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` 200 MARCH-APRIL 2019 THE MOST BEAUTIFUL HOMES IN THE WORLD

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The

AlibagIssue BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE DOING BEAUTIFUL THINGS IN THE HAMPTONS OF MUMBAI

AD

100

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PA S S I O N AT W O R K S I N C E 1 9 9 6

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pg 328

CONTENTS M A RC H -A P R I L 2 0 1 9

58 62

EDITOR’S LETTER CONTRIBU TOR S

DIS C OVE RIE S

74

MOOD LIGHTING The latest collection by the

76

LEVEL UP AD explores the brand-new floor and

80

THE BEST SEAT IN THE HOUSE As the Minotti ‘Hamilton’ sofa completes 15 years, AD takes a closer look at the making of this classic.

84

THE ROAD AHEAD The cutting-edge ‘LF-1

86

TOM PARKER

88

Paul Matter lighting design studio is bold and beautiful.

offerings at SIMONE, the eponymous home-decor store

by Simone Arora.

Limitless’ crossover from Lexus promises to usher in a new chapter for the Japanese car maker.

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FINALLY, CLARIT Y The Ilse Crawford-designed

drink-ware series for Austrian glassmaker J&L Lobmeyr is the perfect amalgamation of functionality, aesthetics and emotion.

WRESTLE MA NIA Bread, Circuses & TBD, the latest installation by Jiten Thukral and Sumir Tagra effortlessly moves from the playful to the poignant.

The

AlibagIssue BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE DOING BEAUTIFUL THINGS IN THE HAMPTONS OF MUMBAI

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ON THE COVER

Rahul Khanna—in Orlebar Brown swimming trunks—in the pool of an Alibag holiday home. (‘Natural Habitat’, pg 338).

Photographer: Bikramjit Bose Stylist: Tanya Vohra Hairstylist & Make-up Artist: Akgun Manisali

MARCH-APRIL 2019|

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|39

contents

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

90

ROLL WITH IT Marc Newson collaborates with

92

REAL REST Rooted in an ethical philosophy,

96

CLUB CLASS The Clubhouse at the superluxurious DLF The Camellias property in Gurugram gets a distinct design edge, courtesy Shawn Sullivan of the New York-based Rockwell Group.

100

HE’S GOT RHYTHM Three years after Mumbai’s much-loved music store Rhythm House shut down, its first floor gets a new lease of life as Kunal Rawal’s new flagship store.

102

LINA BO BARDI LIVES The latest collection

by Mumbai-based fashion label Obataimu is an ode to the beauty of Brazilian Modernism.

113

TRENDSPOTTING Our carefully curated selection

126

THE GOOD LIFE A round-up of our favourite

Louis Vuitton to create the perfect bag to accompany you on all your travels.

Himêya, the new home-linen brand by the Himatsingka Group is equal parts sustainable and stylish.

of products are all the inspiration you need this season. design and luxury pieces.

RAJESH VORA

42|

pg 286

AD Beatrice Rossetti - Photo Federico Cedrone

CAMPIELLO SECTIONAL SOFA Antonio Citterio Design www.flexform.it

AGENT FOR INDIA VITA MODERNA MUMBAI SHOWROOM info@vitamoderna.in

BANGALORE LIVING ART INTERIORS LLP design@livingartinteriors.in

contents

pg 226 137

AD100 The annual list of the biggest names in architecture and interior design.

THE ALIBAG ISSUE

189

THE INSIDE STORY ON INDIA’S MOST RED-HOT REAL ESTATE In an issue dedicated

to the enigma that is Alibag, AD traces its evolution into the Hamptons of Mumbai.

198

THE JETT Y SET From industrialists to movie stars,

212

WHAT’S COOKING, ALIBAG? Chef Moshe Shek’s culinary school in Alibag promises a taste of the provervbial island life.

216

FAR M TO TABLE Six of Mumbai’s leading chefs

222

ALIBAG VS THE HA MPTONS AD does a comparison between Alibag, Mumbai’s most definitive getaway and New York’s Hamptons to discover just how different, and similar, they truly are.

226

TREE HUGGING Alibag’s Revdanda Fort

243

AD X JEEVAR A M SU THAR & POONAR A M SU THAR AD visits the workshops

architects and designers, Alibag is where Mumbai’s rich and famous come out to play.

get together at The Table Farm in Alibag for a farm-totable experience like no other.

makes the perfect setting for this carefully curated selection of fabrics for the season.

of the carpenter protégés of Bijoy Jain, and discovers they’re one of Alibag’s best kept secrets.

253

AD X THE CASE STUDY HOUSE The

259

AD X DASHR ATH PATEL A look into the life and work of the prolific Dashrath Patel, through the eyes of his friend and collaborator, Pinakin Patel.

vernacular architecture of Alibag speaks the language of the land, its climate and its people.

SPACES

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

THE BEACH With the sweep of sea, layers of greenery and expansive spaces, designer Kavita Singh’s beachfront home wears its luxury effortlessly.

286

A TALL MA N Under the machinations of the late,

302

ICONIC The Alibag issue would be incomplete without revisiting Palmyra House, the Bijoy Jaindesigned masterpiece in this coastal paradise.

312

THIS IS HOME Effortlessly fusing the vernacular and the modern, we come back charmed from the space that Pinakin Patel calls home.

legendary architect Nari Gandhi, the solidity of red brick comes alive in a lyrically choreographed, elevated structure in Alibag.

NEVILLE SUKHIA

‘Golf Course’ cotton linen fabric, Safomasi.

268

contents 328

NOZER THE GREAT This sprawling Alibag home bears testimony to why the reclusive Nozer Wadia is one of the towering architects of our times.

338

NATUR AL HABITAT Landscape architect Kunal

362

SCOU TS Our selection of the best design products that STOCKISTS An A-Z listing of all the stores in our pages.

344

RICHLY LAYERED A suffusion of greenery interspersed

374 378

354

R SVP It was a celebration of design and art—as AD in

380

THE MOOD Architect Shimul Javeri Kadri handpicks a motley collection of objects that inspire her.

with antiques and installations, this second garden by Kunal Maniar, also in Alibag, is eloquently artistic. collaboration with Simone Arora hosted a brunch to mark

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

you should be owning this season.

AD10 Anuj Srivastava, CEO and co-founder of

online interior design platform Livspace, on a few of his favourite things.

pg 268

ASHISH SAHI

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Maniar’s park for a contemporary Alibag home has a layout inspired by the sea, and foliage that was gently directed to follow its natural inclination.

her extended store and newest line of fabrics, and artist Atul Dodiya brought in his birthday in company of his friends and celebrated works.

www.oasisgroup.it Oasis India Flagship Showroom - Intersekt D-82, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-I, New Delhi-110020, India Oasis Contact in India: Manuela Lo Conte m.loconte@oasisgroup.it, +91 9810824945

EDITOR GREG FOSTER MANAGING EDITOR Sanhita Sinha Chowdhury ART DIRECTOR Ashish Sahi DEPUTY ART DIRECTOR Almas Jani COPY CHIEF Tyrel Rodricks SENIOR STYLIST Samir Wadekar JUNIOR STYLIST Mitalee Mehta SENIOR FEATURES WRITER Ankita Rathod PHOTO ASSISTANT Talib Chitalwala EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Rhea Varghese WATCH EDITOR Rishna Shah MANAGER SYNDICATION Michelle Pereira SYNDICATION COORDINATORS Giselle D’Mello, Dalreen Furtado DIGITAL EDITOR Nilofar Shamim Haja ASSISTANT DIGITAL EDITOR Kriti Saraswat Satpathy DIGITAL WRITER Tarini Sood

PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Amit Navarange ASSOCIATE PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Sunil Nayak COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION MANAGER Sudeep Pawar PRODUCTION CONTROLLERS Abhishek Mithbaokar, Mangesh Pawar

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Sunil Sethi Nonie Niesewand Divia Patel Neha Prasada Namita A Shrivastav Divya Mishra Gauri Kelkar Gayatri Rangachari Shah Arati Menon

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Ricardo Labougle Neville Sukhia Tom Parker

CHIEF BUSINESS OFFICER ARJUN MEHRA PUBLISHER Armaity Amaria ASSOCIATE ADVERTISING DIRECTORS Kapil Tolani, Loveleen Kahlon ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Rashmi Bhatia SENIOR ADVERTISING MANAGER Aditi Sharma (New Delhi) ACCOUNT MANAGER - ADVERTISING SALES Varun A Sama ITALY SALES REPRESENTATIVE Angelo Carredu US ADVERTISING MANAGER Alessandro Cremona ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - DIGITAL SALES Saurabh Bhutoria SENIOR MANAGER - DIGITAL SALES Joita Basu MARKETING DIRECTOR Madhura Phadnis MARKETING MANAGER Medha Kapur HEAD - ADMINISTRATION Boniface Dsouza PR DIRECTOR Swati Katakam Samant PR EXECUTIVE Waheeda Abdul Jabbar Machiwala HEAD - EVENTS Fritz Fernandes MANAGER - EVENTS Khushnaz Daruwala ASSISTANT MANAGER - EVENTS Ameera Chitalwala CREATIVE DIRECTOR - PROMOTIONS & CREATIVE SOLUTIONS Dipti Soonderji Mongia ASSOCIATE PROMOTIONS EDITOR Sherrie A Marker ASSISTANT PROMOTIONS EDITOR Kinjal Vora SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER Karishma Gupta GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Varun Patil MANAGER - CIRCULATION OPERATIONS Jeeson Kollannur CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Amrit Bardhan FINANCIAL CONTROLLER Rakesh Shetty ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - VIDEO COMMERCIAL Kastubh Belur SENIOR ACCOUNTANT Dattaprasanna Bhagwat ACCOUNTANTS Nitin Chavan, Anthony Paulose ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - COMMERCIAL PLANNING Alisha Goriawala HEAD - HUMAN RESOURCES Zeenat Burji SENIOR MANAGER - HUMAN RESOURCES Mohsin Ismail ASSISTANT MANAGERS - HUMAN RESOURCES Ria Ganguly, Neha Pednekar CHIEF DIGITAL OFFICER Gaurav Mishra DIRECTOR - DIGITAL SALES AND BRANDED CONTENT Shreyas Rao DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR Kiran Suryanarayana TECHNOLOGY PROJECT MANAGERS Dipak Raghuwansi HEAD - AD OPERATIONS Saurabh Sharma UX DESIGNER Anurag Jain DIGITAL GRAPHIC DESIGNER Deep Shikha DATA TECH MANAGER Dilip Patil MANAGERS - AD OPERATIONS Vinayak Mehra, Reshma Nilankar SENIOR EXECUTIVE - AD OPERATIONS Akanksha Malik AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Saurabh Garg SENIOR MANAGER - DIGITAL MARKETING Vishal Modh MARKETING MANAGER - SUBSCRIPTIONS V Satyavagheewasan MANAGER - DIGITAL MARKETING Sushmita Balasubramanian ASSISTANT MANAGER - AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT Isha Gupta ASSISTANT MANAGER - SEO Akash Kumar MANAGER - EMAIL MARKETING Avantika Pandey Bathiya DIRECTOR - DIGITAL BRAND SOLUTIONS Salil Inamdar ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - CLIENT SERVICING AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT Neha Dhanani MANAGING EDITOR - NATIVE STORIES Shivani Krishan COPY EDITOR - BRAND SOLUTIONS Tanuj Kumar SENIOR MANAGER - BRAND SOLUTIONS Abigail Rodrigues ASSISTANT MANAGER - CONDÉ NAST CREATIVE STUDIO Jackson Shalu Lobo CREATIVE PRODUCER Bobby Khurana HEAD - ENTERPRISE IT Prem Kumar Tewari DIRECTOR - VIDEO Anita Horam SUPERVISING PRODUCER Ishita Bahadur ASSOCIATE CREATIVE PRODUCER Preshita Saha EA TO MANAGING DIRECTOR Karen Contractor Avari

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MODERNIST MASTERPIECE THE PIERRE JEANNERET RESIDENCE, CHANDIGARH PHOTOGRAPHED BY DAYANITA SINGH

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For those with an eye for luxury here’s an eye that spells luxury.

The Tiger Eye Collection by Taannaz www.taannaz.in

THE GOOD LIFE

PS: And what of the rookie architect who took me to Alibag that day on the PNP? I’ve carefully followed the career of Pranav Naik and Shweta Chhatpar, the duo behind Mumbai-based practice Studio Pomegranate, particularly after their edgy outdoor scenography commissioned by the Bhau Daji Lad Museum. No longer an emerging talent, we welcome them as one of 20 new firms on this year’s AD100 (page 137), our definitive list of the most influential architects in the subcontinent. Congratulations, Pranav and Shweta. You can take the speedboat now.

PORTRAIT: R BURMAN.

Rahul Khanna says it all. Floating leisurely in the middle of a Kunal Maniar-designed swimming pool, bathed in the golden light of cocktail hour in Alibag, our cover epitomizes the good life enjoyed by this charmed coastal community just across the bay from Mumbai. There’s a timeless quality about the image that means it could be a classic Slim Aarons shot circa 1950, rather than Bikramjit Bose in 2019. But the highlight of The Alibag Issue is not Mr Khanna in his trunks (though do see page 198). Nor is it Kavita Singh’s elegant beachfront estate (page 268), or even the latest mega-mansion by the elusive Nozer Wadia (page 328). No, instead, the Alibag secret I am most delighted to share is a highly unusual red-brick house in Korlai, designed

by Nari Gandhi. This marks the first time AD has published a home by the little-known but cult-status architect. You may not have heard of Nari, as there is little written about him and he only built around 30 houses in his lifetime. But as a former apprentice of Frank Lloyd Wright, and the designer of some of the most distinctive private residences in India, you should. I was lucky; on my first trip to Alibag, nearly four years ago, I was invited by a young architect, Pranav Naik, to join a group of students on a day trip to visit the best of Bijoy Jain, as well as two masterpieces designed by Nari. It was a spectacular day, but one that I only remembered halfway through working on this issue, when I woke up in a cold sweat thinking about the big red gap in The Alibag Issue. Tracking down Nari’s rouge residence wasn’t easy; we had to scout the beach and charm the caretaker before finally making contact with the owner. I’m so glad we did; the series of flamboyant archways, walls without windows, and giant circular cut-outs shot by the brilliant Rajesh Vora make for one of the most extraordinary homes we have ever photographed. It’s also proof that the place they call the Hamptons of Mumbai is much more than a rich man’s playground. Sure, there are speedboats and helicopters and hidden compounds in the coconut groves. But there’s also some of the best carpentry in the country, a rare focus on landscape design and some seriously chic people. You just have to be invited to experience it. Welcome to the real Alibag.

BIKR AMJIT BOSE photographer

A graduate from the Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Bikramjit Bose has shot numerous fashion stories, from Vogue covers to Sabyasachi campaigns. In this issue, Bose photographed Rahul Khanna in ‘The Jetty Set’ (pg 198). “We had a great team, great energy and, most importantly, everyone was on the same page for what we were there to achieve.”

T O M PA R K E R photographer

London-based photographer Tom Parker is a regular contributor to AD. Having worked in nearly 90 countries, for this issue Parker shot Deven Mehta’s home in ‘Nozer The Great’ (pg 328). “The house is in an imposing position, set back from the coast and its sheer size was slightly daunting to begin with. Shooting a property like this was all about the structure and finding the best angle.”

R AJASHREE BALAR AM writer

The Mumbai-based writer visited Alibag to discover a lesser-known side of it in ‘The Inside Story On India’s Most Red-hot Real Estate’ (pg 189). “It is fascinating to discover how a piece of land could be shaped by so many forces—wealth, corruption and idealism. I am more excited than ever to see how Alibag changes its story in the hands of its original inhabitants and the swarm of elites who now control its coastline.”

A LI C E RO SA R I O

model

Alice Rosario has walked for some of India’s leading designers. She posed as Brazilian architect Lina Bo Bardi in ‘Lina Bo Bardi Lives’ (pg 102). “Everything about the shoot took me to a different level of luxury and beauty. I’m honoured to have been a part of it.”

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

AKGUN MA N I SA LI make-up artist

Akgun Manisali is an international make-up artist who divides his time between Mumbai and London. For this issue, he created Rahul Khanna’s look in ‘The Jetty Set’ (pg 198). “The choice of location was perfect.

And of course, Rahul Khanna is such an amazing individual.”

MINOTTI.COM

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R A J E S H VO R A photographer

A graduate from the National Institute of Design, Vora draws on his design background for his photography. In ‘A Tall Man’ (pg 286), he captured the late architect Nari Gandhi’s exceptional design for this home in Alibag. “I had heard so much about Nari Gandhi that when I stood in front of this home he’d designed, I was awestruck, not knowing where to point the camera. But as the light kept moving, the built spaces started talking to me and I was happy to capture his vision.”

S O U M YA illustrator

A graduate in Visual Communication from the Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Soumya is an illustrator and full-time UI/UX designer. She illustrated a map of Alibag for ‘The Inside Story On India’s Most Red-hot Real Estate’ (pg 189). “The illustration got me back to wielding my brush, and has inspired me to visit Alibag someday!”

PHILIPPE GARCIA

photographer

Trained at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, Garcia has been photographing still life and architecture since 1990. In this issue, Garcia’s photographs of Bijoy Jain’s Palmyra House—in ‘Iconic’ (pg 302)—reveal the minimal, natural architecture of this now-famous home.

S H R E YA B A SU

project coordinator

SA N H I TA SINHA C H OW D H U RY managing editor

In her five-and-a-half years spent at AD, Chowdhury jumped up the masthead from senior features writer to a force to be reckoned with as she perfected the art of everything from handembroidered concept covers to guest-listing for 400. “Be unstoppable, always,” she wrote in her leaving note to the AD team. Touché, we say.

You will be missed.

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

A former production assistant at AD, Shreya Basu is also a freelance photographer. In this issue, Basu compiled the entire list of architects and design experts to be featured in this year’s ‘AD100’ (pg 137). “I love making spreadsheets (that’s also why AD100 was a breeze). This experience as the project coordinator was different and interesting.”

CASA PARADOX LUXE RASEEL GUJRAL ANSAL

KU NA L MA N I A R landscape architect

Maniar’s client list includes names like Mukesh and Nita Ambani, Shah Rukh and Gauri Khan, Ranbir Kapoor and Rani Mukerji to name a few. For this issue, Maniar gave us a tour of two impeccably designed gardens in ‘Natural Habitat’ (pg 338) and ‘Richly Layered’ (pg 344). “AD’s creative team is great, and has visionary ideas.

I congratulate Greg and the entire team for AD’s 7th anniversary!”

S H W E T A V E PA V YA S writer

This Mumbai-based journalist regularly contributes to leading luxury and lifestyle publications.

On working on the portfolio ‘AD x Jeevaram Suthar & Poonaram Suthar’ (pg 243), she says, “This issue was a great opportunity to revisit Alibag after so many years, and discover this whole new artistic side to it. It’s a beautifully-puttogether issue and has been my favourite so far.”

GAURI KELK AR writer

A regular AD contributor, Gauri Kelkar finds writing to be a constant learning experience. Besides working on ‘AD100’ (pg 137), Kelkar visited Pinakin Patel’s home in Alibag in ‘This Is Home’ (pg 312). “There is something remarkable about the home. It’s a soulful house made with a lot of heart.”

ANAMIK A BU TA LI A

NEVILLE SUKHIA photographer

Sukhia is a Mumbai-based photographer, whose work includes adventure, portraiture, documentary and travel photography. For this issue, he enjoyed shooting a range of fabrics in Alibag’s only historical fort in ‘Tree Hugging’ (pg 226). “I loved shooting in the ruins of the Revdanda fort. It showed a completely different side of Alibag.”

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A former journalist with over 14 years of experience, Mumbaibased Anamika Butalia turned freelancer to travel the world. In ‘Finally, Clarity’ (pg 86), she writes about Ilse Crawford’s latest glassware designs for J&L Lobmeyr. “The minimalist design—its sinuous shape and delicateness—makes the set covetable.”

PHOTOS: ASHISH SAHI (KUNAL MANIAR, GAURI KELKAR).

writer

photo Emanuele Tortora

table Skorpio Keramik chairs Norma H Couture lamps Cellini bookcases Airport

The Place we Live

cattelanitalia.com B a n g a l o r e G L O B A L L I V I N G E M P O R I O 1 6 / 3 , Ve e r a s a n d r a , O p p o s i t e E l e c t r o n i c C i t y To l l P l a z a , O n H o s u r R o a d 5 6 0 1 0 0 - T: + 9 1 8 0 6 7 6 2 9 0 0 0 - e - m a i l : r a k e s h v @ s t a n l e y l i f e s t y l e s . c o m Mumbai AND MORE STORIES 27, Raghuvanshi Mills Compound, Behind Elegant Marbes Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel Mumbai 400013 - T: +91 98 21040007, +91 98 21044114 - e-mail: info@andmorestories.com

P I N A K I N PA T E L architect

With a career spanning three decades, architect Pinakin Patel is a legend in the design world today. In this issue, Patel penned his memories of his mentor Dashrath Patel, artist and founder secretary of the National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad, in ‘AD x Dashrath Patel’ (pg 259). “Thank you Greg and AD—from the Dashrath Patel Foundation,” he says.

A P O O RVA S H A R M A , C H I N M AY S H I D H O R E & VA S TAV I K TA B H A G AT research associates

Architecture graduates from Mumbai, the trio is currently working with the School of Environment and Architecture.

In this issue, they brought to life vernacular architecture in ‘AD x The Case Study House’ (pg 253). “The architecture is rooted in the context of the region, but fast disappearing due to the influx of modern architecture,” says Shidhore.

T A N Y A VO H R A stylist

Former fashion editor at GQ India, Tanya Vohra has styled many celebrities including John Abraham, Imran Khan and Varun Dhawan. For this issue, Vohra styled actor Rahul Khanna for ‘The Jetty Set’ (pg 198). “The best part about styling Rahul is that he knows what he wants, and he’s so effortlessly cool and stylish.”

ROSHNI BAJAJ SA N G H V I

A K S H AY T YAG I

stylist

Akshay Tyagi has quietly become one of Bollywood’s most sought-after stylists. In ‘The Jetty Set’ (pg 198), he styled Gauri Khan on a speedboat on her way to Alibag. “Gauri is such a carefree soul and it was such a pleasure working with her on the shoot. The issue is going to have such a chic vibe!”

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A graduate of the International Culinary Centre in NYC, Sanghvi lives in Mumbai and writes about food and travel. She got onto a speedboat with six brilliant chefs for ‘Farm To Table’ (pg 216), only to discover that “the (Table) farm is everything I’d imagined and so much more. The visit inspired me to start growing produce on my balcony, and I got to taste mustard flowers and smell ginger leaves for the first time.”

PHOTO: ASHISH SAHI (PINAKIN PATEL).

writer

TEXT: DIVYA MISHRA. MIRROR (BRANDY WINE TO LASER RED MIX2 TO BRANDY WINE) ANISH KAPOOR (MUMBAI, 1954); COURTESY OF TINA KIM GALLERY.

