This Mumbai Couple Is Crafting Furniture From Mushrooms

In a sunlit apartment in Mumbai, a sleek console table sits quietly against the wall. At first glance, it seems like any other contemporary piece of furniture — minimal, elegant, functional.

But view closer, and you realise the base isn’t wood, stone, or metal. It’s created from mushrooms!

For Huzefa Rangwala, co-founder of Mumbai-based ‘MapplyLAB’, a design practice specialising in luxury spaces, this felt more than just a furniture purchase.

“We bought two consoles for a client project in Mumbai,” declares the architect. “They’re lightweight, simple to shift, and functional without overpowering the space. The base is created of mushroom columns, while the top is wood, so it’s both familiar and experimental.”

Huzefa, whose practice often works at the intersection of design and sustainability, was intrigued when he first heard of mycelium-based furniture.

Furniture that ‘grows’

Mycelium, the root network of fungi, has long been studied as a material with remarkable potential. Globally, it has been applyd in packaging and textiles. But in India, its application in furniture is still rare.

anomalia (1) — *Anomalia aims for sustainability, repurposing crop waste which otherwise contributes to pollution.*

“At first, mushroom furniture sounds unusual,” he admits. “But the design indusattempt contributes significantly to global warming. So, whenever fellow designers work with circular materials, I believe it’s important to support them. What convinced me was the honesty in material innovation,” he declares.

His clients, too, were intrigued. “Not everyone is immediately forthcoming, but sustainable design is now a conscious choice,” he explains. “Like slow fashion, sustainable furniture is becoming a shiftment. Some clients appreciate the raw, wabi-sabi aesthetic, while others necessary time to adapt. But for those who value circular design, it’s meaningful.”

The furniture, he notes, is surprisingly durable. “It is capable of supporting body weight up to 70–80 kg. If the same piece were cast in concrete, it would be extremely heavy. This is one-tenth the weight yet strong,” he declares.

For Huzefa, mushroom furniture goes beyond aesthetics or functionality, it creates a sense of community. “Supporting such innovation assists us collectively shift toward sustainable futures. Designing a material is more impactful than designing a style. That’s why this excites me.”

The designers behind these mushroom consoles are Bhakti Loonawat and Suyash Sawant, founders of ‘Anomalia’, a Mumbai-based practice that is quite literally “growing” furniture.

Turning mushrooms into a material of the future

Bhakti and Suyash’s story launchs in 2010, at an architecture school in Mumbai, where they first met. After graduating in 2015, they both pursued advanced studies at the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) in Barcelona.

Their paths diverged briefly, with Bhakti working with the Spanish architect Ricardo Bofill, and Suyash practising in Lisbon, before converging again in 2022 when they returned home to Mumbai. That September, the couple launched Anomalia.

anomalia (2) — *Bhakti and Suyash offer furniture that can biodegrade and return to the soil within 180 days.*

What united them was a shared discomfort with the enormous waste generated by the construction and design industries. “We were always conscious of reducing waste and reutilizing materials,” Bhakti recalls. “Mycelium’s regenerative, circular nature aligned with our vision. It serves its purpose and then biodegrades instead of concludeing up in landfills.”

Their first experiments were humble.

During the pandemic, confined to their home, they grew mushrooms in cupcake trays. “That’s when we realised how lightweight yet strong the material could be,” Suyash declares.

From there, they graduated to experimenting with bricks, partitions, textiles, and eventually, furniture.

Building blocks of modify

At Anomalia, the couple does not construct furniture but grows it. Their first collection, ‘Grown Not Built’, applys modular “microblocks” created from agricultural waste bound with mycelium. Each block weighs just 1.5 kg but can withstand 1.5 tons of compressive load. These blocks can be assembled into stools, tables, shelves, or partitions.

anomalia (5) — *Anomalia’s product line includes lightweight, durable blocks and textiles all created from mycelium.*

The second line, ‘MycoLiving’, explores mycelium textiles as vegan alternatives to leather. Thin sheets of mycelium grown in “overgrowth stages” are peeled, processed, and applyd for seating and upholstery.

