Rising allure of lab-grown diamonds for Indian jewellery connoisseurs

Lab-grown diamonds are becoming the ethical choice of sparklers—and of course, more affordable. Vantage Market Research valued the Indian LGD market at $2.61 billion (Rs 22,353 crore) in 2023 and projected it to grow to $8.31 billion (Rs 71,000 crore) by 2032.

They were also identified as a major growth area in the 2023-24 Union Budget, with great potential for “Make in India” to become more self-reliant across the entire diamond value chain. A series of supportive measures recommended include reduction in import duty of LGD seeds, as well as research and development grant to an IIT for five years

Experts predict a few years of churn, after which the market will settle into two types of gem buyers—luxury and fast-fashion. What’s likely to influence buyers in the near future is the Consumer Affairs Ministry’s announcement in November that it is mulling on regulations to ensure that lab-grown diamonds can only be marketed as “synthetic diamonds”, to prevent confusion among buyers.

Currently, retail prices for lab-grown diamonds generally range from ‘65,000 to ‘85,000 per carat, as per Solitario, an LGD brand. “This pricing has remained stable over time,” says Ricky Vasandani, CEO and co-Founder. Not crafted by geological factors such as pressure, time and actual geology, LGDs can be grown to specific clarity, colour and size. So, you can buy a large diamond for a fraction of the cost.