Gautam Kitchlu Biography Gautam Kitchlu is an Indian entrepreneur who founded Discern Living, a home décor and interior design venture. He previously co-founded The Elephant Company and later launched a décor collection with his wife, actor Kajal Aggarwal. The couple married in Mumbai on October 30, 2020, and welcomed their son,
Neil Kitchlu, in April 2022.Kitchlu’s name became more familiar to film audiences when Aggarwal announced their wedding. By then, he already had years of experience in the home furnishings business. His career started with a family export business and eventually led to brands selling décor directly to Indian shoppers.
Gautam Kitchlu’s Education and Early Career
Kitchlu studied at Tufts University and INSEAD, according to a 2016 Femina profile. His entry into the home décor industry came through his family’s home furnishings export business. In a later interview with Indulge Express, he identified that business as Tracon and described home textiles as the foundation of his career.
Through the export business, he worked with major international retailers. That experience gave him a view of the industry from the supplier’s side, where products are developed for retailers before they reach shoppers. He eventually returned to Mumbai to build a lifestyle brand for the Indian market. The products were familiar to him, but running a consumer brand meant building a team and deciding what to put in front of shoppers under the company’s own name.
From The Elephant Company to Discern Living
The Elephant Company
Kitchlu co-founded The Elephant Company and served as its CEO. The business sold home décor and accessories, with a focus on design-conscious shoppers in India. In his Femina interview, he singled out building the team as one of his proudest professional achievements. He also spoke about the uncertainty that comes with entrepreneurship and how quickly the work changes once a business is up and running.
Gautam Kitchlu Biography Discern Living
Kitchlu went on to found Discern Living, an e-commerce venture focused on interiors and home décor. The company’s focus brought together two parts of his background. He knew home furnishings from working in textiles and retail, and he wanted to explore how technology could help people discover design ideas and products online. In 2020, 0
The Indian Express described Discern Living as a business offering home décor and interior design solutions. Discern Living also became the umbrella brand for Kitched,
the collection Kitchlu and Aggarwal developed together. That project grew out of a practical question the couple was already trying to answer at home. How could they decorate a shared space when they liked different things?
How Gautam Kitchlu and Kajal Aggarwal Met
Aggarwal, known for her work in Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi cinema, told Vogue India that she and Kitchlu met through mutual friends. They knew each other for years before they started dating. By the time they married, their friendship and relationship together had spanned roughly eight years, according to her interview with Brides Today.
The couple married on October 30, 2020, in Mumbai. In her wedding announcement, Aggarwal said they planned a small, private ceremony surrounded by immediate family. Their celebrations brought together Punjabi and Kashmiri traditions, reflecting the two families’ backgrounds. Aggarwal later walked readers through the wedding and shared how the couple made the celebrations personal in her interview with Vogue India.
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Kitched, the Home Décor Brand They Launched Together
A few months after their wedding, Kitchlu and Aggarwal introduced Kitched through Discern Living. The venture opened with a small collection of festive cushions in January 2021. In their joint interview with Indulge Express, the couple explained that the idea took shape while they were discussing how to furnish their own home.
Aggarwal preferred minimalist spaces and clean lines, while Kitchlu liked plush sofas and carpets. As they picked out pieces they both enjoyed, they saw the beginnings of a collection that reflected both tastes. The couple directed the design,
and their in-house team of designers and artisans made the pieces. Cushions gave them a practical place to start. They could experiment with texture and detail through accessories that fit easily into an existing room.
Gautam Kitchlu and Kajal Aggarwal’s Son
The couple welcomed their first child, Neil Kitchlu, on April 19, 2022. Kitchlu shared the news and revealed his son’s name on Instagram the following day. Aggarwal later shared a photograph to mark Neil’s first birthday in April 2023.
