“India is an upcoming horological power. I am quite impressed with how far watch culture in India is progressing,” Raymond Loretan, president of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG), told me on the sidelines of its three-day Mumbai pitstop, part of a larger world tour, last month.
The countdown begins to the watchmaking ‘Oscars’; the winners will be announced today. It’s the 26th edition with 84 nominated watches competing across 19 prize categories. The most coveted of them all is the Aiguille d’Or Grand Prix, the “Best in Show” prize.
GPHG 2026 Live Stream: How To Watch Oscars Of Watchmaking In India
The ceremony, on November 7, 2026, will be livestreamed free on gphg.org. The winners will be announced at Geneva’s Bâtiment des Forces Motrices from 6:30pm CET, which is 11:00 pm IST in India and 12:30 pm ET in the United States.
Independent watchmakers in the spotlight
For context, a brief summary. Informally referred to as the Oscars of the watchmaking world, the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève is one of the most prestigious awards in the watch industry. This year’s final selection features 78 nominated watches from over 50 brands, competing for prizes across multiple categories and the coveted Aiguille d’Or Grand Prix. The selection also includes six mechanical clocks.
As part of the travelling exhibition, the nominated watches will visit different cities across the globe before culminating in the awards ceremony in Geneva today, November 7. For the first time ever, GPHG made a three-day pitstop in Mumbai in October.
While, expectedly, I do find legacy maisons such as Audemars Piguet, TAG Heuer, Chopard, Blancpain and IWC in the exhibition, what stands out most to me is the number of highly innovative, niche, independent brands such as Konstantin Chaykin, Vianney Halter, Czapek, and Beda’a, among many others.
“GPHG was traditionally meant to promote new and upcoming brands. And it really does help them gain visibility and recognition once they are selected,” Loretan tells me. “Also, six Indian watch brands applied this year. Unfortunately, they were not selected this time, but they should keep trying.”
Rethinking gender, democratising watchmaking
Browsing through the different award categories, including Sport, Challenge, Tourbillon and Calendar/Astronomy, I also hear an interesting anecdote about the Essential category.
“The Essential category that we created this year is special. We used to divide the categories by gender. However, some watchmakers told us that they did not want to assign their models to any particular gender, so we had to rethink our categories and hence decided to introduce the Essential category,” Loretan tells me.
As we inch closer to the announcement of the winners at a gala ceremony in Geneva today, Loretan is quick to point out a decisive shift in the communication strategy of Swiss watchmakers.
“We have democratised the world of watches by going all out on social media. It becomes accessible to all, and everyone is free to admire, question, learn or educate themselves,” he concludes.
Here are some of The Hindu’s top picks from the GPHG nominees:
Audemars Piguet 150 Heritage
Nominated in the Calendar & Astronomy category
A commemorative, ultra-complicated pocket watch celebrating Audemars Piguet’s 150th anniversary, it features a Universal Calendar on its caseback, while its front displays a minute repeater, perpetual calendar, flying tourbillon and a chronograph.
Behrens X Vianney Halter: KWH
Nominated in the Complication category
This is interesting because it is a collaboration between Chinese homegrown watchmaker Behrens and the legacy Swiss brand Vianney Halter. Inspired by the electricity meters seen across Asia, the watch’s unique shape features an industrial-style dial where a snake-like chain indicates the hours, while the minutes are indicated by a rotating cylinder. Flip the watch over, and you will find a moon phase.
Beda’a Angles Guichets
Nominated in the Challenge category
The Qatari independent watchmaker names its watch after the French word for window — guichet. The time is indicated through cut-out windows on the dial. The top aperture indicates the hours through a day-and-night display, while the lower aperture shows the minutes in five-minute jumps.
The watch is particularly thin at 6.3 mm and is extremely futuristic in appearance, a conversation starter on the wrist, if you will.
Otsuka Lotec No. 8
Nominated in the Petite Aiguille category
Japanese horologer Jiro Katayama designed the No. 8 to resemble a DJ console, and it features a unique, industrial-style dial and an unusually placed crown. On the dial, a rotating seconds disc sits beside the hour indicator, which resembles a channel knob, and a retrograde minute fader. The caseback reveals the movement inside. A Japanese masterpiece.
Jacob & Co Billionaire Double Tourbillon Angel-Cut Diamonds
Nominated in the Joaillerie / Jewellery category
This extravagant timepiece features a white gold case entirely encrusted with 80 carats of diamonds. Released in a limited edition of 18 pieces, it features two flying tourbillons and measures 54 x 40 mm. This watch is the pinnacle of haute joaillerie watches this season.
IWC Schaffhausen Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar Ceralune
Nominated in the Sport category
The iconic pilot’s watch that IWC is so famous for gets a beautiful luminous ceramic finish, which emits a stunning blue glow in the dark. IWC has released this 46.5 mm watch in a limited edition of 250 pieces, and it features a perpetual calendar, a double moon display and a seven-day power reserve, and comes on a matching white rubber strap that glows too.