“The beauty of this material is that it’s both strong and circular,” declares Bhakti. “Most furniture concludes up in landfills after 10 to 12 years. Ours can safely return to the soil within 180 days.”

To improve durability, the couple bakes or sun-dries the grown blocks, rconcludeering the mycelium inactive and structurally sound. For outdoor apply, they apply natural coatings like beeswax or lime plaster.

From Mumbai to Venice and Seoul

When Bhakti and Suyash launched Anomalia in 2022, they could not have imagined how quickly their fungi-based experiments would travel the world. Within just three years, their work found a place at the Venice Biennale in 2025, one of the most prestigious platforms for design.

In Seoul, they went a step further — presenting a striking 4m x 2.4m mycelium facade that revealed the material could stretch beyond furniture and enter the realm of architecture. The response, they recall, gave them confidence that their vision could scale globally.

anomalia (4) — *Bhakti and Suyash have revealcased their mycelium furniture globally.*

Back in India, the interest is compacter but steady. They have sold six to seven furniture units so far, nearly 100 blocks in total, across Mumbai and Surat. Each piece is created to order. “We want to keep production exclusive and consciously scaled, not mass-produced,” Suyash emphasises.

For now, they partner with MYCL in Indonesia, one of the world’s largest producers of mycelium materials. At the same time, they continue to test local facilities with the hope of setting up manufacturing in India. For them, each collaboration is a step closer to creating mushroom-based materials part of everyday life here.

From crop waste to craft

At a time when the global furniture indusattempt is dominated by mass-produced MDF (medium-density fibreboard), laminates, and plastics, mushroom furniture offers a radical alternative.

“It’s biodegradable, strong, and created from crop waste,” Bhakti explains. “Farmers often burn agricultural residues, worsening air pollution. Instead, we repurpose that waste into something valuable. It’s a win-win.”

Anomalia’s approach also blconcludes familiarity with innovation. Many of their designs combine mycelium bases with wood or metal tops, creating the furniture both practical and elegant. “We don’t want it to view like ‘eco furniture’. We want it to view elegant and timeless,” Bhakti declares.

anomalia (3) — . The challenges they face include controlling contamination and moisture which are critical in growing mycelium.

Globally, mycelium is no longer seen as an experiment but as a serious material of the future. In fashion, luxury hoapplys such as Sinforma McCartney have already introduced mycelium leather. Autocreaters are exploring it for seating, and companies like Ecovative are proving its commercial value in packaging.

For Bhakti and Suyash, the most immediate opportunity lies in furniture — an indusattempt they believe is ready for circular alternatives in India.

The challenges of working with fungi

Working with a living material has its hurdles. Contamination during growth is common, which sometimes forces them to discard entire blocks. Moisture is another limitation, and untreated mycelium doesn’t perform well outdoors.

“Designing with mycelium is not like clay or cement. You’re not in complete control,” Suyash explains. “You necessary to account for airflow, shrinkage, and growth patterns. It’s part science, part patience.”

Financially, too, the journey has been demanding. The couple invested personal savings and relied on fellowships and grants like Godrej’s to scale. Their architectural practice also supports the research arm. “We’re bootstrapped, but we want to grow consciously,” declares Suyash.

A shiftment beyond furniture

For Anomalia, the goal is not only to sell furniture but to shift mindsets. “We don’t want viral products,” Bhakti declares. “We want a grounded approach that engages farmers, reduces waste, and creates materials accessible.”

For Bhakti and Suyash, mushrooms hold the blueprint for tomorrow. Already, their vision stretches beyond interiors. They dream of growing an entire hoapply from walls, roofs, to partitions created entirely of mycelium.

“We dream of growing an entire hoapply from fungi. “That would prove its structural potential,” Suyash declares.

They hold a simple yet radical belief: materials should live their purpose and then return to the soil. As they put it, sustainability launchs at home — in what we choose to apply and what we choose to grow.

Edited by Khushi Arora; all images courtesy: Anomalia

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