India Ink: Trends, skin deep

Vikas Malani, Body Canvas, Mumbai

What's in: 'Spiritual themes' like mandalas, the fruit/flower/tree of life, (Native American) dreamcatchers and the Hand of Fatima. Also popular are anchors, compasses and other navigation symbols. But more people are customising motifs. So you may have, say, a dreamcatcher with a peacock feather. The concepts are common, but details vary from person to person.
Many are also tattooing parents' names or 'ma' and 'pa' on themselves. Buddha, Gayatri and Ganpati mantras are standard. We tattoo around 10-15 mantras every month.
All-white or 'secretive' tattoos are finding takers. Some are wary of getting anything with a religious theme in black (!) since they believe it's inauspicious. Hence the preference for white ink.
What's out: Earlier, it was all about Shiva, Om, the trishul and tribal tattoos (mostly guys). Fewer girls are choosing butterflies, dragons, Phoenixes, pixies, angels, dolphins and Chinese symbols.

Olly Alva, Al's Tattoo Studio, Mumbai

What's in: There was a time people would just copy celebrity tattoos. Now it's less of a herd mentality and more about having a story to tell. That said, geometric designs and line work are all the rage.
Colour doesn't look as good on Indian skin compared to white skin, where it really stands out. People are understanding and accepting this and experimenting with shades of black instead.
What's out: Nothing's dead. In fact old school designs (traditional American tattoos, typically with skulls, roses, daggers and heart motifs) are making a comeback.

Hendry Lama, Devil'z Tattooz, Delhi

What's in: There was a time everybody wanted to tattoo names – many still do. Latin and French proverbs, quotes, portraits and geometric forms like the yantra are widespread. These are minimalist compared to what I usually observe in Darjeeling (where he hails from). Folks there generally prefer bigger, bolder tattoos, like a big Buddha or a Shiva.
What's out: When I started out 12 years ago, people usually went for Celtic and other tribal designs. The 'Om' and the cross were also common. Not so much now.

Lokesh Verma, Devil'z Tattooz, Delhi

What's in: Bird silhouettes on wrists (every second girl wants that) and Priyanka Chopra's 'Daddy's Lil Girl' tattoo. I have to tell people to at least change the font a bit if they want the same tattoo as hers, because it was in her father's (Ashok Chopra's) handwriting.
Several guys want a 'macho' Shiva tattoo with the Maha Mrityunjaya mantra. But I specialise in portraiture, so I haven't had to deal with as much repetition as other artists.
What's out: Some Delhi guys actually ask for 'Mama's little boy' tattoos (a spin-off on Chopra's tattoo)! Saif Ali Khan's 'Kareena' tattoo was also being aped a lot. And they all wanted it in the same typeface, in the same spot.
I'm sick of people copying the same things.

Naveen Kumar, Irezumi, Chennai

What's in: Maori and Polynesian tattoos (guys) and stars, butterflies, infinity symbols and flying birds/birds escaping cages (women). We do almost 10 of the bird designs a week. Parents' names are popular too.
The industry is still growing in Chennai. People here are more constricted due to skin colour. For instance, dot work mandalas won't look as vibrant as they do on lighter skin. But many get tattoos in Tamil and Devanagari scripts, or those with mythological depictions.

Pia Meenakshi, Gumani, Bangalore

What's in: Internationally, it's not really a trend that develops. It's more about artists' original styles and people picking up on that. A good artist would never reproduce another's signature style.
But what's hot now are watercolour and minimal geometric tattoos, neo-traditional styles and Indian rangoli and henna-based designs.
What's out: Loads of patterns have died out (and should have died out long ago). Tribal tattoos are one of them. So are generic fairies/butterflies. Sadly, people still get them done.
One design that shouldn't even be thought of are tattoos on sides of fingers, like little moustaches and tiny lettering. They not only look awkward, but don't last long at all.
As of the last six months, I've been doing only originally-designed work, i.e. designs made for the client alone. No Googled designs, no small tattoos, no scripts.

Duncan Viegas and Dionne Tassi, Inkfidel, Assagao (Goa)

What's in: More people are coming in for geometric and watercolour-style tattoos. Realism is also a hit with tattoo collectors, especially when it comes to getting portraits of loved ones or iconic figures.
Geometric tattoos and mandalas have been around for years and some artists specialise in just that. It's only because of social media that it's gotten the attention it's been getting, and that's fantastic because it's a beautiful style.
The gulf between the sexes when it comes to tattoo size (women typically opting for smaller, minimal designs and men getting bigger tattoos) is eroding. Honestly, we don't know why it was there to begin with. Women are choosing larger, bolder pieces as opposed to a few years ago. That's great, as it allows artists to capture the idea in a better way. And the tattoo also ages well over time.
What's out: Tribal art, mantras, fairies and butterflies. And as artists, we wouldn't create bar code tattoos.

All images are the artists' works and do not necessarily represent the 'trends' being spoken about