OUR ROUND-UP FROM THE FRONT LINE OF DESIGN: TRENDS, OBJECTS, STYLE, EVENTS

discoverIES

mirror, mirror

On 16 March, just six days after the curtain closes on The Armory Show in New York, the action shifts across the Atlantic to the Netherlands, where The European Fine Art Fair (TEFAF) 2019 takes over the university town of Maastricht. The art, antiques and haute joaillerie show, in its 32nd edition now, is one of the oldest and best reputed art fairs in the world. Long known for its rigorous selection process, a new (and somewhat controversial) global vetting policy has led to the addition of 38 new exhibitors, taking the total to 279 art and antiques dealers from across 21 countries. Along with the painstakingly restored Old Masters and rare antiques, the highlights include contemporary blue-chip works like Anish Kapoor’s Mirror (Brandy Wine to Laser Red mix 2 to Brandy Wine), available at Tina Kim Gallery.

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TEXT: RAJASHREE BALARAM. PHOTOS: SOURABH SAXENA. STYLING: KHUSHBOO GUPTA.

MOOD LIGHTING The latest designs from Paul Matter subtly illuminate the power of connection and ritual—the twofold path to enlightenment in tantric philosophy

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year ago, when Nikhil Paul, founder of New Delhi-based design studio Paul Matter, finished reading Philip Rawson’s The Art of Tantra, he felt deeply intrigued by the ancient, esoteric concept of tantra. (As there is no widely accepted definition of the word, it can be described loosely as the metaphysical coalescence of eroticism, mathematics and magic, all rising to form a realm coded by ecstasy.) “The concepts put forward were so creatively stimulating, I felt stumped that modern design has not delved deep into that area,” says Paul, who is mostly known for design aesthetics that lean towards mid-century modernism and industrial-age minimalism. Eager to explore how tantra could influence light design, in February 2018, he and his team started work on the preliminary sketches, which have now emerged to become his studio’s latest series of sconces.

Paul, who has worked with several studios in Italy and exhibited his works at many international venues, teams up with native craftsmen in India to manually render unique finishes to surfaces and textures. He enjoys working with a diverse range of materials— leather, stone, mouth-blown glass, brass and silver—and has developed a signature style that relies largely on sculptural and handcrafted techniques.

The new sconces—first of many others to follow in the ongoing

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series—are entirely made from brass, and explore “interlocked forms in perfect union and balance in an extended state of savouring and enjoyment”. The designer wryly admits that though the contours of the sconces seem deceptively simple, he took a long time to arrive at the wonderfully austere design. “I tend to brood over sketches and mock-ups for prolonged spells.” He rejected 55 mock-ups over a period of six months before he arrived at the final design.

It’s a labour of love buoyed by an obsessive attention to detail. Balance, for instance, was a key factor; the two parts had to rest on each other to form a complete design, and work just as beautifully turned upside down. Larger than the average wall light available in the market—53 x 76 x 19 centimetres—these sconces have porcelain lamps at their tips that have been specially customized. “The lamps emit a golden glow that is beautifully soft, a luminescence that has been worked out painstakingly by the makers,” he says.

As yet untitled, this new series could easily be the boldest explorations, so far, from Paul Matter. “The designs primarily take off from ancient fertility rituals and practices that were based on the worship of all symbolisms hinting at coitus and genitalia. This is quite simply about our origins, our beginning. How can we not celebrate it?”

etrohomeinteriors.jumbogroup.it

Salone del Mobile.Milano April 9_14, 2019 | Hall 4, Stand B11

TEXT: DIVYA MISHRA.

Level Up Located in Colaba’s historic Amerchand Mansion, Simone adds one more level to its flagship store to showcase its growing range of fabrics and soft furnishings

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t has been almost five years since Simone Arora’s eponymous home decor store first opened its doors. During this span, aside from showcasing the designer’s signature ‘nature-luxe’ aesthetic, it streamlined its original name, and has now expanded its offering, both literally and metaphorically. “The floor above our existing ground- and first-floor premises at Amerchand Mansion became available in April 2017,” says Arora. She had been looking for a larger space to house the growing range of fabrics from D’Decor (where she is creative director), and the timing could not have been more serendipitous. She acquired the property soon after, and the restoration began in March 2018.

The building, located on Madame Cama Road in Colaba, is a heritage property, now more than 100 years old, and Arora decided that, for the new floor, she would retain its historical charm. As with before the store launch, she got conservation architect Vikas Dilawari on board to restore the external facade and supervise the internal structural work. “As the lower two levels were more contemporary in style, I decided to go with an old-world look on the new floor,” she says. With trellised balconies on the exterior of the Indo-Saracenic-style building and wooden doors and windows, the high-ceilinged space now also has a floor that features a “Parisian contemporary” aesthetic, as Arora describes it.

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The new level adds 3,300 square feet to the store’s original 8,000, and houses a specially curated range of home furnishing fabrics, displayed in specific sections delineated by colour scheme. Arora’s experience at D’Decor (where she has worked for over two decades now) and her understanding of fabric are evident here. Where it would ordinarily be easy to be overwhelmed by the variety and range of options available—jacquards, printed fabrics in chenille, linen, velvet, suede and leatherite—here, Arora has grouped products into neat sections with thoughtful catalogues to help customers choose better. Each section brings together fabrics, bed and bath linen, carpets, decorative artefacts and furniture (designed

by Arora’s sister Sussanne Khan of The Charcoal Project) that makes it seem less like a store, and more like you have stepped into a very well-curated home.

The entire process—from refurbishing the interiors to planning the inventory—was completed in nine quick months, and Arora is clearly pleased with the result. “It has been a tedious, yet fulfilling journey,” she says, about the challenges that came with readying this space. The new floor, now a quietly luxurious space, softly lit by crystal chandeliers, and outfitted with period furniture that offsets the extensive range of fabrics, stands testament to that passion—and a little bit of luck.

gianfrancoferrehome.it

MILANO | NEW YORK | MIAMI | LOS ANGELES | MOSCOW | KIEV | KUNMING | NANJING | SHENZHEN | DOHA | BEIRUT | BAKU

Salone del Mobile.Milano

April 9_14, 2019 | Hall 4, Stand B08

TEXT: SHWETA VEPA VYAS.

Best Seat in the House Fifteen years after its debut, the quietly contemporary Hamilton sofa designed by Rodolfo Dordoni is still Minotti’s best seller

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f all the pieces in Italian furniture brand Minotti’s extensive portfolio, the bestselling one is also the most discreet. The ‘Hamilton’ sofa, with its clean lines, fine craftsmanship and subtle elegance, is the silent hero that encapsulates and embodies all the elements of Italian design. And as it completes 15 years, it’s not hard to see why it has become as iconic as it has.

Designed by Rodolfo Dordoni in 2004, this classic sofa created quite a stir when it was launched, with its floortouching base and flexible arrangements. Such was its success that the company gradually introduced a range of finishings and forms so that each piece could be customized according to customers’ requirements.

The Minotti brothers and Rodolfo Dordoni first collaborated in 1997 on a small collection of sofas, and dining and coffee tables. The collaboration was so successful that Dordoni was appointed as artistic director and coordinator for the company’s subsequent collections. Dordoni’s background and artistic sensibilities found a perfect match with the Minotti brothers’ vision and together, they’ve created a design language that is modern, but also respectful of traditional craftsmanship and detailing.

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The sofa’s design is distinguished by its black-nickel-finished metal base that raises it above the ground. In fact, this design feature has gradually become characteristic of the brand, with many of the subsequent collections including it. The low-tofloor base and versatility of modules made the ‘Hamilton’ the design icon it is today, and till date, it serves as a standard for the brand’s upcoming collections. While the base is metallic, the sofa structure is made of solid wood. The seat and back cushions are padded with goose down for optimal comfort. A headrest can be added to the sofa for the ideal posture.

This year marks the 15th anniversary of two more icons from the brand—the ‘Cesar’ and ‘Van Dyck’ sculptural tables. The ‘Cesar’ is versatile and can be used as a coffee table, a stool, or a decor piece. Over the years, the design has been developed to include a palette of 17 colours, and has been photographed in different settings from living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens, bathrooms to office spaces. The ‘Van Dyck’ on the other hand stands out, owing to its exquisitely constructed metal base that can be paired with a customized top. The ‘Cesar’ and ‘Van Dyck’ have also been designed by Dordoni. In a world of ever-changing trends, these classic pieces have managed to hold their own and continue to take the Minotti story forward.

WWW.LONGHI.IT

TEXT: TYREL RODRICKS.

the road ahead The Lexus ‘LF-1 Limitless’, showcased at Design Miami, offers a glimpse of the future design language for the Japanese marque

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teering off the beaten track, Lexus’s ‘LF-1 Limitless’ concept is a flagship crossover that was a big part of the automaker’s Design Miami showcase last December. “This is our vision for a new kind of flagship vehicle that embraces crossover capability without giving up the performance and luxury delivered by today’s top sedans,” says Kevin Hunter, president of Calty, the Toyotaowned design centre in California where the LF-1 was crafted. The firm employed a new design language to style the crossover—one that paradoxically brings fluidity to sharp lines. To express the dichotomy of the concept, it was creatively (if a tad dramatically) named “molten katana”.

The design of the new car—which was launched at the 2018 North American International Auto Show—showcases a pronounced aggression right from Lexus’s signature spindle grille, as the three-dimensional design seems to almost magnetically flow towards the automaker’s emblem. From the sharp line that extends from the hood to the brake lights, to the bulging wheel wells and the 22-inch rims they house, a conspicuous effort has been made to create the LF-1’s aggressive profile. At the rear, a split spoiler shakes things up, while sculpted openings above the rear wheels surprise as air vents and not dual exhaust pipes. And yet, despite its muscle-car vibe, the LF-1 promises an awareness of the world into which it

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drives; it has been designed to house a range of powertrains, most of which will be powered by alternative fuels.

The dichotomy continues inside as the LF-1 is relieved of cluttering knobs and buttons in favour of motion-activated controls and a minimal dashboard that allows you to do more—at least once you figure out how. A simple push of the ‘Start’ button engages a dramatic sequence of LED lights, presumably to inform you that you’re in the future now. And all the accoutrements—dark ‘Cocoa Bean’ leather trim, and seats in perforated ‘Chiffon White’ leather— assure you that this future is unequivocally luxurious. Omotenashi, the Japanese tradition of hospitality that governs all Lexus interiors, plays a role in the LF-1 as well. Good news for back-seat drivers: the cabin offers the same ride comfort and space in the rear as in the front.

As for the drive, this is where the LF-1 gets the most futuristic in its application. For the casual driver, there’s the ‘Chauffeur’ mode— cruise control version two-point-oh. But for the pedal-to-metal, hands-on-the-wheel driver, everything’s within reach—paddle gears, four-dimensional navigation (it accounts for the time of day as well), a host of touch-responsive haptic controls, and even a “touch-tracer pad” in the console for data entry. You’ll almost never have to take your eyes off the road—not even to play your favourite song. Now if that’s not the future, we don’t know what is.

TEXT: ANAMIKA BUTALIA. PHOTO COURTESY OF J&L LOBMEYR.

FINALLY, CLARITY Ilse Crawford has designed a drink-ware series for Austrian glassmaker J&L Lobmeyr that focuses on the interplay between material, design and sensory perception

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rom the beginning of glassmaking, circa BC 2500, through the practice’s prevalence in major civilizations in Egypt and Rome, artisans have focused on three aspects that have made the material desirable—clarity, form and design. For her design, titled Drinking Set No.286 (pictured) for J&L Lobmeyr’s Normal Special series, Ilse Crawford carried forward this artisanal tradition in her own unique way, choosing to underline the material’s delicacy within the human context to evoke a tactile response. This practice of emotional design, which evokes the primal, sensory, human perspective, is vintage Crawford—and she was doing it long before it was considered cool.

It is for this reason that Crawford is considered one of the greats in the industry. Design has played an integral role in her life—as the former editor-in-chief of a leading architecture and design magazine in the UK, as well as in her role as principal designer at her 18-yearold practice, Studioilse. Over the years, she has worked on interior architecture and design for homes across the globe, undertaken commercial projects as far away as Hong Kong, and designed products for boldface brands like IKEA. In 2014, she was made a member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) for her services to interior design, and in 2016, was named ‘Designer of the Year’ at Maison et Objet, Paris.

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Crawford’s latest design ties in functionality with aesthetics.

While researching Lobmeyr’s repertoire, she found inspiration in the fineness of the Austrian company’s glassware. Understanding how the weight and thickness of a glass changes its perception, how it is held and used, became the bedrock of the design. Using these insights, Crawford conceptualized Drinking Set No.286, which includes two classic pitchers, a vase and three tumblers, with differing glass thicknesses. In the act of drinking, one explores the tactile difference of the thicknesses, perceived through the touch of the rim of the glass to the lip. The subtle difference between each object’s thickness alters its personality and lends it an organic fluidity that matches Lobmeyr’s brand vision.

With this glassware series, the 1823-established Lobmeyr adds Crawford to its impressive list of design collaborators, which includes Frank Gehry, Tadao Ando and Jasper Morrison, among several other iconic names. In keeping with tradition, Lobmeyr produced Crawford’s design through its defining process; each piece is mouth-blown from lead-free crystal in Vienna. The glass is then cut, engraved and polished by hand. The copacetic production— which is carefully executed, by over 18 sets of hands—ensures that this handcrafted covetable collection is worth raising a toast to… and with.

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TEXT: DIVYA MISHRA. IMAGE COURTESY OF THUKRAL & TAGRA.

apparent playfulness, poses crucial questions about identity, consumer culture and globalization. The duo has been exploring political issues through sport since 2006; the 2019 iteration of this exploration is set (as was their 2010 project, Match Fixed) in a playing field—this time, the akhara where kushti, the traditional Indian version of wrestling, takes place. The installation, titled Bread, Circuses & TBD, draws on the artist duo’s previous sport-centric projects, as well as on their research on the Don Pavey collection—an archive containing the author and educator’s work on the relationship between art and games—at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP). The central piece of the installation, titled Farmer is a Wrestler, is an immersive, interactive work that invites viewers to engage in a Twister-like game that encourages them to try out seven traditional kushti manoeuvres. Unlike Twister though, instead of coloured circles, the installation uses numbers—where each number represents an issue faced by farmers. What begins as a game quickly becomes a sobering realization of hardships endured by agrarian communities the world over. Bread, Circuses & TBD will inaugurate The Weston Gallery in the YSP’s new building on 30 March, and will run till 1 September 2019.

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www.baxter.it ph. Andrea Ferrari

roll with it Marc Newson’s second collaboration with Louis Vuitton sees him perfect the rolling travel bag and reinterpret the iconic monogram

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TEXT: GAURI KELKAR. PHOTO: CRAIG McDEAN FOR LOUIS VUITTON.

hen Marc Newson was first asked by Louis Vuitton to craft the Horizon collection of rolling trunks, in 2016, he quickly won over frequent flyers. They were the lightest in the market, packed in more and looked chic.

Upping the ante further in 2019, his new collection breaks newer ground. If the previous collection was all hard, rigid contours, this one is softer. “I had to have something really compelling to kick the project off. That was to be the technology, which was not so much a technology,” Newson said—referring, of course, to knitting.

Fashioned from thermo-formed, 3D-knit, custommade yarn using seamless knitting technology (there is such a thing), the bags bear Newson’s interpretation of the LV monogram. The outer material is put through the wringer— heat-formed to give it shape, cut down to size (for pockets and zips only) with cutting techniques that reduce stitching requirements by 95 per cent, and treated with a water repellent. Newson used an ergonomic zip-pull lock system—available in silver, champagne or dark grey—for the lightweight spacious bags (2.9 kilograms for the cabin-sized version), and tiny wheels designed to be silent. “This [design] can be defined as disruptive simply because no one has done it. Design, by definition, is disruption and innovation. If it’s not new then, what’s the point?”

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real rest With Himêya, its latest brand, the Himatsingka Group introduces a range of home linen designed around sleep and rest

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Himêya’s campaign was shot against the hills of the Kumaon region, in the shadow of the Nanda Devi mountain, to align with the brand’s core belief of being close to nature. The duvet and pillow covers seen here are from the Bliss Sateen collection.

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TEXT: DIVYA MISHRA.

he ‘him’ comes from Himatsingka, and the ‘eya’ comes from ameya, which means ‘boundless’ in Sanskrit,” says Akanksha Himatsingka, about the combination of words that went into creating Himêya, the Himatsingka Group’s newly minted brand that, clearly, aims at being more than your regular, everyday bedding. If that sounds >

The 100 per cent organic cotton towels from the Himêya Terrain collection.

< ambitious for a bed-linen brand, that’s because it is. But given that human beings spend a third of their lives asleep, and that restful sleep—as crucial to well-being as food—is becoming harder and harder to come by, where you sleep is quickly becoming an important aspect of how well you sleep. This is where Himêya hopes to come in, with the knowledge that your bedding affects the quality of your rest, and your immediate environment affects the quality of your life. “We spend so much of our time in bed and our lives are becoming more and more cluttered; what we are trying to do with Himêya is create a sense of restfulness,” says Akanksha, emphatically. Himêya, which offers a range of sheets, duvets, pillowcases, cushion covers and towels, is founded on the basic principle of well-being; its tag line—‘Rest Better. Be Better.

Live Better.’—reinforces the message.

The ethically sourced cotton and zero-waste processing (from spinning to weaving, dyeing and finishing) ensure that the fabric is as easy on your mind as it is on your skin. “Feel these,” says Akanksha, holding out to me, in succession, a series of cushion covers in cotton with a special fabric finish, and a plain, grey pillowcase in a sateen weave so soft, that it feels like fine velvet.

“The brand is all about feeling, and we want you to literally feel the naturalness of the cloth,” she adds.

SLEEP EASY But it is not just about the fabric—designer Rina Singh (of Eka fame) brings her solid design chops to Himêya’s first collection.

Bringing Singh on board was no coincidence—Akanksha is clear about that. “We were looking at designers who have a sense of creating ease. If you look at [Singh’s] clothing, it’s not at all 94|

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pretentious, and that was the underlying tone of our brand— simple, everyday living.”

The decision seems to have paid off, and Singh’s unique aesthetic and experience with natural fibres are very much in evidence here. The Himêya debut collection comes in a palette of 21 colours across a range of solids with different weaves (suited to a crisp or soft preference) and prints. Available in sets as well as open stock, they can be mixed and matched in different combinations to suit your mood. Pillowcases and quilts are also reversible, giving customers even more style options. “We wanted to give [customers] a little bit of everything to play around with, so there is a full expression of design,” says Akanksha. The versatile products feature clever design tweaks like colourful button and zip closures, and the option of fitted or flat sheets. The aesthetic, while understated, is clearly Indian.

Accessibility, too, has been an important driver as far as this collection is concerned. “I want young people to be able to enjoy these things,” Akanksha says, about the pricing, which, despite the brand’s premium positioning, is quite reasonable. “It is one of the many advantages of being vertically integrated,” she explains.

While the raw material and advanced manufacturing and design are what make the products stand out, Akanksha is clear that she doesn’t want the discussion to be centred on technical details like thread count. “We are making a very conscious effort to not say or define things too much. I think you need to say just enough to create a feeling, and then let that feeling stay with the consumer.” A home-linen collection that’s easy on your eyes, on the environment, and on your skin? There’s an idea we can get behind. And under.

Beaut i f ul l ycr af t edcont empor ar y f ur ni t ur e,homedecorandi nt er i ordes i gns .

i qr upa ndr i t z . c om

Club Class

Nobu Downtown in New York designed by the Rockwell Group. Above right: Architect Shawn Sullivan.

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TEXT: DIVYA MISHRA. PHOTOS: ERIC LAIGNEL (NOBU DOWNTOWN); GEORDIE WOOD (SHAWN SULLIVAN).

In the 22 years since he joined the Rockwell Group, Shawn Sullivan has been reshaping the idea of luxury in architecture all over the world

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t first glance, the Rockwell Group’s portfolio gives the impression of an architecture and design firm rather inclined towards the dramatic. From dazzling sets on Broadway to decadent nightclubs, landmark restaurants and historic hotels, the group has done them all. But closer examination reveals a dedication to narrative that is refreshing, if unusual, in this day and age.

“Narratives are one of the most powerful ways to communicate a coherent design and idea,” says Shawn Sullivan, partner and studio leader at the group.

Soft-spoken and unassuming, the Yale-educated Sullivan seems like an unlikely font for all the razzle-dazzle that comes out of the studio—in fact, he is often considered the go-to guy for projects that require a certain theatricality. But whether it is the operatic OMNIA nightclub in Las Vegas, or the oriental-fantastic TAO Downtown restaurant in New York, the drama isn’t forced. “We do extensive research to uncover the inherent story of the client, space and context, and create a concept from there,” he says.

His talent for creating these perfectly calibrated spaces has served the firm well, and led to long-term engagements with many of its clients—like Nobu. At last count, Sullivan had worked on Nobu Hotels in Las Vegas and Miami, the group’s restaurants across the world; and in New York, Nobu Downtown and, of course, the flagship Nobu Fifty Seven. Of the Rockwell Group’s three-decadelong association with the brand, Sullivan says: “[It gave] us the opportunity to develop a rich, complex design language for the brand. Our first Nobu restaurant in Manhattan had a layered, abstract interior with a very strong narrative inspired by chef Nobu Matsuhisa’s unique approach to cooking,” adding, “and with it, we redefined a notion of luxury dining that, up until then, was signified by white tablecloths.”

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This idea of luxury, one that is derived from cultural, social and physical context, is a defining aspect of Sullivan’s practice. “I think luxury is not only defined by exquisite materials and bespoke furniture, but by the cohesion between the story those materials and design are telling, and the services provided,” he states.

This layered interplay of material and message will soon be seen in yet another Sullivan-directed project—the clubhouse of an ultra-luxurious, gated condominium by DLF, on Gurugram’s Golf Course Road. The property, The Camellias comprises nine residential towers on a campus that sprawls across approximately 6.88 hectares, and DLF wanted The Clubhouse to be a space where residents could meet, relax and nurture a sense of community. The building appears to grow out of a water body, which is divided into six reflecting pools. As if echoing these pools, The Clubhouse, spread across more than 13,000 square metres, has six landscaped concrete roofs at different levels. “[It is] inspired by abstracted versions of camellia petals,” says Sullivan. It is characteristic of Sullivan to base his design on a motif so central to the project, and yet so poetic.

Along with the common areas, the Rockwell Group was also responsible for designing the master plan that connected The Clubhouse to the residential towers, and their experience with space modulation pays off here. The Clubhouse is approached by pathways through the pools—a physical feature that helps create a calming mental transition between spaces.

This is DLF’s second collaboration with the Rockwell Group, the first being the Chanakya Mall in New Delhi. Spread over 17,000 square metres, its sophisticated interiors set new benchmarks for retail design. So successful was this collaboration for both parties that they decided on a second. Will it lead to a third? If The Clubhouse is any indication, it may very well do so.

PHOTOS: ERIC LAIGNEL (TAO DOWNTOWN, NOBU DOWNTOWN).

Sullivan designed the interiors of Wayan, Nobu Downtown (left), and TAO Downtown (above left)—all restaurants in New York.

