The Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève is under way, and for the first time, India has a real presence in it.
By The Lookout — Watches, Style, Travel, Weddings & Wealth Editors · 6 min read · October 2026
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We have not handled these watches. Details come from the brands and published reports, and no brand paid for this story.
Every year, the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, known as the Oscars of watchmaking, recognises the year’s most notable watches. This year, 320 timepieces from 194 brands were entered, and a first round of voting narrowed them to 84 nominees across 14 categories, competing for 19 prizes. The winners will be announced in Geneva on 7 November 2026.
For the first time, the competition’s travelling exhibition came to India. It was shown in Mumbai from 28 September to 1 October, in partnership with the retailer Ethos, and displayed 78 of the 84 nominated watches. It was a sign of how much the market has grown: Swiss watch exports to India rose by about 31.6 percent in the first half of 2026, while exports worldwide slipped slightly.
There is a second reason it matters. Six watches from four Indian brands are in this year’s competition. That is a small number against 320 entries, and it is a long way from a Swiss giant’s catalogue, but each of the six tells a different story about what Indian watchmaking can be.
A study in restraint. The titanium case is 40 mm across and just 5.7 mm thick, built around a hand-wound movement only 2.2 mm deep. There are no traditional hands. Two rotating discs show the time. It has a 42-hour power reserve and is a 50-piece limited series.
Why it earns its placeIt shows how much an Indian maker can do with thinness and simplicity.
Its dial is cut from a 120,000-year-old meteorite, with the cratered surface left largely as found. The case pairs two kinds of titanium, and an in-house wandering-hour movement turns two discs on their own axes as they travel round the dial. It is reported as India’s first of its kind.
Why it earns its placeA natural material and a clever mechanism in a single watch.
The dial is made from carbon captured from the air and pressed into a material the brand calls ReforgeCarbon, so each one has its own marbled pattern. The steel case has a smooth profile with concealed lugs and a domed sapphire crystal, and it is powered by a Swiss Sellita automatic movement with 200 metres of water resistance.
Why it earns its placeIt turns an everyday problem, air pollution, into a dial.
The dial reads like a Rajasthani miniature painting: a turquoise stone mosaic under pink khadi fabric, a ruby set into a tiny pavilion, and a sculpted gold tiger moving across an engraved desert. The 40 mm steel case is hand-engraved, and it runs on a Swiss Sellita automatic movement.
Why it earns its placeCraft that comes from Indian art and not from a Swiss template.
Its centre holds a real ₹10 commemorative postage stamp showing Maharana Pratap, kept under the sapphire crystal so the print is still visible. The rectangular steel case borrows from Rajasthani architecture, and the caseback is engraved with lotus motifs over a self-winding movement.
Why it earns its placeHistory you can wear, at a far gentler price than the others.
Inspired by climbing hardware, it has a titanium case shaped like a carabiner and a hook buckle instead of a standard clasp. The case profile is cut from sheet titanium and finished by hand. It is a 5,555-piece run made for the brand’s fifth anniversary.
Why it earns its placeProof that an inventive watch does not need to be expensive.
The jury will examine all of the nominated watches in person before the winners are named on 7 November. We will update this story after the ceremony. Whoever wins, the larger point is already clear: Indian watchmaking is being looked at seriously, and that is new.
Prices, availability and limited-series stock change quickly. Check each brand’s official site before you decide anything.
Prices are as reported in published coverage and may differ from the brands’ own. We have not handled these watches. Details checked October 2026. We will update this story after the 7 November ceremony.
