05 Aug 2022  |   07:30am IST

Bring the world of yachting to Goa

Margao-based Bhushan Powar has been dreaming big in the world of yacht designing and his hard work is helping him win accolades for his unique and stylish designs. All this without setting his foot on an actual yacht

Dolcy D’Cruz

B

reaking stereotypes, Bhushan Powar went from Mechanical Engineering to designing some of the most fascinating yacht designs in the world. Leading Bhushan Powar Design, an award winning yacht design studio, it is the first luxury yacht design studio in India and is based in Margao. This Goan boy saw the potential in letting his creativity shine through his work on styling yachts which are now featured on leading design magazines, yacht blogs and yacht websites, in the world.

Starting out in 2019, he specialised in exterior styling for yachts, product design, architecture and motorcycle design. Recently, his studio gained recognition for his design of the 110-metre superyacht, named Zion, which features a stunning glass dome that looks like a gigantic eye, or a ‘black hole’ and offers 360-degree view. Zion also features a glass bottom infinity swimming pool, as well as a glass elevator that travels from deck to deck.

After completing his schooling at Loyola High School, Margao, he went on to pursue a two-year diploma in Mechanical Engineering from Government Polytechnic, Panjim and masters in Industrial Design from DSK International Campus, Pune. He now runs his company from his main studio in Bangalore but holds most of his client meetings in Goa. “I operate from Bangalore office and most of the clients we work with are either based in Europe, United Arab Emirates or United States of America,” says Powar, who works with a team of two members.

What made him enter the line of luxury yacht designing? “Most of my colleagues were into cars, bikes and product design. Whenever I used to pass by the Patto Bridge, I used to see some yachts docked and wanted to own one in the future. As I was proceeding with my years in design field, I shifted my interest towards yacht design and saw a potential scope for my career. I worked towards my goal and opened up my studio which I was operating from my room. Currently, my studio is the only one in India which focusing in yacht design and known worldwide for our work,” says Powar proudly.

Besides Zion, Powar also worked on Project Mori, a 90m yacht inspired by the short-fin mako shark, the fastest and equally fearsome shark in the ocean. The name was inspired by the Konkani word itself. The overall shape of the superyacht, the hull shape and the deck take the form of the body of the shark while the mast constitutes the fin. “The 64M Glauca and Bhavana Sail yacht have been in the lime light too, and have been appreciated by renowned yacht designers across countries,” adds Powar.

Speaking about the challenges of progressing from design to actually creating a yacht, Powar explains the process, “We as designers find it a bit challenging to get our designs manufactured as what we design and what is end product is completely different. In the process, we adapt, alter and redesign as we have to fit everything in the construction norms. But when we have a team of manufactures, naval architecturers, engineers and draftsmen, it’s less challenging and the outcome is fabulous.”

Powar has a design process that they follow with their clients. In the complete process, they have to involve their client in every stage as most of the designs that they have been working on is custom made for every client. “At the moment, we are working on two construction boats with a Goan client where one is going to charter for 100 people and a small high speed leisure boat. Apart from those, we are working on personal construction boats which will be sold in the market,” says Powar.

Can Powar see the yacht clientele moving to Goan waters? “Yes. In the next five or six years, we are planning to start our own shipyards where we can build small boats with more attractive and environment friendly designs and start introducing culture of yachting in Goa. We are aiming every year to design bigger and bigger yachts so we are in the yacht design game and compete with our competitors who are mostly in other countries,” concludes Powar.