Italian Masterpieces Let it Be sofa designed by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba.

Sestiere Castello, Venezia poltronafrau.com

Mumbai - Ground Floor, Wakefield House, Dougall Road, Ballard Estate - T. +91 22 22614848 Pune - Ground Floor, Trump Towers, Kalyani Nagar - T. +91 20 66473131 Surat - No.6-7, Union Heights, Next to Lalbhai Cricket Stadium, Surat Dumas Road - T. +91 261 6988444 New Delhi - 99 Empire Plaza, Mehrauli-Gurgaon Rd, Sultanpur, T. +91 11 26809772

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TEXT: RHEA VARGHESE. PHOTO: TALIB CHITALWALA.

Architect Rooshad Shroff and designer Kunal Rawal at the latterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s flagship space on the first floor of the Rhythm House building, the former home of the iconic music store that downed its shutters in 2016.

he’s got rhythm Three years since Mumbai’s iconic music store Rhythm House shut shop, its first floor reopens as fashion designer Kunal Rawal’s new flagship store

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usic may have little connection with the new store’s merchandise, but it certainly acted as a catalyst for the space’s new owner. “I am passionate about music, and being a Bombay [sic] boy, one of the ways to connect with music was through Rhythm House. It was, therefore, the first—and probably only—location that came to my mind,” says fashion designer Kunal Rawal, about the setting for his flagship store, which opened its doors in January. The eponymous store comes nearly two years after he set up his first studio in Juhu. This space, though, more closely mirrors the underlying ethos of Rawal’s design—a contemporary take on the traditional. “It embodies the philosophy of my label, which is a perfect amalgamation of heritage, luxury and the industrial,” says the designer.

To translate his vision into three-dimensional reality, Rawal hired architect Rooshad Shroff. “After having closely studied his work—a balance of luxury and creativity—I was certain that I wanted him to design the space,” he says. Shroff’s and Rawal’s creative spirits are clearly aligned and both their artistic expressions feature anti-trend, multifunctional design; texture play; and experimentation with embroidery and metalwork.

With neo-traditionalism being one of the primary elements of Rawal’s design, feeling connected to the heritage structure was important to him. He and Shroff were both keen on keeping the bones of the structure intact. From the exterior facade to the high teak-wood ceiling, the wooden floor to the cantilevered balcony with a panoramic view of Kala Ghoda, they tried to restore as many of the original design elements as possible.

As for incorporating Rawal’s aesthetics into the space, Shroff says, “It was very important to design a store that reflected the brand’s vision.” And what could be a clearer reflection of that vision than a space that could transform, just like Rawal’s designs do? The tricky feat was achieved by fitting the 25-foot-high ceiling with motor-driven, trapeze-like garment racks that could be positioned up or down, depending upon the need for space. Rawal’s assorted design influences were further incorporated in the floor studs arranged to create hidden Morse-code messages like “Make your mother proud” (a tag line of his label); a stiff-fabric-lined table embroidered with French knots; cabinets and metal drawers sourced from military bases across the world; metal accents in the form of wrought-iron claddings; and a collapsible cage-like changing room with a grid formation.

Now, with sunlight streaming in from the glass windows and dramatically lighting up the oxblood and military-green accents, Rhythm House in its new avatar hits the right notes for Rawal’s designs, which hang on the garment racks, combining luxury and traditionalism in a fresh, modern manifestation.

TEXT: ANKITA RATHOD. PHOTOS: TALIB CHITALWALA.

Lina Bo Bardi’s living room in Casa de Vidro, São Paulo (facing page, inset) has been recreated in this Bijoy Jain-designed home in Alibag—with one addition, a model posed in a robe dress from the new collection by Obataimu. The green chairs and the accent table have been designed by Noorie Sadarangani—the founder and creative director of the fashion label. The concrete-top centre table is by Studio Mumbai, the antique armchairs are by Mahendra Doshi; the chest is also an antique.

Lina bo bardi lives Pictured here in a Bijoy Jain-designed house in Alibag, Obataimuâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new collection channels the constructed marvellousness of Brazilian modernism

B

PHOTO: PAOLO GASPARINI/COURTESY OF INSTITUTO LINA BO E PM BARDI.

rutalist buildings (exposed, utilitarian and non-ornate structures), avant-garde aesthetics and an interdisciplinary approach shook Brazilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s architecture during the Modernism movement in 1922, bringing along winds of change that still blow strong. Developing its popularity over the years, the design movement has inspired many and the newest entrant on this list of the inspired is Mumbai-based label Obataimu, led by founder and creative director, Noorie Sadarangani. The brand, which has previously found inspiration in the Japanese philosophies of wabi-sabi and shibui, distils the essence of Brazilian modernism in its brand new collection. >

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MEDIUM AGNOSTIC In the confines of one of those quirky boutiques in Kala Ghoda, Mumbai, Sadarangani takes us through the collection. “Each piece in this collection is ‘constructed’ more like a piece of furniture, with a focus on structure, rather than on fashion or trends,” she says. Her affinity for the arts and architecture showed itself early, deciding the course of her education. Sadarangani studied Fine Art and International Studies at the University of Tennessee, then went on to acquire her Masters in Architecture and Urban Theory from the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona.

The collection was initially designed to be imagined on Lina Bo Bardi (the 20th-century Italy-born Brazilian architect) and the way she might have dressed today. It’s almost as if Sadarangani can

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see through her kohl-rimmed eyes, “a picture of Lina, staring out the window at the jungle from the first home she designed 70 years ago”—she says, referring to Casa de Vidro (Glass House), in what is now the Morumbi neighbourhood of São Paulo.

This investigation delved further into the works of eight other Brazilian architects namely, Norberto Nicola, Ricardo Fasanello, Roberto Burle Marx, Oscar Niemeyer, Joaquim Tenreiro, Giuseppe Scapinelli, Sergio Rodrigues and Jean Gillon. “What’s unique about these architects,” Sadarangani points out, “is how interdisciplinary they were in their approach.

It wasn’t just architects hanging out with architects. It was a confluence of writers, architects and tapestry designers all playing across mediums.” >

PHOTOS: SHERRY GRIFFIN, COURTESY OF R & COMPANY (JOAQUIM TENREIRO SCREEN); BRUNO VEIGA (COPACABANA).

The ‘Roberto Burle Marx’ dress is inspired by the beach pavement (below) in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro, which was designed by Roberto Burl Marx. Left: The ‘Joaquim Tenreiro’ pants were inspired by a Joaquim Tenreiro-designed screen (below left).

Trump Towers, Lodha, Mumbai, India Designed in collaboration with HBA Singapore

preciosalighting.com

PHOTO: JOE KRAMM/COURTESY OF R & COMPANY (GIUSEPPE SCAPINELLI CONSOLE). ILLUSTRATION: COURTESY OF INSTITUTO JOHN GRAZ. MODEL: ALICE ROSARIO. HAIR & MAKE-UP: KARLA DE GARAY.

The ‘John Graz’ jumpsuit (right) was inspired by the compartmentalization of a Giuseppe Scapinelli-designed console (below) and the colour palette of one of John Graz’s architectural drawings (bottom left).

< Among the nine, Sadarangani’s favourite is Roberto Burle

Marx, whose avant-garde aesthetics are seen all over Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, transforming the landscapes in Brazil. “Of course, I can’t discredit Oscar Niemeyer just because he is well-known,” she says. “But while the spotlight was on him, he was one of many.”

While inspired by these designers, Sadarangani did not take the inspiration too literally, choosing—instead of the established motifs—to incorporate the distilled essence of their aesthetic. The characteristic curvilinear structure of their designs as well as their colour palettes feature predominantly in her collection. “I was inspired by the use of a tropical colour palette superimposed on geometrical shapes,” she explains. “A mix of curves and straight lines in the carpentry; the intersection of European design and indigenous concepts native to Brazil before colonization; and of course, the interdisciplinary approach to design, are some of the

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highlights of this collection,” she elaborates.

Obataimu’s new collection masterfully blurs the lines between inside and outside, natural and built, asymmetry and symmetry, and precision and fluidity. One can identify the elements of imaginative fine art and the spirit of freedom in each piece, whether in the perforated cut-out pants inspired by (frequent Oscar Neimeyer client) Joaquim Tenreiro’s iconic screens; or the free-flowing reversible robes designed to be imagined on Bo Bardi. But the standout pieces are those with the more linear, architectural designs, which are meant to be worn with contrasting pieces—fluid with fitted; vivid with neutral. “The curves are, by and large, provided by the women wearing them,” says Sadarangani, displaying in that one succinct sentence, the sharp understanding of balance that makes Obataimu the muchloved brand it is.

A new design movement will change the way you live.

Discover beauty, discover design, discover intelligence. Discover Freedom of Living.

The way you live is defined by the space you live in. This space should make you feel relaxed, inspired, energised, loved and most of all, free.

Now, the big question is, does your home do these things? Does it appreciate your new hobbies, your new habits, your need for multi-tasking spaces, your love for all things design?

Take your living room, for example. Is it an environment that just gets you and adds to what you do? Can you be more comfortable when you curl up with a book? While you binge-watch TV episodes, can the bad postures disappear?

Can you create more room when friends drop by?

What about your workspace at home? What if it became a multi-tasking hub for your entire family? When you freelance from home, could your workstation blur the lines between work and play?

Making these what-ifs come to life is a new perspective on furniture design: Script. Products that are intelligent, purposeful and aesthetically designed entirely around you â&#x20AC;&#x201C; your new habits and activities to give you a fluid living experience.

Now, daily, through intuitive design, you have the freedom to choose the way you live. Imagine a sofa that invites you to watch movies lying sideways. Or a table that expands to create more space for an extra guest or two.

Candy Curve,

the bed that lets you add a contemporary dash to your sleep space.

Ecosystems. For your home.

At Script, we have designed pieces of furniture that combine to enhance one particular hobby or habit of yours. We call such a combination of furniture as an ecosystem for your home.

Each ecosystem smartly brings together varied elements of furniture. Like an armchair, a table, a shelf and accessories for the singular pleasure of reading. Or a bed that doubles effortlessly as your work desk.

Dwell,

This fluidity of design and purpose is the essence of Script. All of these experiences add up for a liberating living experience. With Script, there are no rules, no rights, no wrongs. Just let your imagination decide what furniture should do.

that provides you with a comfortable setting to lose yourself in books.

Experiment to give it multiple purposes, in multiple rooms, in multiple ways.

Script gives you the elements you need to craft the life you deserve.

You are invited to make it your own.

Welcome to a new design movement that frees up the way you think, move, laugh and live.

Furniture Market, Kirti Nagar, Delhi | Call us at +91 91520 22713

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A new perspective on furniture and accessories.

Discover intelligent, purposeful, beautiful furniture and accessories, designed entirely around your new habits and activities, for a fluid living experience.

Discover Freedom of Living.

Discover Script.

Ambit,

the perfect work-from-home unit

Furniture A complete range of furniture for the living room, bedroom, dining and study, along with Ecosystems and occasional furniture concepts. Where your moods and hobbies decide what the furniture should be.

Rhythm,

the sofa that lets you pick beauty that isn't fragile.

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Ecosystems Each Script ecosystem smartly brings together varied elements of furniture. To enhance one particular activity or hobby or habit of yours, like reading or TV bingeing.

Lagoon, the bed that lets you, should you choose, work on it, with its swivelling work desk.

Lamps Lighten up the mood with our well-designed lamps. Find comfort in a table lamp as you work, a floor lamp as you sit reading or a ceiling lamp over your dinner table.

Kitchenware Bring beautiful form and intelligent function every day to your kitchen space, with our kitchenware range, from knives to butter churners and all in between.

Diningware Good looks, intelligence and durability in plenty; diningware that brings the extraordinary to everyday eating.

Furniture Market, Kirti Nagar, Delhi | Call us at +91 91520 22713

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Rugs Discover a range of rugs that bring out your taste for the tactile. You’ll find yourself enjoying being barefoot as you walk across your rugs.

Glassware Luigi glassware doesn’t care much for rules.

It’s why you will often find a Luigi creation in the hands of the world’s most famous connoisseurs. A thing of beauty is born to be appreciated and so what if this draws jealous looks from the finest wines. A Luigi does your home proud, to be sure.

Soft Furnishing Indulge your sense of touch and sight, with our soft furnishings. Cushion and throws in a gentle variety of textures, patterns and hues.

Furniture Market, Kirti Nagar, Delhi | Call us at +91 91520 22713

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TRENDSPOTTING A curated collection of design for the

home

STYLIST SAMIR WADEKAR

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1. ‘Verde Azuro’ granite, `2,500 per square foot, Classic Marble Company. 2. ‘Star’ shelf, Nada Debs. 3. Slatted pine armchairs by Mario Ceroli (pair), Rose Uniacke. 4. ‘Anatomy’ tray, `1,800, Raydendesign.com.

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1. ‘Reverie’ (8x10 feet) carpet from the Colors of Life collection, `2,95,000, Cocoon Fine Rugs 2. ‘Dionia’ (SCL640N) ceiling lamp, `3,34,000, Swarovski Lighting. 3. ‘Shinto’ console by Jumbo Collection, Seetu Kohli Home. 4. ‘Navone’ armchair, `46,610, Blue Loft.

5. ‘Cunningham’ stool, `17,000, Jandrguram.com.

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Antiques q & Eccentricitiess

Opp. Regal Cinema, Museum, Mumbai, 400001 | Tel: 022-22020564 enquiry@phillipsantiques.com | www.phillipsantiques.com

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1. ‘Malay’ (5x8 feet) wool-and-bamboo-silk carpet, `58,000, Qaaleen. 2. ‘Champa’ (serpentine, onyx and marble) nesting tables, `4,23,000, The Lél Collection. 3. Stone hand, `6,986, Ecruonline.com. 4. ‘Babylon’ sofa, `19,82,000, Visionnaire. 5. ‘Ribbon Dance’ dinner plate by HRH Princess Michael of Kent, Thomas Goode.

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1. ‘Nubra’ (blush) fabric from the Luxvara collection, `2,600 per metre, VAYA. 2. ‘Big Sweat’ lamp, `84,700, Dokter and Misses.

3. ‘Shard’ table, Stephen Antonson. 4. ‘Fusion’ daybed, `3,89,450, BoConcept. 5. ‘Charcoal’ vase, `3,450, Ishatvam.

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Vero Air c-bonded. Now with the new bathroom furniture series Brioso.

With its consistent rectangular formal language, the Vero Air bathroom series is synonymous with architectural and straight bathroom design. The patented c-bonded technology seamlessly combines the washbasin and vanity unit. Shown here with the Brioso vanity unit in Chestnut Dark. For more information: +91 79 66112300, marketing.india@in.duravit.com or www.duravit.in

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1. ‘Sintra’ buffet plate, `2,200, Perennedesign.com. 2. ‘Stripe’ rug, Molteni&C. 3. ‘BOS’ Saint-Laurent marble vases by Christophe Delcourt, `1,59,000 (small), `1,95,000 (medium) and `2,98,000 (large), Collection Particulière. 4. ‘Drum’ solid-bronze centre table (26-inch diameter), `4,50,000, Taannaz. 5. ‘No 172’ dining chair, `2,18,000, Ruemmler.

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For details, see Stockists 1. ‘Myriad Dreams’ vinyl wallpaper by Eesha Chordia for Inkiostro Bianco, `1,250 per square foot, Intersekt. 2. ‘Disc’ coffee table, `85,000, IDUS. 3. Sofa from the Aquiloni collection, `2,42,000, Derek Castiglioni. 4. ‘Small Bottle’ (dry mustard) and ‘Small Pod’ (matt pink) porcelain vases by Sophie Cook, `21,000 each, Maud and Mabel.

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WHEN LUXURY MEETS ART

Renowned for hosting the most distinctive bespoke experiences for residents, Lodha Luxury’s scintillating World Villas served as the perfect backdrop for an exclusive art soiree in association with DAG

T

astefully designed interiors.

Impressive architectural structures. Excellent hospitality.

While these might be the markers of living the good life, they aren’t the only ones. Today, luxury has become an experience in itself. Instead of being fleeting or transient, it is something that evokes a deep sense of emotion. And this can truly be defined through exclusive or bespoke experiences, designed to encourage the concept of living large.

Reflecting every discerning individual’s instinctive need to bring these specially curated experiences to life is Lodha Luxury. A collection of rare, exquisite residences, each property from its notable atelier, be it the swish Lodha Altamount or the legendary No 1 Grosvenor Square, Mayfair in London, offers a wealth of exclusive experiences. Think hospitality services by St Amand, a concierge at your service and sleek Rolls-Royces pulling up on-call.

At the forefront of it all is Vinti Lodha, Advisor to Lodha Luxury, who perfectly illustrated the idea of bespoke experiences on acquiring the 1937 Picasso masterpiece, La Plage, Juan-les-Pins, which now graces the lobby of Lodha Altamount. Pulling off a feat of this proportion was a highly admirable endeavour. Moreover, Lodha Luxury also curated A Tryst with Art and Architecture, an event held at Lodha Altamount that shed light on the architectural and design philosophies of Rajiv Saini and Hadi Tehrani.

Lodha Luxury’s World Villas recently hosted an evening of art that brought together Mumbai’s

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crème-de-la-crème to admire the work of influential artists Picasso and F N Souza.

CELEBRATING ART WITH DAG When it comes to curating the most unique experiences, Lodha Luxury does this effortlessly through its varied events. Speaking of which, a beautiful evening of art unfolded at the prestigious World Villas at World One, designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners.

This exclusive art colonnade was recently hosted by Lodha Luxury, in association with DAG. Considered to be one of India’s most reputed modern art organisations, DAG aims to take Indian modernism to a wider audience. Set against a stunning backdrop, art connoisseurs such as Catherine Grenier, President of the Giacometti Foundation mingled with others at The Pinnacle, 65th floor, The World Villas, World One, with sweeping views of the sea.

Bringing the works of two great masters under one roof, the event displayed some of the most notable paintings in art—La Plage, Juan-lesPins by Pablo Picasso (1937) which is

housed at Lodha Altamount and Man and Woman Laughing by FN Souza (1957). This artful evening culminated with an intriguing discussion on the evolution of modern art at an elegant private dinner held at the property. “Both ‘La Plage’ and ‘Man and Woman Laughing’ encapsulate a jarring period witnessed by the artists, and perfectly manifests their emotions while engaging with their time,” said Catherine Grenier.

Speaking about the impact of art, Vinti Lodha, who also attended the event said, “It gives us immense pleasure to be able to display the

riveting works of Picasso and Souza, and host veterans like Catherine.

Lodha Luxury has always been about celebrating the finer nuances of life and we’re elated to curate such a tailored experience for our seasoned audience.”

Be it unique interactions or extraordinary showcases of art, Lodha Luxury promises its privileged residents some of the world’s finest experiences, without them having to look too far.

For more information, visit www.lodhaluxury.com

‘312/S’ SUNGLASSES, MARC J

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S E R P I EN T AR I TU VLG BOGA S’ DOUBLE-SPIRAL WATCH, B

AC OB S

BEIGE STRAW AND BLACK GROSGRAIN HAT, CHANEL

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THE GOOD LIFE From fashion to design, this is the latest in luxury

‘PU RE ARFUM BY PA C O RAB DE P AN AU NE ’E , PA XS RC OS

STYLIST RAVNEET CHANNA

EARRINGS ,

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TOWEL, HERMÈS

A ‘GL OBE MEG MASTER’ WATCH, O ‘MY LOGO’ BRIEFCASE, VALEXTRA

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OOTH SPEAKER, U BOOM’ BLUET LTIM DER A T E ON EA ‘W RS

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ACETATE SUNGLASSES, PERSOL

‘L.U.C TIME TR WATCAVELER O N H, CH OPAR E’ D

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For details, see Stockists

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At Asian Paints, we have been studying colour and its myriad influences on lifestyle in India since 2003. And year after year, we are fascinated by the stories that emerge out of the chaotic, creative landscape that is this country. Bringing together the best of design and research principles, Asian Paints ColourNext is the most decisive voice on colour in India. The Asian Paints Colour Marketing team collaborates with the finest purveyors of design from a wide range of disciplines â&#x20AC;&#x201D; architecture, interiors, fashion, sociology, advertising, F&B and media â&#x20AC;&#x201D;to put together the most comprehensive guide to colours, materials, textures and finishes for those who design for India.

To act.

To choose, To speak up, with words or without.

To question, to reject.

To wake up.

Because, to stay woke is to be alive.

Courage | Optimistic | Woke

AWAKENING The Asian Paints colour of 2019 is Awakening â&#x20AC;&#x201D; a shade of plum, alive with the dynamism of being woke. The dignity and power of purple fused with the humility of brown, it personifies the strength to stand up when it matters. And, to dig in your heels with confidence. Awakening is the courage to lead the change.

For more information, visit: Website: www.asianpaints.com/colournext, Youtube: youtube.com/asianpaintsindia, Facebook: facebook.com/AsianPaints.in, Twitter: twitter.com/asianpaints, Instagram: www.instagram.com/asianpaints

Welcome to a radical new natural! Materials of the future are reinventing the future of material.

Organic at its root, laboratory cultured bacterial pigments and algae dyes inspire a living colour palette. Alive with a natural luminescence, biodynamic colours are a definite departure from traditional earthy hues. Textures reflect inner structures of organic matter while materials and decor echo the synergy between technology and contemporary craftsmanship.

Anchored in the intensely human connection with nature and a resurgent confidence in maximal expression, Enchanted brings alive surreal visions in our spaces. Dense, deep colours tell of a mythical landscape, as real as it is imagined. Subtle metallics render a touch of iridescence. The outsized takes centre stage in patterns and prints, celebrating the spectacle of life in all its lush wilderness.

Adulting ainâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s play and the new kids on the design block are creating fuss-free spaces that adapt to changing needs. Bright, perky colours punctuate practical greys. Bold typefaces make a comeback to create spaces that are unafraid of attention. Repurposed material, multifunctional design and curious objects speak of a need to be creative and expressive for a generation that is redefining growing up.

The world of luxury is in flux â&#x20AC;&#x201C; inheritance is no longer a shortcut or a guarantee. A new wave of story tellers with immersive and intimate stories that celebrate the creator and the process is breaking down traditional codes of luxe. The palette is timeless and complete, stylish rather than trendy. Celebrating the innate beauty of metals, textiles and more, the artisanal trumps the artificial.

