless arts into our packaging is our way of showing that modernity doesn’t replace tradition—it reimagines it with confidence.”

Logo Design

The Neote sub-brand logo draws typographical inspiration from Tamil script, incorporating a fluid viscosity reminiscent of wet paint.
“The logo evokes the same sensibility as Indo-Western fusion music—old and new blending into something distinct that exudes fresh and confident sophistication,” explains Gautam Patil, Co-Founder and Design Head at Plus One, who designed the logo and packaging. “These elements travel from the Indicus parent brand into Neote, and ultimately into the homes whose walls it will grace—young, contemporary, confident, yet grounded in a rich past.”
Design Language

Neote’s launch aligns with a cultural shift redefining India’s design language—one that favours authenticity, regional identity, and inherited wisdom over borrowed minimalism. The emerging “India Modern” aesthetic embraces maximalist warmth through textures like wicker, terracotta, brass, and handloom. Indic typography has become central to this movement, with local scripts serving as markers of identity—embodied in Neote’s Tamil-inspired logo. Designers are also moving away from a monolithic “Pan-Indian” style, drawing instead from hyper-local references like Chettinad architecture and Warli art.