Few things in India unite all of us.
The smell of chai on a rainy day. The excitement of finding money in an old pair of jeans. And that tiny symbol we see every single day — ₹.
It appears on salary slips, grocery bills, shopping apps, train tickets, and bank statements. We use it so often that we rarely stop to think about it.
Yet, just 15 years ago, the Indian rupee had no symbol of its own.
The journey to changing that began with a designer from Tamil Nadu, whose winning design would go on to represent India’s identity, aspirations, and economy on the global stage.
Before the ‘₹’, there was only ‘Rs’
For much of independent India’s history, the rupee was represented by abbreviations like ‘Rs’ or ‘Re’. While iconic currency symbols such as the dollar ($), pound (£), euro (€), and yen (¥) were instantly recognisable across the world, India lacked a visual identity for its own currency.
As India’s economy grew and its global presence expanded, the need for a distinct symbol became increasingly apparent.
Before 2010, India’s currency was represented only by abbreviations like ‘Rs’. As the country’s economy expanded, the need for a unique visual identity became impossible to ignore. Photograph: (The Hindu)
So in 2009, the Government of India announced a nationwide competition, inviting Indians to create a symbol that could represent the rupee on the world stage.
More than 3,000 entries poured in.
Among them was one from a young design scholar named D Udaya Kumar.
A designer with a simple idea
Born in Tamil Nadu’s Kallakurichi district, Udaya Kumar had always been fascinated by design and visual communication.
An architect by training and a doctoral student at IIT Bombay at the time, he approached the competition with a simple question: What should a symbol for India look like?
His answer lay in blending two worlds.
The design he submitted combined the Devanagari letter ‘र’ with the Roman capital ‘R’, reflecting both India’s cultural roots and its global outlook. The vertical line of the Roman letter was removed, creating a form that felt uniquely Indian yet universally recognisable.
It was elegant. It was simple. And most importantly, it worked.
In July 2010, his design was selected as the winner.
More than just two lines
Look closely at the ₹ symbol, and you’ll notice two parallel lines running across its top.
While the symbol’s simplicity is what makes it memorable, these lines carry meaning too.
They are often seen as a nod to the Indian tricolour. Others interpret them as a representation of equality and balance, values closely tied to India’s aspirations as a growing economy.
Designer D. Udaya Kumar’s concept blending Devanagari “र” and Roman “R,” creating a symbol that reflects both heritage and modernity. Photograph: (Instagram/@mangarnirmal82)
For Kumar, the challenge was never about creating something decorative. It was about creating something timeless.
And that is perhaps why the symbol feels as though it has always existed.
The symbol that quietly became part of everyday life
Today, the ₹ symbol is everywhere.
It flashes across stock market screens, appears on restaurant menus, sits on keyboards, and accompanies every online payment we make. Millions of Indians use it every day without a second thought.
That, in many ways, is the highest compliment a designer can receive.
From digital payments to price tags, the ₹ symbol has quietly become an inseparable part of India’s daily economic life. Photograph: (India Today)
The symbol has become so deeply woven into daily life that most people no longer notice it. It simply belongs.
Yet behind that familiar mark is the story of a designer from Tamil Nadu whose idea travelled from a competition entry to wallets, websites, government documents, and financial systems across the world.
The next time you spot a ₹ before a number, remember, it wasn’t always there.
Someone imagined it, designed it, and gave India a symbol that now speaks a language recognised far beyond its borders.