THE 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL ARCHITECTS & INTERIOR DESIGNERS IN THE SUBCONTINENT I N A S S O C I AT I O N W I T H

• ABHA NARAIN LAMBAH ASSOCIATES • ABIN DESIGN STUDIO • ABM ARCHITECTS • ABRAHAM JOHN ARCHITECTS • ABU JANI SANDEEP KHOSLA • ADIL AHMAD • ALVA ARCHITECTS • ANAGRAM ARCHITECTS • ANNKUR KHOSLA DESIGN STUDIO • ARCHITECT HAFEEZ CONTRACTOR • ARCHITECTURE BRIO • ARTHA STUDIO • ASHIESH SHAH ARCHITECT • AVA STUDIO • AYUSH KASLIWAL DESIGN • BANDUKSMITHSTUDIO • CASE DESIGN • CLAY ARCHITECTURE & INTERIORS • CORMAC LYNCH • DEMURO DAS

• DESIGN BY DARSHINI SHAH • DESIGN CONSULTANTS • DEVI DESIGN • DIDI CONTRACTOR • DOMINIC DUBE INGE RIECK ARCHITECTURE STUDIO (DDIR) • ECRU • ELSIE NANJI • FAQUIH AND ASSOCIATES • IMPECCABLE IMAGINATION • INI CHATTERJI & ASSOCIATES • IQRUP DESIGN • IRAM SULTAN DESIGN STUDIO • ISLA MARIA ‘LOULOU’ VAN DAMME • K2INDIA • KARAN GROVER & ASSOCIATES • KASHEF CHOWDHURY/ URBANA • KHOSLA ASSOCIATES • KUNAL MANIAR & ASSOCIATES

• LAB • LIJO.RENY.ARCHITECTS • MALIK ARCHITECTURE • MANCINI ENTERPRISES • MARIE-ANNE OUDEJANS • MATHAROO ASSOCIATES • MATHEW AND GHOSH • MATRA ARCHITECTS AND RURBAN PLANNERS • MICD ASSOCIATES • MORPHOGENESIS • MUSELAB DESIGN ENGINE • NAYYAR ALI DADA & ASSOCIATES • NETERWALA AND AIBARA INTERIOR ARCHITECTS • NOTE-D • NOZER WADIA ASSOCIATES • NUDES • _OPOLIS • ORPROJECT • PALINDA KANNANGARA ARCHITECTS • PAVITRA RAJARAM DESIGN • PINAKIN DESIGN

A S S O C I AT E PA R T N E R

• PRISM • RAJEEV AGARWAL ARCHITECTS • RAJIV SAINI + ASSOCIATES • RAVI VAZIRANI • RED ARCHITECTS • REDDYMADE • REFLECTIONS • RITU NANDA DESIGNS • RMA ARCHITECTS • ROMI KHOSLA DESIGN STUDIO • ROOSHAD SHROFF • SABYASACHI MUKHERJEE • SANJAY PURI ARCHITECTS • SERIE ARCHITECTS • SEZA • SHATOTTO • SHROFFLEÓN • SIMONE DUBASH PANDOLE • SITE PRACTICE • SJK ARCHITECTS • SP+A • SPASM DESIGN

• STAPATI • STUDIO ARCHOHM • STUDIO HBA • STUDIO LOTUS • STUDIO MUMBAI • STUDIO ORGANON • STUDIO POMEGRANATE • SUSSANNE KHAN • TALATI & PANTHAKY ASSOCIATED • TANYA SINGH STUDIO • TARUN TAHILIANI • THE ORANGE LANE • UNTITLED DESIGN CONSULTANTS • VAISHALI KAMDAR ASSOCIATES • VASTUSHILPA CONSULTANTS • VIKAS DILAWARI ARCHITECTS • VIKRAM GOYAL • VIR.MUELLER ARCHITECTS • ZZ ARCHITECTS

Mumbai

RAHUL MEHROTRA, ROBERT STEPHENS, NONDITA CORREA MEHROTRA, PAYAL PATEL, ROMIL SHETH

Highlight: The firm was awarded a special mention at the 2018 Venice Biennale.What’s New: Mehrotra, along with conservationist and heritage management consultant Amita Baig, released a book in August last year, titled Taj Mahal: Multiple Narratives.

rmaarchitects.com

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Words of Wisdom: “We all forget that architecture is the only thing that survives over history. People die, thoughts die, literature lives on, art lives on and architecture lives on.”

Hallmark: Thirty-six years of creating high-quality, sophisticated residences that combine a thoughtful aesthetic with integrity.

“I choose to practise my profession the way it is meant to be, which is only for my clients and me to know.”

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

FEATURED ON PAGE 302 STUDIO MUMBAI

Mumbai

BIJOY JAIN

Signature: A remarkable facility to work with the inherent strengths of natural materials.

Words of Wisdom: “Oftentimes, I’m mistaken for being a minimalist of some kind for using simple materials, but once we go beyond our conditioning and recognize materials for their value rather than price, then it’s just a matter of how they are appropriated and applied.”

PHOTOS: BHARATH RAMAMRUTHAM.

RMA ARCHITECTS

FEATURED ON PAGE 328 NOZER WADIA ASSOCIATES Mumbai

VASTUSHILPA CONSULTANTS Ahmedabad

BV DOSHI, RAJEEV KATHPALIA, SÖNKE HOOF, KHUSHNU PANTHAKI HOOF, RADHIKA DOSHI KATHPALIA

Project in Focus: In response to the client’s desire for an annexure to an existing house in Ahmedabad (pictured above), Sönke Hoof went vertical and appended an extension to the top, crafting a tranquil, minimalist space in wood and creating a wall out of louvred slats to calibrate the sunlight filtering through.

Collaborations: Sönke Hoof is currently working with Shigeru Ban on a pavilion design in Amravati; Khushnu Panthaki Hoof with the Vitra Design Museum on a retrospective exhibition of BV Doshi— and the office as a whole with various craftsmen depending on the project requirements.

sangath.org

DELHI SHOWROOM: 218, 223 DLF Grand Mall, Second Floor, MG Road, Gurgaon | Tel: 124-4108800/9900 MUMBAI OFFICE: 1115-11th Floor, Hubtown Solaris, NS Phadke Marg, Andheri East, Mumbai - 400069 WWW.RAVISHVOHRAHOME.COM

MATHAROO ASSOCIATES Ahmedabad

GURJIT SINGH MATHAROO

Project in Focus: In a western suburb of Ahmedabad are squat, two-storey double blocks mirroring each other’s structural proportions. The Kadappa-sandstone-clad ‘boxes’ (pictured left) form a seamless choreography with the bare concrete that breaks up their monotony, and runs throughout the spaces, mimicking the fluid movements of a ‘Mobius strip’. Architectural Icon: Casa Malaparte, on Punta Massullo, on the eastern side of the isle of Capri, Italy—conceived by architect Adalberto Libera.

PHOTO: EDMUND SUMNER.

matharooassociates.com

STUDIO LOTUS New Delhi

Mumbai

MOHAK MEHTA, PALLAVI CHOKSI,

Profile: A champion of the India Modern design sensibility, Pinakin Patel’s brand of refined minimalism leveraged site and context to create compelling architecture—until a few years ago. Protégés Mohak Mehta and Pallavi Choksi lead the firm now. Architectural Icons: Tadao Ando’s buildings—the minimal thoughts behind them and their intrinsic link with the environment.

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Project in Focus: Mauritius was the backdrop for the firm’s first international project, titled House in a Garden (pictured right). A space that originated from an idea to “build a veranda” amidst bright bucolic greenery led to an inside-outside space interwoven with existing trees, and interiors lush with a rich private art collection against a contemporary canvas. Design Discoveries: Project 810 headed by Vritima Wadhwa, Rohit Sharma’s Headlight Design and Studio Incept by Nidhi Aggarwal.

studiolotus.in

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

PHOTO: KARL AHNEE.

PINAKIN DESIGN

SIDHARTHA TALWAR, AMBRISH ARORA, ANKUR CHOKSI

PHOTO: RAVI KANADE AND SAMYA GHATAK.

DEMURO DAS Gurugram BRIAN DEMURO, PURU DAS, KANU AGRAWAL

Project in Focus: The Mumbai skyline becomes as much of a talking point in this 5,000-square-foot duplex (pictured below) in Malabar Hill as the custom-designed furniture and Indian masters seen through the house—along with a striking blue staircase that spirals to the upper floor.

demurodas.com

ABIN DESIGN STUDIO Kolkata ABIN CHAUDHARI

Project in Focus: A nondescript existing structure (pictured above)—an extension to the main house—was given a boldly contemporary transformation. A curved, louvred metallic facade with rectilinear openings has been scooped out of the facade to form a dialogue with the outside. Bright walls, sparse furnishing and dramatic red flooring completed the look of Sweeping Shadows. Architectural Icon: Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto’s housing tower in Montpellier, France.

abindesignstudio.com

SJK ARCHITECTS Mumbai

SHIMUL JAVERI KADRI

Recent Projects: A museum for Jain heritage in Koba, Gujarat; an eco-resort in Maharashtra; a house in a mango orchard in Alibag; a crafts centre in Mumbai.

Design Discoveries: Mumbai-based Abby Lighting; graphic designers Paper Pixel and Tarasha Designworks.

sjkarchitect.com

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

UNTITLED DESIGN CONSULTANTS New Delhi

AMRITA GUHA, JOYA NANDURDIKAR

Coming Up: Penthouses in The Camellias, Gurugram; a 1930s Victorian residence in Oxford, UK; two farmhouses in Chhattarpur, New Delhi.

Architectural Icon: The work of Carlos Zapata— “The Landes House is an absolute favourite”.

untitleddesign.org

MATRA ARCHITECTS AND RURBAN PLANNERS New Delhi VERENDRA WAKHLOO

Design Discoveries: The work of Karan Darda Architects and Saurabh Malpani of Artha Studio, Pune. Architectural Icons: The Louis Kahn-designed Fisher House in Pennsylvania; Bijoy Jain’s Copper House in Alibag, Mumbai; MN Ashish Ganju’s Architect’s House in Delhi.

matra.co.in

KHOSLA ASSOCIATES Bengaluru SANDEEP KHOSLA, AMARESH ANAND

PHOTO: SAMEER TAWDE.

Project in Focus: Two L-shaped units are connected by a common baithak disguised as a veranda in this Bengaluru home (pictured below). The timber jali screens, polished cement walls, local stone and patterned terrazzo tiles seem completely at home in what is the city’s oldest and greenest lung. Recent Projects: A house in Poes Garden, Chennai; a home on a 250acre coffee plantation in Wayanad, Kerala; a house in Mysuru.

khoslaassociates.com

PHOTO: PRANAV YADALAM.

NEW FOR 2019 MUSELAB DESIGN ENGINE Mumbai JASEM PIRANI, HUZEFA RANGWALA

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

Project in Focus: The opulence of this 1,500-square-foot home in Mumbai (pictured above) is tempered with the richness of art deco references, a rigorous geometric symmetry and a pastel tone on the walls; the simplicity is layered with lush jacquard textiles.

Signature: Patterning and putting colours together, obsessively custom-designing every minute detail, and finding inspiration in everyday objects.

muselab.in

DESIGN BY DARSHINI SHAH Mumbai

Recent Projects: Director Imtiaz Ali’s residence, the boutique office for Window Seat Films and Reliance Media, producer and director of Maddock Films Dinesh Vijan’s bachelor pad and weekend retreat—all in Mumbai; a bungalow in Ahmedabad; and homes in Dubai and New York.

Architectural Icon: Umaid Bhawan Palace hotel in Jodhpur, Rajasthan.

NEW FOR 2019 DOMINIC DUBE INGE RIECK ARCHITECTURE STUDIO (DDIR) Bengaluru

DOMINIC DUBE

Philosophy: DDIR’s architectural oeuvre embodies minimalist forms that explore simplicity in material. Influences: “There are many, but if I had to name one, it would be Kazuyo Sejima, from SANAA.” Coming Up: Exploring an opportunity of opening a market in Côte d’Ivoire.

ddirarchitecture.com

IRAM SULTAN DESIGN STUDIO New Delhi

Project in Focus: Upending notions of the archetypal Asian restaurant, New Delhi’s Triple 8 (pictured left)—primarily a wine bar—contrasts a deep burgundy palette with black and white, and wooden flooring with brass-accented tables. The Asian aesthetic comes through in the custom-designed lanterns.

Architectural Icon: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater— “This never changes.”

PHOTO: DEEPAK AGGARWAL.

iramsultan.com

FAQUIH AND ASSOCIATES Mumbai KAIF FAQUIH, BAHAAR FAQUIH

Architectural Icons: Can Lis—the Jorn Utzon house in Mallorca; Khirki Masjid in New Delhi. Influences: “The bamboo construction work of South East Asia, stereotomy [the art of cutting solid, threedimensional objects] in India—works by anonymous architects who have left delightful secrets that have been more insightful than influential.”

faquihandassociates.net

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PRISM Bengaluru VINITA CHAITANYA

Design Discoveries: House of Hackney, “a British brand I recently worked with”; recently launched fabric brand VAYA; designer Bambi Sloan, “whom I discovered when I stayed at the Saint James Paris”. Collaborations: Viya Home for site-specific commissions, Sicis for certain customizations, FCML for bespoke designs on tiles, Eggersmann for custom-made kitchens and Andy Fisher Workshop in Singapore for a Bengaluru project.

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

vinitachaitanya.com

ISLA MARIA ‘LOULOU’ VAN DAMME

Kodaikanal/Mumbai

Recent Projects: A contemporary holiday home in Assagao, guesthouses Ahilya by the Sea on Coco Beach and Champakali in Old Goa; visual merchandising and events for Bungalow 8; Raw Mango’s Bengaluru and New Delhi stores; a duplex in Maharani Bagh, New Delhi for Jeh and Anita Bajaj.

Collaboration: With LAB’s Shonan Purie Trehan for the structural overhaul of a Maharani Bagh home.

ANAGRAM ARCHITECTS New Delhi MADHAV RAMAN, VAIBHAV DIMRI

What’s New: The firm created the design of the pavilion at the Cabral Yard in Fort Kochi for the 2018 Kochi-Muziris Biennale, for which they worked with Bengaluru-based structural consultant, BL Manjunath.

Collaborations: With Experiential Design Lab on an interactive installation, titled OK Computer, at the STIR Gallery in Chhattarpur, New Delhi.

anagramarchitects.com

NEW FOR 2019 IMPECCABLE IMAGINATION Mumbai/Dubai

AMBIKA HINDUJA MACKER

PHOTO: ANDREW BRADLEY.

Project in Focus: The spectacular interiors (pictured right) of an unimposing Mumbai property wrapped around in greenery, almost rival its enviable location on the beach—with a living room that is overlooked by a Joseph Walsh Magnus installation suspended from the ceiling. What’s New: The launch of The Dabba Luminaire, a light installation Macker designed.

impeccableimagination.com

THE ORANGE LANE Mumbai

SHABNAM GUPTA

Clients: Kangana Ranaut, Mini Mathur and Kabir Khan, Prakriti and Rohit Poddar, Natashaa Shroff, Nibhrant Shah. Design Discoveries: Mumbaibased Objects of Interest for decorative lights; New Delhi-based Inka for handprinted cotton; and Tattva, an online store for knobs and handles. Architectural Icon: Geoffrey Bawa’s Lunuganga Estate in Sri Lanka.

PHOTO: ALAN ABRAHAM.

shabnamgupta.in

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

NEW FOR 2019 REDDYMADE New York SUCHI REDDY

Recent Projects: Prototyping a sensory healing room for patients recovering from comas, for the International Arts + Minds Lab at the Brain Science Institute at Johns Hopkins University, “highlighting the studio’s focus on neuro-aesthetics”; the interior design of 40,000 square feet of amenities for the Estates at Acqualina, in Sunny Isles, Florida; houses in New York, California and Rhode Island.

rmdny.com

NEW FOR 2019 ABRAHAM JOHN ARCHITECTS Mumbai ABRAHAM JOHN, ALAN ABRAHAM

Project in Focus: A contemporary, modern design worked within vastu principles and leveraged local conditions to create the tranquil Chhavi House (pictured left) in Jodhpur, a residential villa approached by a floating staircase and fronted by lush greenery. Philosophy: “We like a sense of openness, we like earthy materials, and we like to keep things simple,” says cofounder Alan Abraham. Clients: Hrithik Roshan, John Abraham, Tiger Shroff, Jackie and Ayesha Shroff, Rohit Sharma.

abrahamjohnarchitects.com

Contact: india@andreuworld.com

Reverse Conference

by Piergiorgio Cazzaniga Nuez Chair

by Piergiorgio Cazzaniga

Gurgaon Showroom F-2/20, DLF Phase-1 Gurugram-122002

Bangalore Showroom #8/4 Ulsoor Road, Bangalore 560042

Delhi Showroom S-101 Okhla, Phase-2 Delhi-110020-India

Pune Showroom 3a,3b, Siddharth Court Society, Off Dhole Patil Road, Pune

NEW FOR 2019 SERIE ARCHITECTS Mumbai/London

KAPIL GUPTA, CHRISTOPHER LEE

PHOTO COURTESY OF ART JAMEEL

Project in Focus: The Jameel Arts Centre (pictured left) in Dubai was conceived as a collection of forms threaded together by a colonnade and interspersed with courtyards—letting a culture of nature assimilate itself within a versatile cultural centre. Signature: Material innovation, rigorous spatial geometries, contemporary sensibilities— all contained within the context of site, programme and topography.

serie.co.uk

Architectural Icon: Villa Além—by Swiss architect Valerio Olgiati—in Alentejo, a rural village in central Portugal. Design Discoveries: Italian architect Antonino Cardillo; New York-based fashion designer Emily Bode for the use of textiles, quilts and upholstery; New York-based furnituremaker Dmitriy & Co; French design firm Normal Studio.

note-d.in

NEW FOR 2019 RED ARCHITECTS Mumbai

RAJIV PAREKH, EKTA PAREKH, APOORVA SHROFF, MAITHILI RAUT

Philosophy: A contextual response that emerges through a rigour of process, transcends fads and offers an enriching spatial experience. Architectural Icon: Diller Scofidio + Renfro’s High Line project. “A landmark architectural intervention sensitively integrated into the urban fabric of New York,” says Ekta.

redarchitects.in

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ABHA NARAIN LAMBAH ASSOCIATES Mumbai

Recent Projects: The Jhalawar Dak Bangla for the Rajasthan government; her home in Goa: “I have spent 25 years restoring other people’s homes and wanted to own a 100-year-old property that I could conserve, redesign and add a new wing to.”

Architectural Icons: Fallingwater by Frank Lloyd Wright, in India, Ladakh’s royal Stok Palace, owned by Raja Jigmed Namgyal.

ASHIESH SHAH ARCHITECT Mumbai

anlassociates.com

NEW FOR 2019 RAJEEV AGARWAL ARCHITECTS New Delhi

Signature: A unique design language founded entirely in seeking out original solutions to given contexts.

Recent Project: The second Experimenter gallery in Ballygunge, Kolkata.

Ongoing: Lakefront villas in Vedic Village Spa Resort, Kolkata; residential developments in Hyderabad and Bilaspur; Neemrana Resort in Rajasthan; a school in Kendujhar, Odisha.

rajeevagarwal.com

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

PHOTO: FABIEN CHARUAU.

NOTE-D Mumbai SMITA KHANNA, HEMANT PUROHIT

Project in Focus: A lingam bench in the foyer, a rich natural material palette, clean lines, greenery as embellishment and the seamless movement within— Shah’s trademark is apparent in the elegance of this Mumbai apartment (pictured left). Design Discoveries: Tiipoi—“This London-based brand works with small-scale workshops and craftsmen.”

Mathieu Lehanneur—“His approach to creativity is spectacular.” Collaboration: Chivas Regal “to create a concrete-cast installation inspired by the famous stepwells of India for their recently launched special festive edition”.

ashieshshah.com

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K2INDIA

MORPHOGENESIS

SUNITA AND KOHELIKA KOHLI

SONALI AND MANIT RASTOGI

New Delhi

Recent Projects: The Bhavnagar Residence, Gujarat, whose original structure was designed by Charles Correa; the Titus Museum of Transportation and Collectibles, together with a 16,000-square-foot country home and law chambers for Diljeet Titus in New Delhi.

k2india.com

New Delhi

What’s New: Ahmedabad’s Zydus headquarters involved making the largest doubly curved microclimate screen. Ongoing: Aligarh and Port Blair smart cities; the ITC Inner Harbour Hotel in Sri Lanka and the ITC Hotel in Nepal; the residential Summerset Terraces in South Africa; Malalay University, Afghanistan and Nima College, Bhutan.

morphogenesis.org

_OPOLIS Mumbai SONAL SANCHETI, RAHUL GORE

Architectural Icon: Le Corbusier’s Sarabhai House, Ahmedabad.

Collaborations: With Maki and Associates, Japan for the Bihar Museum, and Zurich-based Mach Architektur for an Ahmedabad store, “where the tag line of the products was art meets engineering”.

Ongoing: Healthcare, institutional and sports infrastructure, and private homes in Pune, New Delhi, and the interiors of Maharashtra.

opolis.in

SANJAY PURI ARCHITECTS Mumbai

Project in Focus: Running along a wedge-shaped site, The Street (pictured above)—a hostel on a university campus in Mathura—adheres to its topography.

The coloured blocks lend a sense of identity within a contextual whole. Collaborations: A lighting installation with Klove; with Radha Patel, a 20-foottall steel sculpture outside an Ahmedabad office building and another 10-foot-tall piece outside a Navi Mumbai office.

sanjaypuriarchitects.com

Project in Focus: Looking like it has been gently placed in the heart of pristine Shola forests in the Western Ghats in south India is Estate House (pictured right). This house in a pepper plantation has been designed as two small wings under a slate roof with a large opening and an architectural language that plays into its singular surroundings.

Design Discovery: German furniture brand Nils Holger Moormann. Architectural Icon: Pierre Chareau and Bernard Bijvoet’s Maison de Verre, or House of Glass, in Paris—built in 1932.

mancini-design.com

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

PHOTO COURTESY OF MANCINI ENTERPRISES.

MANCINI ENTERPRISES Chennai BHARATH RAM K, JT ARIMA, NIELS SCHOENFELDER

PHOTO: PHOTOGRAPHIX/SEBASTIAN ZACHARIAH & IRA GOSALIA.

SPASM DESIGN Mumbai SANJEEV PANJABI, SANGEETA MERCHANT

Project in Focus: The design for House of Secret Gardens (pictured above) in Ahmedabad is eloquently expressed in the local Dhrangadhra stone—as giant vertical blocks that form a periphery, and as a border to frame the edges, which allows the sprawling, open house to be encased within the greenery.

Design Discovery: “The Chilean school of architects— Mathias Klotz, Felipe Assadi, Smiljan Radic, Pezo von Ellrichshausen, Alejandro Aravena.” Architectural Icons: Geoffrey Bawa’s Lunuganga—“It is the ideal collection of little buildings in the form of a beautiful residence, and his [other residence at] Bagatelle Road, Colombo.”

spasmindia.com

NEW FOR 2019 STUDIO ARCHOHM Noida

SOURABH GUPTA

Design Discoveries: Gomaads, Knock on Wood, Design Factory India, dtours India. Collaborations: Ivanka for concrete tiles, Terreal for terracotta panels.

Architectural Icon: Fallingwater by Frank Lloyd Wright.

archohm.com

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VAISHALI KAMDAR ASSOCIATES New Delhi

Design Discoveries: Bengaluru-based furniture brand Phantom Hands; textile designer Peter D’Ascoli; Amsterdam-based architecutre firm X+L Design; Studio Oliver Gustav from Copenhagen; New York-based design firm Apparatus Studio; Danish company &Tradition.