Here are the remaining 78 nominees across 19 categories:
Time Only
BVLGARI — Octo Finissimo 37 Satin-Polished Titanium
CHOPARD — L.U.C 1860
LAURENT FERRIER — Classic Origin Beige
NAOYA HIDA & CO.— NH Type8A
PARMIGIANI FLEURIER — Toric Petite Seconde
PIAGET — Piaget Polo 79 Sodalite Watch
Essential
AUDEMARS PIGUET — Neo Frame Jumping Hour
DANIEL ROTH — Extra Plat Rose Gold Skeleton
GRAND SEIKO — Hand-engraved Manual-winding Spring Drive
MB&F — SP One Platinum
PARMIGIANI FLEURIER — Tonda PF Minute Rattrapante Arctic Rose
STÉPHANE PIERRE — L’Impétrant
Complication
CLEGUER — Inspiration One
CZAPEK — Time Jumper
DOMINIQUE RENAUD — Pulse60 Titanium Black
LEDERER — CIC 39 InVerto Titanium
ULYSSE NARDIN X URWERK — UR-FREAK
VIANNEY HALTER — Behrens X Vianney Halter: KWH
Mechanical Exception
BLANCPAIN — Grande Double Sonnerie
CHOPARD — L.U.C Grand Strike
CHRISTIAAN VAN DER KLAAUW — CVDK Grand Planetarium Eccentric Silicium
FERDINAND BERTHOUD — Naissance d’une Montre 3
H. MOSER & CIE — Endeavour Minute Repeater Cylindrical Tourbillon Skeleton Cosmic Rain
KONSTANTIN CHAYKIN — Thinking Mystery
Gemset
BOVET 1822 — Récital 23
BVLGARI — Serpenti Aeterna
CHOPARD — L’Heure du Diamant
FRANCK MULLER — Round Triple Mystery Skeleton
PIAGET — Swinging Pebble
TIFFANY & CO. — Paradise Bird Toucan
Tourbillon
ARNOLD & SON — Constant Force Tourbillon 11 Platinum
DAVID CANDAUX — DC6 Night Forest
FERDINAND BERTHOUD — Chronomètre FB 2TV
GIRARD-PERREGAUX — Laureato Fifty Three Gold Bridges
LOUIS VUITTON — Louis Vuitton Escale Worldtime Flying Tourbillon
SYLVAIN PINAUD — 30s Tourbillon
Chronograph
AUDEMARS PIGUET
Royal Oak “Jumbo” Extra-thin Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Chronograph RD#5 “150th Anniversary”
H. MOSER & CIE
Endeavour Flyback Chronograph Dual Time Date
LOUIS MOINET — 1816 Chronograph
PARMIGIANI FLEURIER
Tonda PF Chronographe Mystérieux
REXHEP REXHEPI — Chronograph Flyback
TAG HEUER — TAG Heuer Monaco Evergraph
Calendar and Astronomy
AUDEMARS PIGUET — 150 Heritage
BERNERON — Quantième Annuel
BOVET 1822 — Récital 31
CHRISTIAAN VAN DER KLAAUW
CVDK Venus Annual Calendar
KRAYON — Anyday Rose Gold
PARMIGIANI FLEURIER
Toric Perpetual Calendar 30th Anniversary
Sports
CHOPARD
Zagato Lab One Concept
GRAND SEIKO
Spring Drive U.F.A. Ushio 300 Diver
H. MOSER & CIE
Streamliner Pump
HERMÈS
Hermès H08 squelette
LAURENT FERRIER
Sport Traveller Slate Grey
Jewellery
BVLGARI
Tubogas Manchette
CHOPARD
Mystery Nut
DIOR MONTRES
Dior Grand Bal Nuit des Indes
FRANCK MULLER
Vanguard Curvex Cut® Flower
PIAGET
Flowing Curves Cuff Watch
Artistic Crafts
ANDERSEN GENÈVE
Celestial Voyager VK Edition
AUDEMARS PIGUET
Établisseurs Nomade
BOVET 1822
Monsieur Bovet Tribute to Edouard Bovet
BVLGARI
Serpenti Misteriosi
L.LEROY
Vox Temporis
LOUIS VUITTON
Tambour Taiko Arty Automata
“Petite Aiguille”
CHRISTOPHER WARD
Loco Classic
FRÉDÉRIQUE CONSTANT
Classic Worldtimer Manufacture
MASSENA LAB
Noctograph by Massena LAB and Raúl Pagès
MING
MING × J.N. Shapiro 37.06 Lightning
TAG HEUER
TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph
Lens Position: 2723
Challenge
FAVRE LEUBA
Chief Skeleton
FRÉDÉRIQUE CONSTANT
Classics Moneta Handwinding
SEIKO
King Seiko VANAC
SPACEONE
SpaceOne X Baltic – Seconde Majeure
BEAUBLEU
La Pièce No.2
Mechanical Clock
ARL SUCHY & SÖHNE
Table Waltz Tourbillon Mirror Edition
CHOPARD
The Beehive Chiming Table Clock
LA VALLÉE
Cosmo
L’ÉPÉE 1839
The Gekko
LOUIS VUITTON X DE BETHUNE
LVDB-03 Sympathique Louis Varius
MIKI ELETA
Frog Queen
The journalist and content creator covers luxury lifestyle, watches, cars and aviation.