Collaborations: Abhimanyu Dalal on a 21,000-square-foot New Delhi “farmhouse” and Arvind D’Souza Architects for a 9,000-square-foot home in Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

MALIK ARCHITECTURE Mumbai

KAMAL AND ARJUN MALIK, KETAN CHAUDHARY

What’s New: Working with masons in Jaipur to create a house made entirely out of stone (pictured right), which “will be instructive in the future use of stone as a sustainable building material”.

Architectural Icon: The raw-plank finished concrete house designed by Matra Architects in New Delhi.

malikarchitecture.com

RAJIV SAINI + ASSOCIATES Mumbai

Project in Focus: On a tight plot in New Delhi, for a multi-generational family home (pictured right) spread across four storeys, Saini leveraged the exposed concrete exterior to build a narrative of strong, robust interior architecture.

Embellished with a visually distinct material palette, solid wood furniture, crisp, clean layout and staggering art, the house speaks an eloquent language that Saini has refined into high art.

Architectural Icons: The Milan House in São Paulo, Brazil by Marcos Acayaba; John Lautner homes.

PHOTO: EDMUND SUMNER.

rajivsaini.com

PHOTO: SEBASTIAN POSINGIS.

PALINDA KANNANGARA ARCHITECTS Sri Lanka

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Project in Focus: In the busy heart of Colombo, a modestly sized 1970s house (pictured left) underwent a metamorphosis in the hands of Kannangara. His Urban Sanctum engages with its surroundings, but stays hidden from neighbourhood views, courtesy of a wall of vegetation that wraps around it. An entertainment area was scooped out from the splitlevel, rooftop slab.

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

palindakannangara.com

ROOSHAD SHROFF

ZZ ARCHITECTS

Clients: Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja for their London and New Delhi apartments. Collaborations: With UK-based fashion designer Ambrita Shahani, a furniture collection using pressed flowers.

Architectural Icon: The 1111 building in Miami, “which is a parking garage with the most beautiful penthouse on the rooftop, owned by the developer for the project, Robert Wennett”.

KRUPA ZUBIN, ZUBIN ZAINUDDIN

Mumbai

rooshadshroff.com

Mumbai

Recent Projects: Over 30 homes across the country—from 2,500square-foot apartments to 60,000-square-foot private mansions. Design Discoveries: Works at Rossana Orlandi’s Milanese gallery; Nendo’s recent exploration of 50 chairs inspired by Manga—“It is such a joyful exploration of design at its inquisitive best.”

zzarchitects.net

PASSION TRIBE:

S P E C I A L F E AT U R E

COLLECTOR

Mandeep’s creations

Swish Sneakerhead Mandeep at Sommerset 313

THE

A dynamic entrepreneur. A footwear fanatic. Meet Mandeep Chopra, a man who is efficiently weaving new strands into Singapore’s sartorial setting CÉ LA VI at Marina Bay Sands

Favourites in Singapore

PHOTOS: THE HOUSE OF PIXELS

Place: CÉ LA VI, Marina Bay Sands for its music and city view Food: ABC Market Food, Hokkien Mee

M

andeep Chopra’s sneaker passion and the discovery of his calling began when he was a boy. From a very young age, he was drawn to shoes in particular, sneakers—captivated by their designs. He fondly recalls being deeply fascinated by Stan Smiths, Air Force Ones and Mickey Cortezas. And so, he made the effort to understand the types of shoes athletes wore around the world, back when sneakers were only worn for sports.

Mandeep’s grandfather moved to Singapore in 1949 and since then, they have called this island home. He wanted to promote the sneaker culture in Singapore and to showcase the great potential he saw in this athleisure trend. Finally, in 2003, he opened, at Queensway Shopping Centre, Singapore’s first dedicated sneaker boutique, as a tribute to the place that allowed him to develop his passion and turn it into a business.

Mandeep has been an integral part of Singapore’s sneaker culture and was pivotal in taking his family business to where it is today, with nine speciality sneaker stores across Queensway Shopping Centre, Mandeep at Queensway Peninsula Shopping Centre, 313@Somerset and Marina Shopping Centre Bay Sands.

In 2003, Limited Edt was a unique store with trendy designs that drew inspiration from Singapore’s metropolitan lifestyles. Today, Mandeep collaborates on projects with big sneaker and sport-lifestyle brands like Adidas, Reebok and more to create niche sneaker projects exclusively available at Limited Edt, along with his originals.

Given the changing retail landscape, Mandeep believes that the only reason his vision has survived is because he’s extremely passionate and gives his customers immersive and unique in-store retail experiences. He has driven and promoted Culture Cartel, a unique street festival celebrating a mix of art, fashion and technology, to bring Singapore and Asia closer together to share, collaborate and create. After spending 18 years in the business, Mandeep smiles as he says, “There’s no place I’d rather be!”

Design Discovery: “The amazing new public park at Sunder Nursery, designed by the late Mohammad Shaheer—possibly India’s finest landscape architect.

It is undoubtedly New Delhi’s great new public space.” Collaboration: A new museum and cultural centre in Noida with Thomas Phifer and Partners and BuroHappold Engineering.

virmueller.com

MATHEW AND GHOSH Bengaluru NISHA MATHEW, SOUMITRO GHOSH

Clients: Writer Usha Anandakrishna and Ram Ramasamy—“We completed [their Bengaluru home] in 2018 and have begun a second one for them in Conoor.” Design Discovery: eleatzHOME, a Bengalurubased home-decor studio.

Architectural Icon: Casa Malaparte in Capri, designed by Italian architect Adalberto Libera.

mathewghosh.com

AVA STUDIO New Delhi ALINA VADERA

Clients: Priya Paul, Urvi Jindal. Design Discoveries: The Flame Store in Candolim, Goa; HummingHaus carpets.

Architectural Icon: The JW Schaffer House in Glendale, California by John Lautner. Collaborations: With fashion designer Amit Aggarwal for his flagship store in Delhi; with Twelve Tomatoes on the landscaping of bar and restaurant Dear Donna in New Delhi.

a-vastudio.com

PHOTO: BJÖRN WALLANDER.

VIR.MUELLER ARCHITECTS New Delhi CHRISTINE MUELLER, PANKAJ VIR GUPTA

RAVI VAZIRANI Mumbai

Philosophy: “Minimalistic with a touch of eclecticism,” is how Vazirani defines his design ethos. Signature: “As a practice, we use very little colour. I’m almost intimidated by anything that’s colourful.” Design Discovery: The Athena collection by furniture designer Olivia Lee, “at Salone del Mobile last year”.

Architectural Icon: Casa Luis Barragàn in Mexico.

ravivazirani.com

SABYASACHI MUKHERJEE Kolkata

Project in Focus: Larger-than-life grandeur embellished with lavish materials and outsized centrepieces, including an F&C Osler chandelier that suspends down from dizzying heights—Mukherjee’s new home (pictured above) in Kolkata is a richly conceived visual feast. Signature: “There is a core design aesthetic that applies to everything that a designer does. Like my clothing, my interiors are multicultural.”

sabyasachi.com

ROMI KHOSLA DESIGN STUDIO New Delhi

Project in Focus: The Flying House (pictured right) is a 6,000-square-foot home that follows the contours of its site in the Dhauladhar mountains of Himachal Pradesh, and is constructed with all local materials (stone, stabilized mud brick, slate and local wood). Design Discovery: A rediscovery of brutalist architecture.

rk-ds.com

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PHOTO: EDMUND SUMNER.

MARTAND KHOSLA

LAB New Delhi SHONAN PURIE TREHAN

PHOTO: PHOTOGRAPHIX/SEBASTIAN ZACHARIAH.

Project in Focus: The Little Much Farm is a six-bedroom residence on a six-acre plot of land outside Pune. The three levels of the house are a response to the natural slope on which it is built. One of the highlights of the home is the large timber slide that connects the bedrooms on the higher floor to the lounge (pictured left). Architectural Icons: Villa Ottolenghi by Carlo Scarpa in the Veneto region of Italy; Shigeru Ban’s Paper House on Lake Yamanaka in Japan.

labwerk.in

VIKRAM GOYAL New Delhi

Project in Focus: Goyal designed this residential bungalow (pictured below) in Golf Links, New Delhi to accommodate the client’s extensive collection of old furniture, art and artefacts. Recent Projects: Homes and interior design projects across cities, including Goa; a large modernist bungalow in Chennai—“for which we are collaborating with Bengaluru-based Khosla Associates and Chennai-based Vikram Phadke”.

viyahome.com

MARIE-ANNE OUDEJANS Jaipur

Design Discoveries: IDLI by Thierry Journo in Jaipur—“Thierry makes great furniture, lamps, carpets and vases, and of course, amazing printed fabric”; Ecru, an online store by Nur Kaoukji—“Nur is also the interior designer of Jaipur’s 28 Kothi, and someone to watch out for.” Architectural Icon: The Agnelli estate in Villar Perosa—near Turin in northern Italy—the home of the founders of FIAT.

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NEW FOR 2019 DIDI CONTRACTOR

Sidhbari, Himachal Pradesh

Words of Wisdom: “I’m very interested in using landscape as a visual and emotional bridge between the built and the natural. Look at the old buildings, they are beautiful in the landscape, and the new ones are at war with it.” Profile: An aesthetic that derives from the natural, respect for the traditional, and a local material palette, Didi Contractor’s sensitively crafted buildings showcase architecture and design at its purest.

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

M A D E

F O R

R O Y A L T Y

Introducing Senator from the house of CERA C u r a t e d b y r e n o w n e d I t a l i a n d e s i g n e r, E t t o r e G i o r d a n o .

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PHOTOS: PAVITRA RAJARAM DESIGN.

STUDIO ORGANON

CORMAC LYNCH

SAURABH DAKSHINI

Architectural Icons: “The Tallon residence, designed

by Irish architect Ronnie Tallon of Scott Tallon Walker Architects, and the Miller House by Finnish architect Eero Saarinen and American interior designer Alexander Girard.” Design Discoveries: LitraCon— “This light-transmitting concrete developed by Hungarian architect Aron Losonczi has been around for a few years, and I would like to use it in the near future.”

New Delhi

PAVITRA RAJARAM DESIGN Mumbai

Project in Focus: A weekend family getaway, this Alibag home (pictured above)—dubbed Granny’s House—arises from the landscape by employing a range of locally sourced materials.

Design Discoveries: Aman Khanna of Claymen—“I would love to collaborate on an installation.” Rithika Merchant—fashion brand Chloé chose to use her art as prints for their 2018 collection; Jaipur-based Rasa for textiles; and “nothing can beat Comtrust for the best fluffy white towels”.

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Design Discoveries: Anomaly, a fashion label run by Medha Khosla; Claymen’s Aman Khanna; Itoh, a menswear label run by Amit Babbar.

Architectural Icons: Maison de Verre, in Paris, by Pierre Chareau, Bernard Bijvoet and Louis Dalbet, built in 1932.

The Barbican Centre in London. “It was a radical idea when it was built and is still relevant today.”

studioorganon.org

Mumbai

RITU NANDA DESIGN Mumbai

Design Discoveries: Architect Mangesh Lungare; designer Ranjit Ahuja; Postcard Hotels & Resorts, “a little-known brand” of luxury hotels; and fashion and home store in Goa, Rangeela Goa. Collaborations: In Mumbai, Ranjit Ahuja for furnishings, Red Blue Yellow for furniture; Goabased Teja Amonkar, as consulting architect; And So, Anjali Modi’s furniture store in Goa.

ritunandadesign.com

LIJO.RENY. ARCHITECTS THRISSUR LIJO JOS, RENY LIJO

PHOTO: PRAVEEN MOHANDAS.

Project in Focus: A house that guards the privacy of its inhabitants, but engages with the outdoors—this was the brief for the Regimented House (pictured left) in Tirur, Kerala. With a courtyard that serves as a threshold to transition from verdant landscape to rigid structure, and pockets of greenery concealed within, the house breathes freely. What’s New: “We’re working with metal screens, and reinterpreting them in our own way.”

NUDES Mumbai NURU KARIM

lijoreny.wordpress.com

Project in Focus: That the world is facing deep ecological crises is not news; that it would lead some to seek solutions in local, rural, traditional wisdom is inevitable—and welcome.

The Baori (pictured below), as imagined by Karim’s office, is a ‘Ru-Urban’ housing project that takes its structural prompts from the quintessential, timeless baori (stepwell) and seeks to offer answers and respite to draught-affected communities.

nudeoffices.com

NEW FOR 2019 ECRU Jaipur NUR KAOUKJI, NOOR AL SABAH

Profile: A brand that works only with artisans to design exclusive, limited creations that imbue a global aesthetic with the flavour of craft. Signature: “When working on interior projects, I usually absorb the traditional approach to architecture or interiors of the city that the project is in. In India, I tend to use hand-painted murals,” says Kaoukji.

ecruonline.com

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SIMONE DUBASH PANDOLE Mumbai

Signature: “I’m not one who necessarily believes in incorporating trends, because the design has to go with the house, with the person. I think about that when designing a home.” Influences: Kelly Hoppen, Boca do Lobo and Andrew Martin.

Architectural Icon: “The art deco buildings, especially around the Oval Maidan in Mumbai, that have been revived beautifully.”

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

STUDIO HBA New Delhi

RAHUL SHANKHWALKER

Recent Projects: Lodha Belmondo Townhouse, Pune; Park Residences, Mumbai; the Taj Bengal’s new fine dining restaurant Cal 27, Kolkata. Profile: The India division of this global architecture and design conglomerate works on landmark projects, addressing site, region and location within a globally relevant design sensibility.

studiohba.com

PHOTO COURTESY OF INI CHATTERJI & ASSOCIATES.

INI CHATTERJI & ASSOCIATES Goa

Project in Focus: Located in the Coastal Regulation Zone among the hills on the Cabo de Rama Beach in south Goa, Cabo Serai (pictured above) is an eco-resort that faithfully follows the contours of the surrounding landscape dotted with coconut trees. The cottages, predominantly made out of wood, were prefabricated and assembled later on-site.

Signature: A local, natural palette of materials, a minimal design footprint, and letting nature do the talking.

ABU JANI SANDEEP KHOSLA Mumbai

Signature: Antique meets modernity; a harmony of distinctive, diverse elements, interiors built around an object, story or theme. “Drama, glamour and elegance are key.” Influences: The Mughals, art deco, gothic, baroque, Moorish—and Howard Roark from The Fountainhead. “He was driven by his own vision and unwilling to compromise on it—our own golden rule.”

abusandeep.com

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ARCHITECTURE BRIO Mumbai SHEFALI BALWANI, ROBERT VERRIJT

Project in Focus: For this house for artists (pictured right) in a palm grove by an Alibag beach, the architects played with the walls to ensure flexibility of spaces and a seamlessness with nature. Collaboration: A cluster of bespoke homes in Goa, with four other architects—Zameer Basrai (the Busride), Sameep Padora (sP+a), Riyaz Tayyibji (Anthill Design), Saurabh Malpani (Artha Studio).

architecturebrio.com

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

M A D E

F O R

R O Y A L T Y

Introducing Senator from the house of CERA C u r a t e d b y r e n o w n e d I t a l i a n d e s i g n e r, E t t o r e G i o r d a n o .

w ww. c er a - i n d i a . c o m / s e n a t o r

SUSSANNE KHAN

CASE DESIGN

Signature: Blending the industrial with the chic to create spaces of “quiet luxury”. Words of Wisdom: “I like to look at each project as an individual space and design for the client, define their personality through the space and bring in a unique vibe.” Materials: A mixed bag that includes metals, wood, natural fibres and concrete.

SAMUEL BARCLAY

Mumbai

thecharcoalproject.com

Mumbai

Project in Focus: The guesthouses (pictured right) at Kizikula in Zanzibar, Tanzania look like they’ve been conjured from nature—which they have. Built from the coral limestone that’s local to the island, the structures have been slipped delicately into their environment.

Collaboration: With artist Malene Bach for a home on Mumbai’s Marine Drive.

casedesign.in

PHOTO: KASHEF CHOWDHURY.

KASHEF CHOWDHURY/ URBANA Bangladesh

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Project in Focus: The 80-bed Friendship Hospital (pictured left) in Satkhira, Bangladesh gives expression to a riverine Bangali landscape.

Its serious purpose is leavened by the courtyards that break the sober facade.

Signature: Modernism that plays off extensive research, material innovation and local considerations. Design Discovery: Beijing-based architect Xu Tian Tian.

kashefchowdhury-urba na.com

SHATOTTO

NEW FOR 2019 DEVI DESIGN

RAFIQ AZAM

ANUPAM PODDAR

Bangladesh

Highlight: The Jol Shobuje Dhaka project; Azam is the lead architect, from a group of 70, working to transform 31 parks and playgrounds to change the image of Old Dhaka. Recent Projects: Aga Khan Academy Bangladesh in Dhaka; Bangladesh Chancery Complex Islamabad; Bangladesh Chancery Complex and Ambassador’s Residence in Thimpu, Bhutan.

ADIL AHMAD New Delhi

Project in Focus: In terms of size and location, it takes its cues from an archetypal Manhattan pied-à-terre, but this 890-square-foot South Delhi apartment (pictured below) goes several steps further in its design intent, giving the impression of a plush, citified version of a large-scale palatial home. What’s New: Ahmad took over as creative director of Ritu Kumar Home in 2018. Architectural Icon: Villa Windsor in Paris, home of the late Duke and Duchess of Windsor.

thepalacecollection.in

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New Delhi

Signature: A balance between art and design, with neither overpowering the space but working together to enhance it.

Collaboration: With Shades of India, to design a menswear fashion collection. Coming Up: An art-inspired accessory and furniture range set to be launched soon. Architectural Icon: The Golconde Dormitory in Puducherry.

devidesign.in

NEW FOR 2019 STUDIO POMEGRANATE Mumbai

SHWETA CHHATPAR, PRANAV NAIK

Philosophy: An approach dictated by understanding what makes a space. “It cannot be what encloses it; however, the envelope of space is what gives it definition. All our senses make up our understanding of space.” Influences: Frank Lloyd Wright, Nari Gandhi, BV Doshi, Charles Correa, and Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG).

studiopom.wixsite.com/site

VIKAS DILAWARI ARCHITECTS Mumbai

Profile: The formidable custodian of buildings, Dilawari articulates the story of structure and the history of architecture through every building or monument he rescues from neglect.

Highlight: A UNESCO Asia Pacific Award (Honorable Mention) for the restoration of the Muljee Jetha Fountain, Mumbai.

Ongoing: Restoration of Flora Fountain and St Andrews Church—both in Mumbai.

vikasdilawari.in

ALL THINGS ART AT ANDAZ DELHI In conversation, Mrs Namita Saraf, owner of the legendary Andaz Delhi, talks about its beautiful works of art

Has art always been an intrinsic part of your life?

We’ve striven to make art an integral part of all our hospitality projects.

Putting art in a space is like breathing life into it. We commission local artists, as much as possible, in all of our hospitality projects, to make sitespecific works and art installations.

The colorful flowers handcrafted in metal and painted as hyper realistic flowers at AnnaMaya, are works by artist Valay Gada. The majestic shrine that people have come to love with the monolith stone sound sculpture has become a photo favourite with couples who tie the knot at our property.

The book, 401 Reasons to Fall in Love with Delhi (in collaboration with Fiona Caulfield) links us to the pulse of the city, which has majestically evolved from a historical capital to the capital of modern India—ever changing but with a life of its own. The design and concept of the hotel is contemporary and inspired by the neighborhood, which gave us an opportunity to experiment with homegrown artists and bring to life art stories celebrating this iconic destination.

Brick double helix sculpture designed by Rajeev Sethi

Tower of Victory by Tanmoy and Mehula

AnnaMaya’s art installation by Valay Gada

Mrs Namita Saraf

One of the 401 pieces of art in the guest room

Tell us a little about the curation of the beautiful works of art at Andaz Delhi.

When we were building Andaz Delhi, the first Andaz hotel in India, our vision was to create a vibrant lifestyle hotel experience woven into the fabric of the local culture, fuelling each guest’s creativity and inspiring them to express their own unique style and passion.

Each of the distinct art installations here is an ode to beautiful Delhi— India’s ever-evolving, bustling capital city. As an iconic destination, Andaz Delhi celebrates the locale through thoughtfully curated immersive experiences and art installations.

Can you shed some light on the unique art work at AnnaMaya?

Inspired by the colours and flavours of India, our European Food Hall, AnnaMaya, inspires guests to “Eat Mindful. Shop Artisanal.

Raise Awareness”. The art comprises exaggerated metallic carvings of edible flowers that are painted and textured to resemble their live counterparts.

Each flower is handcrafted, adding a colourful spark to AnnaMaya’s elegant ambience. Every piece of art here represents a prime ingredient in some of the traditional regional recipes found in the Indian sub-continent.

The Shrine

‘The Shrine’ is an iconic art work at Andaz Delhi. What is its underlying theme?

As one of Andaz Delhi’s most popular art works, The Shrine celebrates and nurtures relationships of every nature and urges you to be a part of it. The experience begins when two people stand on either side of the rock, put their heads in the hollow depression in the middle and chant ‘Om’ in synchronization. Their respective families sit on benches on either side, inside the shrine. The sound then resonates and becomes one, with the presence of water below the rock being an integral part of the soundscape, making for an exceptional experience.

To book your Andaz Delhi experience, visit www.delhi.andaz.hyatt.com, email delhi.andaz@hytatt.com, call + 91 11 49031234 or follow @AndazDelhi on

Andaz Delhi, Asset 1, Northern Access Road, Aerocity, New Delhi 110037

PHOTO: FARROKH CHOTHIA.

ELSIE NANJI Mumbai

Project in Focus: “I was approached by Byram Wadia to work on the design and styling for the Quarry CO:LAB in Kanjurmarg, Mumbai (pictured left). I worked with Flos lighting and furniture from Scarlett Splendour, Paola Lenti and more—coupled with bespoke Mahendra Doshi furniture to add softness to the grand marble designs.” Projects: A home in Ahuja Towers in Prabhadevi, a double apartment in Lodha World Towers, a twin apartment in World Crest—all in Mumbai; redecorating residential spaces for the Mahindras, in Mumbai and New Delhi.

elsienanji.com

ANNKUR KHOSLA DESIGN STUDIO Mumbai

Project in Focus: This sea-facing Mumbai apartment (pictured below) became an architectural expression of the intangibilities of sea and sky. Awash in a spectacular white with pops of colour and art, the house is firmly grounded within practical boundaries—expressed through two columns made of old Burma teak and carved with calligraphic inscriptions. Recent Projects: Residences across the country, the Earth Café in Mumbai, and a bungalow in New York.

annkurkhosla.com

TARUN TAHILIANI New Delhi

Recent Projects: Actor Chiranjeevi’s residence in Hyderabad; a villa for Arjun Soni in Goa; a villa in Coonoor for Rana Dubey; the ‘Tree House’ in New Delhi for Randeep Jauhar. Collaborations: With Obeetee Carpets, and with AIS (Asahi India Glass) Glasxperts for the Glass Villa in Goa.

taruntahiliani.com

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AYUSH KASLIWAL DESIGN Jaipur

Signature: Leveraging local context and balancing rich material craft within a framework of restrained opulence. Collaborations: A lighting range with light&you; with Hapusa Gin, for their product presentation; designing products for Australian brand Freedom and USbased Crate & Barrel for their respective markets.

akfdstudio.com

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

THE MINERALOGY COLLECTION Inspired by minerals from the earth, Hands brings you beautiful carpets that echo the brand’s philosophy of being rare, precious and beautiful

When the earth was being formed eons ago, stunning precious minerals were born. These crystalline substances provided inspiration to the Hands Mineralogy Collection – masterfully woven, hand-knotted carpets capturing the true essence of a mineral, bringing to life its unique qualities.

Founded in 1881, in Bhadohi near Varanasi, Hands is the purveyor of fine handcrafted carpets, found in prestigious palaces, luxury hotels, and residences across the world, steeped in a legacy of handmade perfection.

They also created the world’s finest hand-knotted carpet, made with an astounding 4,900 knots per inch.

The carpets from the Mineralogy Collection are crafted using the finest materials. Wool from New Zealand and Argentina and bamboo silk made from renewable forests come together to form enchanting expressions of luxury.

Each one captures and reflects light in ways that add a distinctive sheen found in precious minerals. Marked by colour variants, the six original designs are customisable to any dimension.

CELESTINE BLACK SILVER Layers of striation on the surface and a graded multi-tone silk effect reflect the curvature and depth of celestine, a precious mineral. This carpet is an absolute must-have, be it at home or at work.

ZIRCON RED From the depths of the earth comes the discovery of a carpet unlike any other – Zircon. Derived from “Zargun” – Persian for ‘gold hue’, this carpet is hand-knotted to perfection in wool and bamboo silk, with dual tones that capture the true essence of the mineral.

GALENA GOLD Galena deposits hold significant amounts of silver, making it a highly sought-after mineral. The octahedral structure of the mineral is emulated in the new Mineralogy Collection.

The design describes the nature of silver in a distinctive form, complete with a silken texture.

For more information, visit www.handscarpets.com New Delhi (Flagship Store) 372/74, MG Road, Sultanpur. Call 26805475/8 Mumbai Gala No 32R/32H, Laxmi Industrial Estate, Andheri (W). Call 26320609.

Dubai Hands Carpets FZ-LLC, Ground Floor, Building 9, Dubai Design District. Call +971 58 8250 464/574, + 971 4 589 8510

NEW FOR 2019 SEZA Mumbai SEEMA PURI MULLAN, ZARIR MULLAN

Philosophy: “Architecture is about the complex issues of the composition, the connections between the various programmes, and the quality of space.”

Projects: Residential buildings, a home and offices in Mumbai; a vocational guidance centre at Aurangabad, Maharashtra; a bungalow for the Reliance Group in Bengaluru; a residential bungalow in Pune, Maharashtra; a bungalow in Dubai.

NEW FOR 2019 ARTHA STUDIO Pune SAURABH MALPANI, ASHKA NAIK

Project in Focus: An old-age home in Virar, on Mumbai’s outskirts, Second Innings Home (pictured right) is a housing facility with freely flowing spaces, interspersed with sit-outs and gathering spots—all contained within a cheerful green exterior. Influences: “My gurus Girish Doshi, Geoffrey Bawa and Álvaro Siza Vieira, with whom I have worked.”

arthastudio.com

PHOTO: HEMANT PATIL.

seza.in

NETERWALA AND AIBARA INTERIOR ARCHITECTS Mumbai PHIROSA NETERWALA, SUNU AIBARA

Project in Focus: The firm collaborated with Hyderabadbased architect BC Sudhir Reddy of Kruthica for this Jubilee Hills home (pictured below). A fluid aesthetic was driven by a mixed material palette and a unique identity for each room, resulting in a house that wears its sophistication effortlessly.

neterwalaaibara.com

KARAN GROVER & ASSOCIATES

PHOTO: SULEIMAN MERCHANT.

Vadodara

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Collaboration: ICONS/ NL for the Alembic Industrial Heritage and Redevelopment project in Vadodara. Design Discoveries: Chris Precht, co-founder of PENDA; Mumbai-based furniture brand Colonial Collections India. Architectural Icon: The gallery and the residence of Shoreham House in Australia, by architect Tim Spicer.

kga.co.in

NEW FOR 2019 SITE PRACTICE Mumbai

ANNE GEENEN

Profile: A former principal architect at Case Design, Geenen established Site Practice last year. Signature: Attention to detail, a fascination for materials, engaging with collaborators from various disciplines and exploring design through the act of ‘making’.

Coming Up: A shelter home in Mumbai; residences in the Netherlands; a furniture collection.

sitepractice.com

NAYYAR ALI DADA & ASSOCIATES Pakistan NAYYAR ALI DADA, RAZA ALI DADA, GHAZANFAR ALI

Words of Wisdom: “Excessive exposure to information and images makes one focus more on essentials and silence.”

Architectural Icon: Kiran and Satish Gujral’s house, designed by Raj Rewal, in New Delhi.

nayyaralidada.net

PENTHOUSE PAFEKUTO Blending the outdoors with the indoors, Conarch Architects bring you the swankiest address in town. Step into Penthouse Pāfekuto, a beautifully designed multi-level space that will inspire you to live large Imagine waking up in bed to lush green views just outside your window.

Imagine stepping out with a cup of coffee, onto a roof level terrace complete with trees and flowering plants, bathed in the glow of sunshine.

Like what you see? Then you’re going to love Penthouse Pāfekuto, designed

by Conarch Architects.

Architects Rakesh Dhar and S.K. Goel founded this Delhi-based architectural design firm in 1988.

Driven by an unbridled energy, they uphold the highest standard of professional ethics. What started off as a venture by two is now a firm with over 30 employees, working hard to design exceptional spaces that reflect their occupants’ identities.

Taking their passion for design up a notch is Penthouse Pāfekuto that re-defines high-rise living. This multi-level penthouse in Ghaziabad offers 8000sq ft of indoor space and 6000sq ft of outdoor space across three levels. Their vision? To transform generic apartment units into inspiring living spaces reflecting the client’s needs.

Led by architects S.K.Goel and Nitish Goel, Penthouse Pāfekuto was created when two apartments were combined into one luxury penthouse.

It comes with five bedrooms, five baths, an office, two drawing rooms, two lobbies and a terrace. Well-lit through the day, it eliminates the need for artificial lighting. But even all that sunshine doesn’t make it a sweltering spot. The outdoor terraces have deep overhangs, ensuring that the glass remains shaded, keeping out the heat.

The best part? Cantilevered floating

Nitish Goel

wood steps with artistic fall protection against a Prussian blue backdrop.

These stairs act as the protagonist of the house, through which conversation and light flow between floors. Merging the indoors with the outdoors, the bedrooms, living areas and kitchen have brilliant views of ‘green’ outdoor terraces. Some areas open out to these spaces, serving as a great spot to de-stress. The roof level terrace for instance, boasts of a

S.K. Goel

‘Hydroponic Living Wall’, Ficus Panda trees and a water feature attracting migratory birds.

Blurring the boundaries between architecture and interiors, Penthouse Pāfekuto promises a taste of the good life.

For more information, visit www.conarch.co, email info@conarch.co or call + 91 971 118 1071

STAPATI Kozhikode TONY JOSEPH, ANUPAMA, GEORGE SEEMON, MOHANDAS P, DEVARAJAN M, RAJESH KA

PHOTO: PRAVEEN MOHANDAS.

Project in Focus: This Kerala house (pictured right) leverages regional architecture and the surrounding greenery to create its diaphanous aura and amorphous boundaries between the outside and inside. Collaboration: Fort Kochi’s Mandalay Hall concept hotel with artist Bose Krishnamachari.

stapati.com

NEW FOR 2019 MICD ASSOCIATES Sri Lanka

CHANNA DASWATTE, MURAD ISMAIL

Project in Focus: Beach houses (pictured below) at Habaraduwa Beach, Sri Lanka. Ongoing: Rebuilding the Bentota Beach Hotel. “At over 50 years old, the building was in danger of collapsing. We convinced the client to dismantle and reassembled it with a new concrete structure inside,” says Daswatte. Influences: Japanese architect Kenzo Tange, and Geoffrey Bawa—“not only because he was someone I worked with, but also because of his unrelenting search for new approaches to resolving architectural problems.”

micda.com

CLAY ARCHITECTURE & INTERIORS Mumbai AHSAN ANSARI

Collaboration: With Pavitra Rajaram Design for architectural and interior projects in Alibag.

Influences: Herzog & de Meuron, Alejandro Aravena, Bijoy Jain, Tadao Ando, SANAA, Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG).

Design Discoveries: Architects Shreyas More and Mangesh Lungare; Ahmedabad-based Design ni Dukaan.

clay.net.in

KAVITA SINGH

Recent Projects: The Amrapali store for Rajeev Arora and Rajesh Ajmera; homes for Ranveer Singh and Rani Mukerji—both in Mumbai. Architectural Icons: Louvre Abu Dhabi

by Jean Nouvel; the Lalbhai Museum exterior; Jodhpur’s Umaid Bhawan Palace structure; and Ralph Lauren—“all designs and homes are works of understated elegance”.

kavitasinghinteriors.com

ABM ARCHITECTS

MELISSA SMITH, SACHIN BANDUKWALA

ALFAZ MILLER

Profile: The researchdriven multidisciplinary practice innovates with natural materials to create compelling spaces, and design distinctive products and furniture.

Collaboration: With lacquer craft artisans from Kutch for a penthouse in Ahmedabad.

banduksmithstudio.in

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

Mumbai

BANDUKSMITHSTUDIO Ahmedabad

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Mumbai

Signature: Known for their landmark projects and supersized residential developments across the country, inlcuding a show flat at Rustomjee Elements, a residential development in Andheri, Mumbai.

Architectural Icon: The Ennis House in Los Angeles designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, for Charles and Mabel Ennis.

abmarchitects.com

SP+A Mumbai SAMEEP PADORA, VAMI KOTICHA, APARNA DHARESHWAR

Project in Focus: A seemingly impenetrable mass on a high plinth is all that can be seen on the approach to Vana Villas (pictured above) in Assagao, Goa. From the entryway, the opaque mass seems to pull back to reveal the plot’s big draw— open, airy spaces and the adjoining dense green cover of forested land. Architectural Icons: “[Architect] Leo Pereira’s house in Ahmedabad is beautiful and the Optical Glass House [in Hiroshima, Japan] by Hiroshi Nakamura has some interesting use of materials and beautiful light quality.”

sp-arc.net

NEW FOR 2019 TANYA SINGH STUDIO Mumbai/Milan

Project in Focus: Singh explored brass and stone to craft a subtly opulent bar space (pictured left) for a 5,000-square-foot residence in south Mumbai, and created a ‘Jinder’ bar stool out of brass, rattan and wood. Collaborations: With CC-Tapis for custom carpets for Singh’s projects; a custom light installation with Jacopo Foggini.

Signature: Juxtaposing contrasts via materiality, forms, typology.

tanyasingh.com

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TALATI & PANTHAKY ASSOCIATED

IQRUP DESIGN

NOSHIR D TALATI, NOZER R PANTHAKY, NAUSHIR DEVITRE, PHIROZE J PANTHAKI, SHAROOKH MEHTA, ZAHIR R CASSUM, XERXES N TALATI, RIA TALATI

Signature: Glamorous overtones within a contemporary framework, bespoke furnishings and custom-made furniture.

Collaborations: Londonbased Robert Adams and Abhimanyu Dalal for projects in New Delhi; de Gournay for hand-painted wallpapers and panels, stone masons from Rajasthan.

Clients: Tarun and Tarana Sawhney, Anoop and Kity Bector of Cremica.

Mumbai

Profile: Over 50 years of transforming city skylines with large-scale projects (residential, commercial and hospitality) and creating a unique footprint with elegant private homes.

tparch.net

Gurugram

IQRUP DHAMIJA

iqrupdesign.com

NEW FOR 2019 ALVA ARCHITECTS New Delhi ASHWIN ALVA

Project in Focus: Spread across 22,500 square feet, the entirely steel-framed structure of Acasa Vibe (pictured above) in Parra, Goa complements its natural surroundings with light, airy interiors.

Coming Up: A collaboraton with Romulus Whitaker—“the herpetologist with whom we are redeveloping the Madras Croc Bank”; working on sustainable design strategies for various projects in Ladakh with Raja Jigmed Namgyal of Stok.

alva.co.in

PHOTO: SULEIMAN MERCHANT.

SHROFFLEÓN Mumbai KAYZAD SHROFF, MARIA ISABEL JIMENEZ LEÓN

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Project in Focus: A five-bedroom Mumbai apartment (pictured left)—the sophistication is evident in the elegant material palette and bespoke furnishings created for the space with muted marble and fumed oak. Collaboration: Furniture designer Ajay Shah (ASDA) on a recent project. “We are planning another collaboration.”

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NEW FOR 2019 ORPROJECT New Delhi/London/ Cincinnati/Beijing

RAJAT SODHI (NEW DELHI), FRANCESCO BRENTA (LONDON), CHRISTOPH KLEMMT (BEIJING)

Philosophy: “We research natural systems, music and technology to create new forms and material logics,” says Rajat Sodhi. Current Projects: A landscape project in Düsseldorf, Germany and an open-air pavilion in New Delhi.

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ARCHITECT HAFEEZ CONTRACTOR Mumbai

Project in Focus: After the Magnolias and the Aralias, DLF has now planted the seeds of The Camellias on Gurugram’s Golf Drive. The real estate developers roped in Contractor’s firm to adapt his particular brand of luxury for this residential sprawl. This includes, along with the now-expected accoutrements of highend living (read private elevator lobby, lush landscape, spectacular views), bungalow-sized residences, with one restricted to each floor, and penthouses that are approximately 1,486 square metres. Profile: One of India’s busiest firms has a diverse portfolio of projects across commercial and residential developments, master planning, education, infrastructure and interiors.

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Clients: Nita and Mukesh Ambani, Nawaz and Gautam Singhania, Praful Patel, Rohiqa and Cyrus Mistry, Katrina Kaif.

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THE ALIBAG ISSUE

ILLUSTRATIONS: SOUMYA.

THE INSIDE STORY ON INDIAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MOST RED-HOT REAL ESTATE

BY RAJASHREE BALARAM

. . .

THE JETTY SET Bollywood and business meet fashion and design in the sizzling social life of Alibag. meets the power players of the weekend scene that is a 15-minute speedboat ride from Mumbai

Writer Gayatri ranGachari Shah PhotograPher aShiSh Sahi

GAURI KHAN

The interior designer and her actor husband are Alibag’s most famous residents, known for throwing the best parties—whether it’s in London, Mumbai or their beach house here. Given the relentless attention she and her family face, retreating to her tropical country home is a welcome respite. “When I first visited Alibag, I thought it would make an amazing getaway, and it has been that,” says the soft-spoken Gauri. “The natural surroundings bring out the best in me creatively. I find it great for inspiration and a great place for me to design. I love the quiet vibe.”

STYLIST: AKSHAY TYAGI. ASSISTANT STYLIST: MAYURI NIVEKAR. HAIRSTYLIST AND MAKE-UP ARTIST: MEHAK OBEROI. SHIRT BY DHRUV KAPOOR, CLOVE. TROUSERS, TRISARA. SUNGLASSES AND BRACELETS, FENDI.

ANJALI MODY

“Alibag is connected to the city but still a retreat from its hustle and bustle,” says the 32-year-old designer. Even though she lives between Mumbai and Goa (where she has a store called And So), Anjali says Alibag has a stillness unmatched anywhere else. She designed the family’s eight-bedroom home, which she describes as “larger than life. It’s completely specced out and has all the essentials, but it’s not cluttered. You can totally disconnect.”

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PINAKIN PATEL “My life has been a continuous search for beauty, and 23 years ago I was attracted to Alibag’s natural splendour,” says Pinakin Patel. The multi-faceted designer now lives in Alibag full-time, where his resort-like home is a timeless expression of India modern. He is barely reachable by mobile and likes it that way. “I don’t miss city life in the least. The little it takes to be happy here is in sharp contrast to Mumbai, where, in spite of everything, there appear to be reasons to complain.”

KAVITA SINGH

“When we started coming to Alibag, air travel wasn’t as common, and we wanted a place that friends and family could easily come to,” says Kavita Singh, the renowned interior decorator and art collector. “Mumbai is so congested, but here, there’s open sea and clean air. It’s quiet and you feel you are in another world altogether. There isn’t much infrastructure to support tourists in terms of restaurants and hotels. It’s so peaceful that going back to Mumbai can be overwhelming.”

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SID KHANNA AND TANVI GUPTA

Tanvi and Sid bought a small piece of land and built a home in a coconut grove by the sea as a downtime idyll.

Luckily, they aren’t the only ones to enjoy it. Nariyal Paani, the music festival they founded, is held so a wider community gets to experience their version of Alibag as well. Attended by many Mumbaikars, it’s put the area on the cultural map. “Once you spend time here, you realize how special and warm the community is—from the locals who treat you as one of their own, to the people who have moved here and call it home,” says Sid.

ANAITA SHROFF ADAJANIA

Anaita Shroff Adajania might be India’s most celebrated fashion stylist, but when in Alibag, along with her film-maker husband Homi, they are among its more low-key residents. “When we’re in Alibag, we have a lockdown policy; we never leave home unless it’s to the local fish market or to trek up the hills,” says Anaita. “I don’t come here to socialize, though my home is always open to our [many] friends who saunter in and out as they please.” Their home, designed by Supriya Gandhi, with a little nudge from Nozer Wadia, has a double-height, pitched ceiling and white stucco walls built around doors and windows from dismantled homes in Gujarat. Anaita notes, “It’s not some huge sprawling home; it is breezy, chilled-out, and always our first holiday option.”

SWIMSUIT AND ROBE, DOLCE & GABBANA. SHOES, TOPSHOP. PENDANT, HANUT SINGH.

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RAHUL KHANNA

The dapper actor began visiting Alibag as a teenager, after his mother’s best friend, an early ‘pioneer’ to the area, built a home. Nowadays he visits his brother, who can be spotted regularly on the jetty. “I love the sense of community, and that everyone knows everyone,” Rahul says. “It’s a much gentler social ecosystem than in Mumbai. People socialize, but it’s low impact.

And everything is outdoors, which we don’t have in Mumbai.” Rahul is photographed here in a Kunal Maniar-designed pool and garden (see page 338).

PHOTOGRAPHER: BIKRAMJIT BOSE. STYLIST: TANYA VOHRA. HAIRSTYLIST AND MAKE-UP ARTIST: AKGUN MANISALI. SWIMMING TRUNKS, ORLEBAR BROWN.

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PRERNA GOEL

“It was love at first sight,” says society maven and Instagram influencer Prerna Goel, of the Alibag property she made with her ex-husband Ashish Goel, and which was designed by Nozer Wadia.

As if to centre its calm, the house has a reclining Buddha in the middle of the pool, against the infinite vastness of the sea. “We have made so many memories here. It’s not real estate as much as it is a state of mind.”

HAIRSTYLIST AND MAKE-UP ARTIST: AKGUN MANISALI.

SHOBHAA AND DILIP DE

Veteran Alibagers, Shobhaa and Dilip De note that there’s much more to the place than just beaches and water sports. “It has a strong historical core dating back to Shivaji’s time,” says Shobhaa. “Our relationship with the farmers in our neighbourhood is very special and strong.” She recalls the water buffaloes neck deep in the marshy land when they were developing their orchid-filled property decades ago. Calling themselves “early settlers” who fell in love with the rural utopia, they come here to relax, read in their extensive library, paint, write, watch movies and enjoy local food. “Yes, Alibag spells glamour,” says Shobhaa.

“Yes, it is a dream destination for city folks across India—who long for a place to call their own here. But for us, we are true-blue Alibagers and we call it home.”

GAUTAM SINGHANIA

The flamboyant businessman makes the ultimate entrance to Alibag, landing his helicopter on his farm, down the road from his Nozer Wadia-designed house.

“I’ve been going to Alibag for almost four decades now,” he says. “Over time, my love for it has grown and it has become a part of my life.” His house—one of the first built on a truly grand scale—has a Balinese-resort aesthetic. Gautam says he feels at one with nature here.

He’s also been very generous, helping finance the jetty’s renovation, and donating golf buggies for public use. As a result, his company’s logo is frequently spotted as visitors disembark at Mandwa. Let’s just say it makes the Raymond owner a complete man.

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NOZER WADIA So discreet that he would only allow his silhouette to be photographed by AD, Nozer Wadia is also the architect of many of Alibag’s most important houses. Nozer’s introduction to the area happened over 40 years ago: “Fali Unwalla, a fellow designer and sailor, used to take me sailing across the bay from Mumbai. There were very few [Mumbaikars] with homes and everyone knew everyone. We recognized each other’s boats. I was one of the earliest to use a speedboat, and therefore considered an arriviste... looked down on by the hard-core sailors!” Nozer loves Alibag’s easy accessibility. After many years living in close proximity to the jetty, he has now moved further down the coast. “It’s not easy, but one can still find desolate spots to enjoy the quiet life.”

PHOTOGRAPHER: TOM PARKER.

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TEXT: RIDDHIMA S. PHOTOS: TALIB CHITALWALA.

WHAT’S COOKING, ALIBAG? Far removed from the Gordon Ramsays of the world and their hellish kitchens, chef and restaurateur Moshe Shek’s culinary school in the sleepy village of Awas is a haven for gourmands, hopeful foodies, and chefs-in-the-making

I

magine baking your own pita bread, rolling out pasta from scratch, putting together a healthy couscous salad or giving a gourmet spin to a homemade hummus dip—all this amid swaying palms, with the chirping of birds in the background. This is what celebrity chef Moshe Shek’s culinary school, A World Away, located in the village of Awas (a 10-minute ride from the Mandwa jetty), in the coastal town of Alibag, lets you do.

After years in the food industry, Shek, the man behind the Moshe’s chain of restaurants and cafes in Mumbai, felt it was time to return to his first love—cooking. He also wanted to create a unique getaway where he could teach other enthusiasts how to.

It was this dual agenda that directed him to choose Alibag over Mumbai. “Conducting classes in the city was becoming increasingly distracting—the cacophony of traffic, beeping phones, and participants trying to take notes in the middle of it all. Cooking is not about merely following a recipe—it is about engaging with and immersing yourself in the process,” he says.

The space in Awas has been created to facilitate exactly this.

The culinary studio has been designed as a glasshouse by Mumbai-based architect Ajit Shilpi. Surrounded by towering coconut trees and mango orchards, it is a unique blend of the indoors and outdoors. The cooking stations can accommodate 10 students at a time, and have been arranged to face the worktop from which Shek conducts his classes. Racks and racks of bottled sauces, oils and other kitchen essentials give the place an apothecary-like atmosphere.

“Although people were initially sceptical about the idea of classes in Alibag, ever since we started in October 2017, almost every class has been full, that too by word-of-mouth publicity alone. The menu varies from class to class, and is sometimes repeated owing to popular demand. Our most popular classes include Middle Eastern mezzes, desserts (featuring crowd favourites like cinnamon buns and cheesecakes) and bread, as more people are now opting out of [eating] store-bought bread,” reveals the chef.

The classes, now in their second season, take place from October to May and are usually priced at `6,500, which includes everything—starting with the pick-up and drop at the Gateway of India via speedboat, and breakfast and lunch on the property. As if this isn’t enough, you get to bake your bread and eat it too. As a small sampler, the following page carries two of the chef’s own recipes for delicious salads that will remind you of summer and the sea.

MOSHEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S GRILLED HALLOUMI WITH GREEN BEANS & PRESERVED LEMON SERVES: 2. PREPARATION TIME: For the salad Halloumi (sliced) Extra virgin olive oil Fresh fennel stalks Cherry tomatoes (sliced in half) Preserved lemon (pith removed, sliced) Lollo Rosso lettuce Mint leaves French beans (blanched, sliced) Snow peas (blanched, sliced) Salt and pepper For the dressing Fresh orange juice (cooked and reduced to 2 tbsp) Mustard paste Garlic Extra virgin olive oil Lime juice Castor sugar

25 MINUTES. 150g as required 70g 12 1 tbsp 2 cups 3 sprigs 10 10 to taste 200g 1 tsp 2 cloves 4-5 tbsp 4 tsp 1/2 tsp

Method 1. Mix the ingredients for the dressing and let them sit for half an hour.

2. Place the sliced halloumi on a hot grill and cook for a minute and a half on each side. Remove and cut into small cubes.

3. Toss all the salad ingredients together and check for seasoning.

4. Add in the dressing and toss gently for a few seconds.

5. Scoop the salad onto a plate and top it with the halloumi cubes.

MOSHEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S FIG & OLIVE SALAD SERVES: 2. PREPARATION TIME: 25 MINUTES. For the salad Madras onions (peeled, whole) Hazelnuts (roasted and chopped) Basil leaves Arugula leaves Small figs Olives (mixed, good-quality) Beetroot (boiled, sliced) For the dressing Soft feta cheese Cream or Greek yoghurt Salt and white pepper For the topping Balsamic vinegar (reduced from 4 tbsp) Sumac powder Extra virgin olive oil

8 1 tbsp 10 2 cups 6 10 1, small 6 tbsp 4 tbsp to taste 1 tbsp 1/4 tsp as required

Method 1. Prepare the dressing by mixing the cream or yoghurt and the feta.

Season well and thin it down with some more cream if needed.

Place equal amounts on two plates and swirl it around the border, keeping the centre clean.

2. Cook the onions in some extra virgin olive oil in a grill pan on low heat until lightly browned.

3. Cut each fig into quarters and put all the salad ingredients in a bowl. Gently toss and arrange in the centre of the plates circled with the whipped feta dressing.

4. Top the salad with the chopped hazelnuts.

5. Sprinkle some sumac over the feta and drizzle the reduced balsamic vinegar over the salad; serve immediately.

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farm to TABLE There’s more to do in Alibag than parties by the pool—as these six chefs from Mumbai found out, when they were invited to The Table Farm to get their hands dirty, their eyes opened, and their stomachs filled

T

TEXT: ROSHNI BAJAJ SANGHVI. PHOTOS: TALIB CHITALWALA. STYLING: NAMA DINNER.

hey walked between raised beds of every shade of green while pulling up knobs of young kohlrabi from the ground and biting into them like they were apples. They nibbled on bunches of bright yellow and purple flowers plucked from mustard and basil plants. They pulled out stalks of sugarcane and peeled them with their teeth. Others smelled peppery sweet ginger leaves for the first time in their lives. One strode over to a patch of arugula, picked up two large leaves and dangled them from the sides of his face, like basset hound’s ears. And the whole time, they learned about permaculture, sustainable farming, the ecosystem of insects, and even about the bacteria and fungi that populate and nourish the soil.

Chefs Gresham Fernandes (Impresario restaurants), Rishim Sachdeva (Olive, Mumbai), Bawmra Jap (Bomra’s, Goa), Seefah Ketchaiyo (Seefah, Mumbai), Vicky Ratnani (Gourmet Investments), Gracian de Souza (formerly of Porto & Poie, Mumbai), and Nikhil Abhyankar (Miss T, Mumbai) were invited by restaurateur Gauri Devidayal to The Table Farm in Alibag, for a meal made with produce harvested mere hours before it was served. On the menu, prepared by The Table’s chef Divesh Aswani were: tempura-style hummingbird flower with beetroot hummus; micro greens and kale salad; raw papaya salad with beans and cherry tomatoes; a big polychromatic bowl of assorted, roasted farm vegetables with confit shallots; grilled chicken with charred scallions; and a pile of grilled cabbage skirted by tenderloin on a bed of silky baby spinach. All the vegetables, leaves and herbs in this meal (and its accompanying cocktails) came from the one-acre kitchen farm the chefs had just toured and sampled from.

BREAKING NEW GROUND Here is how the idea of The Table Farm took seed. About 10 years ago, Devidayal realized that the land around her newly built Alibag home was yielding spinach that was significantly more delicious than the market variety. When she took the excess produce over to her restaurant The Table, the kitchen was delighted with its quality. So Devidayal asked Adrienne Thadani, partner at farming consultancy Thrive (best known for Mumbai’s Flyover Farm), to develop the farm that has since been feeding The Table’s, er, farm-to-table philosophy.

In 2014, The Table Farm announced its first farm workshop, giving curious diners, farming enthusiasts, and Alibag day trippers a chance to get their hands dirty. Visitors would dig into soil, manure and compost; harvest a crop, clean it, and help >

From left: Gresham Fernandes, Bawmra Jap, Nikhil Abhyankar, Rishim Sachdeva, Gracian de Souza, Divesh Aswani (standing) Vicky Ratnani, and Seefah Ketchaiyo at the Table Farm.

Tempura hummingbird flower with beet hummus and olives.

Charcoal-grilled chicken with miso glaze and charred scallion dressing.

Microgreen and kale salad with truffle mustard vinaigrette

Quarter and dinner plates from the Aguada collection, and wine glasses, all from Nicobar.

Sourdough bread and baguette from Mag St Bread Co.

Raw papaya salad with haricots verts, cherry tomatoes and peanuts.

< prepare lunch. Since then, the workshops have expanded in their variety and immersion. Sometimes, they are collaborative.

Devidayal brings in brands, such as Pahadi Local, which share the philosophy of the farm and talk about sustainability and responsible agriculture. Workshops can also be organized by request, for groups of 10 to 15 people. Schools have brought in children to show them where food comes from. “You can literally be doing anything—what’s nice about doing it is the location,” says Devidayal. “Whether it’s two hours or all day, the activities are tailored to what the group would like.” The farm has even been home to a writer’s retreat; and the venue for a family art workshop, where parents and kids painted a 12-foot-long canvas together.

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PLANTING IDEAS Thadani leads the farm tours and workshops, talking about the methods she uses to grow delicious and bountiful produce—all without the use of pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, or fertilizers.

She makes farming nerds of visitors, talking about the importance of having fragrant borders, about giving plants their space, and about using legumes through the monsoon to aerate and add nitrogen to the soil. During the chefs’ visit, standing on paddy mulch between beds, Thadani conducted a pop quiz: what are the five things plants need? Sunlight and air were the easy guesses; the other three she helped with—nutrients, moisture and, most importantly, love.

“People come here because they would like to learn about >

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Above left: A basket of freshly harvested beetroot, kohlrabi and cabbage set amongst spinach plants.

Multiple varieties are grown together at the farm as diversity is key, and prevents the soil from being exploited by monoculture.

Above: Spinach is particularly abundant at The Table Farm.

These beds are surrounded by basil plants that define the pathways moving through the farm. Right: Chef Divesh Aswani harvests some young green cabbage. This variety is harvested when it’s very tender, because the leaves are sweeter then. Left: A commis chef from the team that cooked the meal walks through a spinach bed, surrounded by red amaranth; above it is a passion fruit tree. Far left: Beetroots being pulled up from a raised bed surrounded by paddy mulch at The Table Farm.

< the farming process, but they don’t know where to start,” says Devidayal. “They need that initial trigger to get started.” She wants to continue growing the farm organically, without forcing the needs of her restaurants on it, or making it commercial. After the opening of their latest restaurant Miss T, they’re attempting to grow ingredients for the bar’s cocktails—pandanus, hibiscus, and blue pea. The idea has always been to see what grows well in the existing environmental conditions, rather than depleting or exploiting natural resources to push new varieties.

Next, Devidayal wants to set up a functional kitchen that will make it easier to have cooking workshops or pop-ups on the farm. “Visits make people more appreciative about where their food comes from, and the effort that it takes to put it on your plate. We [The Table] sometimes get criticized for being expensive, but when people visit the farm, they realize what it takes to offer this quality and flavour.”

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presents

THE SHAMANIC SOUL Collection 2018

Klove studio, J2 Greepark Main, New Delhi 110 016, +91 9555772321, www.klovestudio.com

Alibag vs THE HAMPTONS Is Alibag really the Hamptons of India? looks at the vast differences between the sleepy, rustic, fishing villages a hop across from Mumbai, and the manicured, white-picket-fence perfection of Long Island’s ritziest address WRITER DIVYA MISHRA

GOES WHORE E TH Mostly, SoBo business families you’ve never heard of. Locals often refer to houses by company names like “India Bulls” rather than actual owners. SRK and Gauri Khan, Gautam Singhania, and Ratan Tata are the most high-profile weekenders.

HERE ING T GETT Ideally, on Gautam’s (Singhania, of course) helicopter. Failing that, one of the queues of speedboats (they take just 15 minutes) that appear as a nautical mass at 10am on Saturday mornings. But you will be surprised who you bump into on the humble PNP—hello, Kavita Singh (whose boat sank) and Bijoy Jain.

N EASO THE S Be quick: Alibag is really only fun from November to February.

THE HAMPTONS

From Wall-Streeters to fashion designers, Hollywood to old money—absolutely anyone who is anyone.

Helicoptering to the Hamptons is so popular that there are ride-sharing apps like Blade and JetSmarter for helicopters and seaplanes. Else, if you’re willing to brave the Friday afternoon gridlock on the two-lane Montauk Highway, you could always drive—or take the (ugh!) Hampton Jitney.

As a rule, Memorial Day through Labour Day.

T TO WHAE TAK Everything. The town is essentially still a fishing village wearing its mum’s heels, so stock up on all the caviar, champagne and foie gras you need for the weekend. There are almost no shops.

Your pretty, sparkling self. The Hamptons have stores with everything you could possibly need, including some things you had no idea you needed.

T TO WHA R WEA Wear a Pucci headscarf on the speedboat and you’ll feel like you’re on your way to Capri. Diamonds are, of course, encouraged.

The International Uniform of Smart Summering: white linen, an LL Bean tote, Tod’s loafers. Absolutely no diamonds.

TOP HITECTS ARC

Nozer Wadia, Pinakin Patel and Bijoy Jain.

John Pawson, Richard Meier and all the minimal starchitects have been commissioned to create beachside estates.

SRK!!!

Queen Bey, her bae and their beautiful babies.

TE ESTA REAL The old rule of ‘as close to the Mandwa jetty as possible’ does not apply. The Godrej property is apparently so close to the jetty that the beach in front of their home is always packed with tourists. Sure, Sasawane (about 10 minutes from the jetty) is the best address, where the finest Nozer Wadia-designed homes are. Kihim’s beach is at least white, and further south, in Kashid, is where some of the most lavish beach homes are built.

Southampton for its historic (and marvellously expensive) properties; Montauk for the fashion set (hello, Ralph Lauren); East Hampton for the older crowd. Southampton currently houses the most expensive property in the Hamptons—a 42-acre oceanfront estate known as Jule Pond. Built in 1960 for the Ford family, the property is now on the market (for those shopping around). At a mere $175 million, it’s a steal, darlings!

LIFEE’SACH AB Alibag has a black-sand beach that—aside from making it quite un-gramable—can best be described as ‘meh’. “It is not easy to create sandcastles” reads a succinct entry on its Wikipedia page—clearly written by a courageous individual who tried, and failed. Down in Kashid, the clever beachfront owners have the beach cleaned by an army of helpers before they arrive for the weekend—giving the illusion of a beach worthy of St Barts.

Which beach you bathe at and where you buy your lobster rolls say everything about you in the Hamptons—the choices are endless. But be warned, nothing will mark out a newb from a Hamptons veteran quicker than showing up at the wrong one. In any case, this is where you bring out that beach bod you’ve been working on all winter; make sure you have that gently tousled ‘woke-up-like-this’ look going though—nothing is as uncool as someone who’s trying too hard.

BS CELETTED SPO

LD WOU IN LIVE

ALSO

Where else but SoBo, darling?

In a classic New York brownstone, or a penthouse at 432 Park Avenue.

ILLUSTRATIONS: SHUTTERSTOCK

ALIBAG

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` 200 JULY-AUGUST 2018 THE MOST BEAUTIFUL HOMES IN THE WORLD

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` 200 NOVEMBER 2018 THE MOST BEAUTIFUL HOMES IN THE WORLD

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The Blue Issue

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` 200 JULY-AUGUST 2018 THE MOST BEAUTIFUL HOMES IN THE WORLD

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` 200 THE MOST BEAUTIFUL HOMES IN THE WORLD

From left: ‘Grows In Mud (Smells Of Myrrh Fire)’ cotton fabric, Toile Indienne. ‘Wedding Ring’ cotton fabric, Sarita Handa. ‘Astoria Sunset’ outdoor fabric, Sunbrella.

TREE HUGGING Deep in the jungle, finds a maze of the season’s fabric wrapped around the coconut grove of Alibag’s Revdanda Fort

PHOTOGRAPHER NEVILLE SUKHIA . STYLIST SAMIR WADEKAR

From left: Cotton handloom fabric from the Malabar Loom collection, Kalpa Druma. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Luna Garnetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; screen-printed cotton-linen blend fabric, Iqrup + Ritz.

From left: ‘Dhiti’ (blue) linen fabric, No-Mad. ‘RVD-3249’ polyester fabric from the Prime Guerdon collection, ‘Vienna Cheks’ (zircon) fabric from the Dundee collection, Skipper Furnishings.

From left: ‘CHOWKAD’ (olive) outdoor fabric, No-Mad. ‘Kuba Dijon’ screen-printed cottonlinen blend fabric, Iqrup + Ritz.

From left: ‘Pine’ (burgundy) fabric, Kanchi by Shobhna & Kunal Mehta.

‘Polynesia’ (blush) fabric, VAYA. ‘Geometric Grill’ fabric, Cottons & Satins.

From left: ‘No. 913 Garnet’ fabric from the Brush Strokes collection 9, ‘No. 16 Eleta’ fabric from the Mosaic collection, D’Decor.

‘02 Fiorentina’ velvet fabric, Dreams Furnishings.

From left: ‘My Beloved’ (ruby red) fabric from the Mughal Art Deco collection, Toile Indienne. ‘Tsunami (Day Night)’ fabric, Kanchi by Shobhna & Kunal Mehta.

‘Radiant Sangria’ fabric, Sunbrella.

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The Charcoal Project, Unit No 1, D – Mall, off Veera Desai road, Andheri West, Mumbai – 400058 For more information, visit www.thecharcoalproject.com, call 022 61936198 or follow @thecharcoalproject on Facebook and @thecharcoalproject on Instagram. For further queries, please contact Juliana – 9167288306 (Sales Manager) or Shilpa – 9819131888 (CMO)

‘Grand Bazaar’ fabric, Atmosphere.

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From left: ‘Verona’ (mustard) fabric, Kanchi

by Shobhna & Kunal Mehta. ‘Gems’ (noir) fabric, RR Decor.

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DRESS CODE FOR YOUR ABODE Designed to inspire, Window Passions, India’s leading luxury window and interior solutions company, brings to you bespoke creations that celebrate originality and style, transforming your ordinary home into an extraordinary masterpiece When a canvas is bare, magic is possible. Especially when you have Window Passions by your side. Since 1994, the brand has been dressing up homes in unique ensembles with tailor-made solutions, curated and crafted with exquisite detail. Co-founded by Amita and Rajiv Kanwar, Window Passions has held an indomitable reputation in the world of interiors, and has even been the first choice for luxury hotels, UHNIs, celebrities and heads of state.

With the brand’s scope of imagination, uncompromising eye for detail and exceptional craftsmanship, Window Passions transforms a mere idea into a luxurious work of art. When you experience its signature custom studio—an intimate experience that translates your brief into a bespoke solution—you will realise how your every whim and fancy will come to life. From exquisitely embroidered curtains to elaborate classic drapes, from contemporary cutting edge designs accented with the finest tassels, tiebacks rods and sheers to the most stylish throws and artistic wall hangings, from custom built blinds to a complete range of soft furnishings and much more—you will be left spoilt for choice.

Every aspect of your space can be made to order and in the way you desire, thanks to the brand’s entourage of over 80 artisans who ensure nothing less than perfection. Each customised commission is led and researched by the studio’s master craftsmen and designers, who have to their credit over 25 years of cumulative experience, and showcase a keen passion for detail. Whether it’s a home, office or hotel, the consultative process is very inclusive of the client’s needs and specifications, and covers every aspect from fabric and colours to personalised design development, selection and finalization of hardware and technique, all guided by an expert team.

Amita Kanwar, Design Director At the end, every solution offers the utmost choice for self-expression—designs that are an extension of your personality, inspired styles that ignite your imagination and a degree of elegance and sophistication that bring your dreams to life.

For more information, visit Window Passions, 348D, 2nd floor, Sultanpur, MG Road, New Delhi-110030; email studio@windowpassions.com; or call +91 7042601239, +91 7042390667

‘Burundi’ (Matope) fabric from the Bantu collection, The Pure Concept.

Production Assistant: Talib Chitalwala.

Production: CutLoose Productions.

For details, see Stockists

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Portfolio No.1

JEEVARAM SUTHAR

POONARAM SUTHAR

The Carpenters Jeevaram and Poonaram Suthar are the two carpenter protégés of Bijoy Jain, who helped build some of the landmark residences in Alibag, including Studio Mumbai’s Palmyra House, Copper House and Belavali House. Born into a family of carpenters in Patoli, Rajasthan, the Suthars migrated to Alibag in their teens.

Having spent the last 25 years working with a few in-the-know architects and designers at their workshops in the village of Chondi, their characteristic style is underpinned by elegance, functionality and precision. For all their growing preeminence, though, the two resolutely believe that the greater story is that of the tree. Says Jeevaram, “The tree stands up to sun, storm and rain to give us our cherished materials. We first learn to listen to the many seasons that live inside the wood, before we ask it to break and bend to our will.”

PHOTOGRAPHER: TALIB CHITALWALA

Poonaram admits that manual carpentry is more thrilling than machine-aided projects. It shows in the way he lines up the basic manual tools in his studio. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Machines undoubtedly make things easier, like they do in the West with prefabricated sheets. But carpentry is intrinsically a mind-and-muscle game, and it is more thrilling when my hands exact a cut and design out of wood. If I surrender that control to a machine, I may accomplish the job as I am expected to, but it is not as challenging to me as a craftsman.â&#x20AC;? However, the 38-year-old admits to enjoying the thrill of jugaad (the nifty use of resources for problem-solving with limited means) when he fashions his own carpentry machines, in situations when he is compelled to use one.

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Both the Suthars takes great pride in fashioning their own manual carpentry tools. It is a family tradition that has continued for several generations.

Jeevaram says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are fastidious about the randha (woodworking plane), so we never buy the factory-manufactured ones typically used by most carpenters. Even a fleeting embrace of mediocrity in terms of blade length, thickness or sole can compromise the smoothness and cut of the wood.â&#x20AC;?

His exacting standards have been rewarding in more ways than one; today, his client list includes SPASM Design, Case Design, SRDA, Serie Architects, and multiple projects with Studio Mumbai, besides a new project in Gujarat with the Indian subsidiary of Germany-based architecture and design firm Blocher Partners.

With a team of 120 artisans and carpenters, Jeevaram’s workshop is a noisy hive all day, albeit in sync with a cohesive rhythm all its own. Being a veteran of sorts now, he has learnt to tackle unforeseen challenges with scholarly assessment. “Recently, a 10-foot-long dining table rendered in rosewood collapsed at one end, on site. But rosewood needs careful seasoning at the warehouse. Sometimes trapped, residual moisture can wreak havoc. So we spent a lot of time seasoning the fresh set of materials—something we usually expect the suppliers to do.” Poonaram also prefers to dispatch materials to sites, months in advance, for acclimatization. “Wood can shrink and expand, in startling response to weather conditions. So, for instance, if I am planning to get work started in Delhi in winter, I send the materials over in summer, so the wood has already settled into its true heft and density by the time I engage with it.”

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Jeevaram looks back on his decade-long association with Bijoy Jain as a metamorphosis of sorts. “He inspired me to obsess over details, and understand the immense design possibilities in carpentry. I don’t think anyone else could have taught me more.” The 42-year-old had initially turned down Jain’s Palmyra House. The 3,000-square-foot louvred house, built entirely of massive slabs of local ain wood and palmyra palm, structured in intricate interlocking, seemed to be an ‘impossible’ assignment. Jeevaram says, “We worked hard on several versions of mock-ups and blueprints, and gradually his unwavering faith in me liberated me from all my apprehensions.” Even today, though he no longer works exclusively for Jain, he pores over blueprints and prototypes for weeks, before he starts working on the project.

Brass fittings punctuate most of the Suthars’ designs. “The principles are nearly the same for metal and wood,” says Jeevaram, who loves to explore new metals that can be paired with wood.

He has urged his entire team to download Pinterest on their smartphones. “I have never attended an international exhibition on design or carpentry. But Pinterest offers me access to a wealth of information on global trends and practices in carpentry. It is amazing to see the kind of work that people are doing out there. When I see that, instead of feeling inadequate, I feel inspired and excited that there is so much still left for me to learn.” Both Jeevaram and Poonaram are known for crafting their own hinges, handles and light switches from brass.

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Mentored by Jeevaram and Jain for 10 years, Poonaram started out on his own in 2013 and established a flourishing facility in no time. His old workshop is a reminder of the many milestones that he has reached, not just in his career but also his emotional maturity. The recycled slabs of Burma teak that dominate his workshop are his favourite. â&#x20AC;&#x153;These are brought in from old houses from all over India that have been pulled down.

They have a character and texture strengthened by time, and by having resisted its ravages through countless seasonal changes. There is also that inexplicable joy in knowing that a much older generation of carpenters have worked on these long ago. They were once held by hands that have known so much more about the craft than I do.â&#x20AC;?

TEXT: RAJASHREE BALARAM & SHWETA VEPA VYAS.

Poonaram’s new studio is buzzing with demands pouring in from Mumbai and Valsad, Gujarat. His team is now working on a sprawling kitchen unit for a house on Marine Drive in Mumbai. However, it is not all work and no play for him. Some nights, he can be found in his studio, working in quiet solitude on a labour of love—a wooden fan fitted with steel blades trimmed with brass inlay. “It is not for any client,” he reveals, adding, “I am designing it for my own house.”

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Portfolio No.2

THE CASE STUDY HOUSE As a project to investigate the vernacular architecture of Alibag, AD took one picture-perfect 1920s home in Sasawane and meticulously dissected everything from its charming porch to its distinct elevations.

The traditional design of homes here is inspired as much by the lives that people lead outside the walls as the time that they spend under the roof. AD tasked a team of researchers from the School of Environment and Architecture to study the old, unoccupied house to decode its blueprint and the unique natural, cultural and social forces that have traditionally shaped the equation between Alibagâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s people and their homes. Though still visible along the Konkan coast, these houses are almost never lived in â&#x20AC;&#x201D; their owners having migrated outside the region in search of better opportunities. Unoccupied and largely abandoned, these houses sit on the land, ancient and crumbling, as markers of an era with simpler lifestyles, and architecture that was as much of the land as from it.

TEXT AND ILLUSTRATIONS: CHINMAY SHIDHORE, VASTAVIKTA BHAGAT AND APOORVA SHARMA

The traditional Alibag homes were typically built as a single mass, with living spaces that extended out to the landscape and reached outwards to the community. It was on the padvis (verandas) where the life of the occupants unfolded. The semi-built form of the padvi consisted of a plinth with a wooden lattice framework that was present in the front, as well as the back of the house. The porosity of this latticework allowed the breeze through but blocked the harsh sun during the day, keeping the interiors cool.

The roofs typically rested on a grid of vertical posts.

The first kadi (joist) of the roof rested on the main timber post, called a dharan khamb, with subsequent kadis overlaid using a complex trussing system called potbandhani. The system consisted of diagonally interlocked timber rafters. This arrangement was then covered with Mangalore tiles (replacing teak leaves that were woven together and used as roofing material in the olden days). The tectonics were dependent on the local resources and material available. Being predominantly load-bearing in nature, the architecture and the dimensionality of the houses spoke the language of locally available wood and stones. The houses were typically built on plinths for protection against floods, but they also captured the sea breeze.

A typical house consisted of five main divisions: the aangan (courtyard), padvi (veranda), majghar (living room), swayampak ghar (kitchen), and mala (attic).

The aangan, being the exterior space, was used to house cattle and for sorting produce. The idea of the house was fairly fluid, and typically included these spaces and the orchards behind these houses. The padvi then became the semi-enclosed interface area that was commonly used through the day for different activitiesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;from drying and cutting produce to making by-products from what was leftover from the harvest.

In most cases, the kitchen and the washing area were a part of the padvi at the back of the house.

Swayampak ghar

Majghar

Padvi

Entry

Aangan

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Shreya Kamalia & GQ's Almona Bhatia

Ashvin Agarwal

Vivek Karunakaran, S. Badrinath, Kunal Daswani, Vikram Prabhu & Armaan Ebrahim at the Audi display

Chivas 18 Gold Signature display

NIGHT OUT

WHAT: GQ Gentlemen’s Club WHAT: The Leela Palace, Chennai Rounding off 2018 was GQ Gentleman’s Club Chennai, in association with Chivas Studio, Audi and Etihad Airways, held at The Leela’s sumptuous Library Blu lounge bar. The city’s cool set, which included the likes of film stars and sportspeople, were out in full force to enjoy an evening of high style, convivial conversation, food and drink.

Vikram Cotah at the Etihad Airways display

Hemang Badani

Cary Edwards & Sahithya Jagannathan

Heeba Sait, Omar Sait & GQ's Shivangi Lolayekar

Kalyan Menda & Anish Arora

Rosella Stephen

Sreeram P

K.M. Chengappa & Nidhi Verma Mariam Haroon & Osman Abdul Razak

Chaitanya Rao & Farah Agarwal Darshana B

Aishwaryaa R. Dhanush

Portfolio No.3

DASHRATH PATEL The only museum in Alibag is dedicated to Dashrath Patel, a design educator, a skilled painter, an exhibition designer, a masterful photographer, a Padma Shri awardee and one of the most prolific artists never known. A contemporary of VS Gaitonde, MF Husain, Akbar Padamsee and SH Raza, Patel’s oeuvre extended well beyond paintings, and included collaborations with Charles and Ray Eames, George Nakashima and Louis Kahn (as founder-director of Ahmedabad’s National Institute of Design), and a photography apprenticeship with Henri CartierBresson. In a career spent defying specializations, Patel developed mastery over many, working in the latter part of his life in Alibag, directly next door to the museum. This portfolio, then, offers a sliver of a glimpse into the towering talent of this unknown modern master, with this collection of paper collages he created (reflective paper on plywood frames) between 2001 and 2010. “The form was inspired mainly by the step wells of Gujarat. As you go deeper, light plays interestingly around the openings,” says long-standing friend Pinakin Patel, who has curated two exhibitions on the artist, one at Mumbai’s Gallery MMB, at the Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan, and the other at the Kolkata Centre for Creativity. In a note following the works, Pinakin also offers an insight into the artist he knew — one gifted with an enviable versatility and an insatiable spirit of discovery.

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Patel on Patel “As I travel on the river of creativity, every time I see an interesting port, I dock and get off to explore. When complete, I don’t look back. I set sail again,” Dashrath had once said. Words that, in a sense, exemplify his approach to—and his mastery over—varied artistic disciplines. In a world obsessed with exhibiting, collecting and celebrating creativity, one glaring omission is the life and work of India’s renaissance man—and perhaps, its quintessential ‘paradox man’—Dashrath Patel, the founder-director of education at NID Ahmedabad [National Institute of Design], one of the world’s most renowned dedicated design schools.

An artist from L’Ecole Beaux Artes who shared the Bhulabhai Desai Institute studios with contemporaries [MF] Husain, [SH] Raza, [VS] Gaitonde, [Akbar] Padamsee and Nasreen Mohamedi, he is not listed in a single book on contemporary Indian art.

At NID, Dashrath interacted with luminaries like Charles and Ray Eames, Frei Otto, Le Corbusier and Louis Kahn—and yet, he is neither shown in a curated international exhibition nor featured in any popular media listing of ‘cool picks’ or ‘hot talents’.

Using the skills he acquired as an apprentice to Henri Cartier-Bresson, Dashrath built a visual essay on the evolution of our nation. But he’s not on any photographers’ lists either.

He innovated screen projections for the India Pavilion at the New York World Fair; designed major exhibitions on art and craft and public figures like [Mohandas] Gandhi and [Jawaharlal] Nehru; and executed dramatic openings of festivals of India in France and the erstwhile USSR—for which the government awarded him a Padma Bhushan posthumously.

In emphasizing the perpetual Indian paradox, I may seem negative, but Dashrath was an eternal optimist.

He once told me, “I don’t want to be the baker baking the same bread every day. I bake for my own surprise.” He was never bothered about garnering recognition; it was never his objective, because he was very confident about himself. It wasn’t a confidence that stemmed from education or acknowledgement, but from self-belief and faith.

I first met him in 1999, during his retrospective at Mumbai’s NGMA, and we struck an instant friendship.

I was in awe of his aesthetic sense. It originated from his understanding of very primal things—light, shadow and form. Anyone who met him learnt something from him. As for me, apart from an understanding of positive and negative spaces and reading of light, I learned that the almost identical path that I was on was correct.

When he moved to our Alibag estate, six months after our first meeting, I tried to ‘sell’ him and his greatness, but there was no audience. His multidisciplinary life had materialized in thousands of artworks that neither public museums nor private collectors were willing to receive. So I decided to establish the Dashrath Patel Museum in Alibag.

That was an opportunity for Dashrath to try his hand at architecture—in the name of ‘assisting’ me at work, he designed his own building! He lived there in the last years of his life. It is now also where his legacy lives.

– PINAKIN PATEL

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DASHRATH PATEL 1927â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2010

THE BEACH A long driveway meandering through seven acres of coconut groves, with the Arabian sea lapping on one side, makes for an exotic arrival at Kavita Singhâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s elegant Alibag estate Writer RajashRee BalaRam . PhotograPher ashish sahi StyliSt samiR WadekaR

A carefully chosen palette of whites and other muted monochromes allow the green cover to dominate this open area in designer Kavita Singhâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Alibag home.

This paved path extends through the seven-acre property. Facing page: A lily pond in full bloom, next to a meandering path.

Ivory mosaic with dark green motifs adorn the floor leading to the pool area. The Balinese bamboo couches have become a favourite lounging zone. Wooden brackets sourced from old mansions and temples of south India provide subtle definition to the outdoor seating space. A third-century stone carving of Vishnu in repose is one of the many antiques that dot the house.

The antique marbletopped table, near the garden area, has been in the family for years. The latticed wooden door has a mirror behind it. The slate wall accentuates the Kota stone flooring.

Facing page: The threelegged table is a family heirloom that once belonged to Singhâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mother-in-law. The white screen has its history in a Goan church. The blackand-white lobby card of the Bombay Talkies silent-era movie, Jawani Ki Hawa (1935), directed

by Franz Osten, has been originally captured in platine fibre rag paper.

This master bedroom features a few carefully chosen piecesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a Burmese urn, a French antique mirror, and pillars from an old south Indian mansion. Facing page: The wooden headboard in this bedroom, with intricate baroque carving, is an old one fabricated by Singh, and polished assiduously over the years.

Sabyasachiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Nilaya series of wallpaper adorn all the bedrooms.

Facing page: The bright-blue bed linen from Cottons and Satins complements the muted floral motifs of the wallpaper.

The villa runs along an uninterrupted one-kilometre stretch parallel to the beach, with nearly all the rooms facing the sea. Above: The cabana, atop a vantage point, is Singh’s favourite spot. Facing page: A dining table in the garden—with foldable director’s chairs and an umbrella sourced from Pottery Barn, USA— is a popular gathering spot, except for the monsoons, when it is brought in.

The large uruli (a traditional south Indian broad-based vessel) offers a distinctive earthy touch to the bright cerulean blue tiles of the newly renovated pool.

The gardens around Singhâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s villa ripple over different levels with neatly manicured lawns and hundreds of tall indigenous trees.

T

ukaram is a man of few words and a stony gaze that you may find unsettling—until you figure out that he is more animated in the company of plants than people. The phlegmatic chief gardener is an old hand at designer Kavita Singh’s beachfront villa in Alibag. He wakes up at 5am every day to tend to the plants on the seven-acre property, and over the years, his skilled ministrations have yielded a veritable forest of greenness. On Singh’s property now, along with exquisitely manicured lawns, there is a highly Instagrammable lily pond, a dense huddle of frangipani, casuarinas, coconut palms and hibiscus, and hundreds of other flowering trees and shrubs. “He’s done a beautiful job, hasn’t he?” asks Singh as we sit to dine, al fresco, on her sea-facing lawn. The pride in her voice can be attributed to not just the aesthetics of her space, but also to the talent and loyalty of her staff. It is true that her house can easily nail every flattering superlative in the book, but Singh is rooted in the way she approaches most things, including design. “Wealth and fine taste are not enough to put a place like this together.

Only if I treat my staff with respect will they be as attentive to the house in my absence as when I am here.”

LOCAL AREA NETWORK Singh has her hands full with projects that take her all over—and out of—the country every other week. While she lives in Bandra in Mumbai, nearly everyone in Alibag—from auto drivers to the average teenager playing cricket on the local playground in Kihim—knows her well. “I like talking to the locals and offering a smile when I bump into them instead of staying aloof.” The familiarity has been nurtured over 17 years, ever since she bought the villa from its previous owner, architect and friend Noshir Talati. Though she speaks of Talati with fondness and humour, she is gently damning about the way the house was designed earlier. “The walls were stuccoed, the floors had brown tiles, the doorways were arched, it was centrally air-conditioned, and there were stained-glass windows all around.” Singh’s disapproval is more evident in the way she leaves uncharitable adjectives out of the conversation, instead letting her eyes speak volumes.

It took her all of two years to renovate the 10-bedroom space for it to exude the loveliness that it does now. She admits initially regretting the decision to buy this property that she had invested in as a vacation home for her kids and extended family. “I nearly wept with all the grief it gave me. It was ducted, it had unidentified hidden leaks on the walls, and termites under window frames that were made from sleeper wood.” Two years ago, she had the house stripped bare—even partially opening up the roof, where seepage had caused its own share of ruin—before she commissioned the renovation. Though the original shell has been retained, the house has undergone a complete makeover.

The last remnants of the stucco walls can now be seen only in a discreet part of the garden, the brown tiles replaced with simple

kota stone, and the stained glass substituted with floor-to-ceiling mirrors, which make the place look even roomier than it already is. While the main door is at a lower level than the rest of the house, there are steps and ramps to get to the drawing room, which is on an elevation. “The whole space was artificially elevated to be level with the sea-facing view all around.”

Any semblance of a theme has been resolutely avoided; though sizeable chunks of driftwood, large urns holding a variety of plants, and massive vases filled with leaves, seem to be recurring motifs. “I did not want to confine the space with a theme. So, I have just followed my instincts when it comes to colours and textures. Every single thing just needs to feel right, have its own little story, and not just be pretty for the sake of it.”

Most of the chairs and other furniture have been built and customized in her own studio. In fact, her garage here functions as a temporary in-house studio, and some weekends, she sits here with carpenters and works on her designs.

BEAUTY WITH ART Aside from the sheer size of it, what is overwhelming about the property is the art on its walls. Like a south Mumbai socialite dripping diamonds, the space has a series of paintings and sculptures that can be only described as jaw-dropping—in both scale and signature. Works by Reena Kallat, Prabhakar Kolte, Sakshi Gupta, Gopikrisha and Rekha Rodwittiya (among others) dominate bedrooms, dining areas and passages. A third-century Vishnu in repose faces the swimming pool. A cross section of an ancient, petrified tree trunk serves as a wash basin in her daughter’s room. Sculptures of demons and mythical creatures abound, more in wood than stone.

The recent renovation has also brought a playfulness to the space. For instance, the massive changing room next to her bathroom has been turned into a spa, and is now fitted with a skylight. A bed suspended on ropes lends drama to the otherwise understated space that is her daughter’s bedroom. The walls of all the bedrooms sport Sabyasachi’s Nilaya series of wallpapers, in different shades and motifs.

Singh, though, feels prouder and happier about the intangibles. The gazebo in the garden, for instance, is a muchcherished spot. Erected at a vantage point on the undulating terrain, it looks out into the sea. “It’s pure bliss, just sitting there and watching the sun go down. More than pride then, I feel gratitude that I get to enjoy that view.” An old lady, part of Singh’s staff for 16 years now, brings over a packet of sesame laddus that she’d made at home to celebrate the harvest festival of Makar Sankranti. The former (1969) Miss India is chatty and all smiles as she nibbles on the goodies, and enquires about a newborn in the woman’s family. The crumbs on her designer linens are forgotten for now. “Respect people for who they are and they will respect you back,” she says. The reticent Tukaram and his luxuriant garden make perfect sense now.

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A view of the house from the driveway. Flying buttresses prop a balcony overlooking the public thoroughfare. Deep overhangs of bracketed coconut wood joists are all that remain of the original thatch roof. Facing page: An arched doorway, panelled in strips of recycled glass, funnels diffused light into the guest room, while opening to scenes of the village road and the beach beyond. An arch clad in stone-flake stucco breaks the monopoly of brick.

A TALL MAN

Amidst the veritable architectural hall of fame that is the real estate of Alibag, this Nari Gandhi-designed red-brick house stands above its peersâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;much like the late architect himself Writer Snehal Gada . PhotograPher RajeSh VoRa

A sinuous frame lifts the house above street level, carving two parking bays below, with the third accommodating a guest room. This portal links the beachside entrance to a private garden behind.

The roof drops dramatically then rises again as a dormer, lending the sunken dining area an intimate scale. A herringbone-patterned ceiling creates an illusion of depth, lightening its extensive surface.

The cut-out in the foreground opens onto the kitchen below. Facing page: A flight of stairs seems to shed weight as it ascends from the sun-bleached deck, until itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nothing more than a slab of stone projecting from the adjacent arch, ending in a floating cabin-like daybed room that occupies the highest position of the house.

A staircase emerging at the intersection of multiple arches shares the spotlight with the rough mandana stone flooring, while an oculus frames its mid-landing. Brass hooks in the soffit are reminders of a swing that once hung here. Facing page: Masonry screens punctuated by porthole windows and glass-inlaid apertures suggest a synergy between the coastal context and the thikri work native to Rajasthan, the homeland of the masons who worked on this project. The teakwood ceiling and sandstone floor contribute to the red hue.

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A half-domical kitchen and bar, tucked into a corner of the building, is largely illuminated by a concealed skylight. A spiral service staircase hidden behind the archway to the right connects the space to the dining room above.

A gently ascending series of landscaped terraces lead onto an elevated deck, belying the fact that one has climbed an entire floor. The living and dining spaces housed here open in all directions, commanding views of the gardens and coast.

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Sandstone bleachers rise from the garden onto a large deck, revealing the spectacular expanse of the Arabian Sea. The built-in seats double as a walkway and gradually transform into a few tentative steps and finally a full flight of stairs.

Seen from the caretakerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s quarters, the house appears to be afloat on a sea of green, overlooked by a crowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s-nest balcony tucked beneath the roofline. The twin pods house the bedrooms. Above: The view from one of two similarly vaulted bedrooms is focused on the garden outside. A cast of bricks finds expression in various roles: ceiling, floor, bed and ledge. A distinct joint discloses an extension, as does the change in flooring from mosaic tiles to brick.

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e’re driving through the narrow lanes of Korlai, a fishing village 20 kilometres south of Alibag, in search of a Nari Gandhi house, one of few built by the near-mythical architect—and among even fewer that have survived neglect and the real-estate boom. Arriving at the beach, we turn onto a road that runs along it, and there, half-hidden behind a cluster of other buildings, is the unmistakable peak of a roof that, though dressed in the same clay tiles as its neighbours, stands a metaphorical mile apart, and a head above; not unlike Nari himself, I imagine, for he was a tall man.

It’s difficult to describe his work in plain words, yet the allegory here is too apparent to avoid. The house is staged on an elevated platform, a beached boat of brick, with sandstone paving below echoing the beach behind and leading through a ribbed underbelly of archways and flying buttresses, past twin submersible-like bedrooms tucked into the landscape, and onto a sea of lawn at the far end. Having passed through this portal, a subtle line of force— evident only as a strip of grass flattened by repeated footsteps— directs movement along a gently modulated slope to the ‘upper’ deck. Framed by soaring segmental arches on either side, this primary space opens to vistas of shores both real and conceived; the filigree of voids that punctuate the masonry screens above produce a play of light from dawn to dusk. From here, one flight of cantilevered stone steps leads up to the crow’s-nest vantage of a wooden loft, while another spirals down to the kitchen, back to the carport and out to the main gate. The self-guided tour is complete.

“When the house was built some 30 years ago, the roof was made of woven coconut thatch, the now repainted bricks were their original colour, and the landscape was sand,” says Ashwin Chari, a young architect who has furthered a not-so-unusual fascination with the master’s work by seeking out his contemporaries for anecdotes and his clients for permission to measure-draw otherwise undocumented projects. “Nari largely worked without drawings, instead observing the site before making intuitive and spontaneous decisions about where and how to build.” Thereafter the project would proceed more as an exercise in workmanship, with him selecting materials and developing generic details, as if programming the DNA of the design, then leaving the masons to explore these in their own way before returning to further experiment.

He played with an extensive material palette: burnt brick, stone and wood being favourites, but also metal, bamboo, leather, woven textiles, glass, shells, pebbles and a variety of plasters— approaching each with a curiosity that occasioned unconventional outcomes. At Korlai, he chose regular country bricks for the heavier base, but above he employed hollow, machine-moulded bricks, using their capacity for reinforcement to create forms that seem to defy gravity. “Nari’s only other passion was travel. He went all over the country, seeking inspiration and craftsmen to collaborate with,” says Rustom Mehta, the owner of this house, who accompanied him to Bilimora in Gujarat to procure the bricks. The masons were Rajasthani, a team that Nari used regularly after discovering them on a similar foray with Praveen Bhayani, an associate who sometimes sourced supplies for his sites.

The house took six years to build, gradually evolving and being layered with elements and finishes.

FAMOUSLY UNKNOWN In a rare monograph that attempts to present the full extent of

Nari’s legacy, the architect and poet H Masud Taj says, “Nari ignored the current mainstream’s ideal of a building as a selffulfilling prophecy, and built that which could not be envisioned.

His buildings occurred as conversations. It was his alchemy and their patient craftsmanship that transmuted base materials into precious stones, architecture into a work of art and the client into a patron.” His process required a patience that few clients could muster, but those who did returned to him repeatedly, like Sadruddin Daya for whom Nari did five projects, and often became close friends. Stories of what happened with less sensitive clients are the stuff of lore, such as the man whose site was left abandoned with a truckload of tyres and rope—brought there to build a house—when he asked if Nari would be working for free as he did for Daya.

“There were some people who called him eccentric and his buildings impractical,” says Mehta, “but it was not so. He was far ahead of his time.” Born in 1934 to a Parsi family in Bombay, Nariman Dossabhai Gandhi left the Sir JJ College of Architecture in the mid-1950s, without completing the course, and went instead to apprentice with Frank Lloyd Wright as a Taliesin Fellow, spending most of his four years there in the gardens, growing the perfect strawberry for Wright, or splitting stones at a nearby quarry, rather than in the drafting hall. In a rare interview sometime later, he says this was, in essence, no different from building a house, because in either case “you do it from within”.

After Wright’s death, Nari went on to study pottery at the Kent State University before returning to India in 1960, where he completed some 20 projects over 30 years until his own tragic death in a car accident while visiting a site.

Most of his projects being private residences for wealthy clients, and because he was averse to talking about himself, Nari received little attention from the press. A bachelor and teetotaller, he dressed plainly in white khadi kurta-pyjamas, a Parsi topi and Kolhapuri chappals, and was more likely to be spotted sharing his tiffin with workers on a site than at a glamorous gathering in the city. I scour excerpts and essays and tribute websites, track down people who knew him or knew of him, trying to piece together an image of the man, but the variety of opinions is matched only by the number of sources, and so I safely conclude: the man was a mirror. And this is when his prolific practice begins to make sense.

Organic Architecture, a term coined by Wright to express his philosophy, calls for design that “grows out of the site” and form that is “determined by way of the nature of materials”. Followed truly, even disregarding an architect’s bias, this would result in as many ‘styles’ as there are projects, each a unique reflection of its environment and era. That Nari took this to heart is evident in the ease with which each building inhabits its specific surroundings, as though it always belonged and he had merely uncovered the possibility. Perhaps extending a potter’s method to architecture, he balanced external pressures against those of the space to be contained within, himself uncertain of the outcome, to generate fresh forms in which this tension was palpable. Handling such a volatile process requires, in addition to an inherent understanding of material and structure, courage. As Suresh Sethi, another associate and collaborator, says in the 2007 Friends of Kebyar journal dedicated to Nari, ‘to understand his work “you have to be free, free from all fears…”’. May we all be free from all fears.

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The Palmyra House, south of Alibag, was designed by Bijoy Jain as two discrete structures in concrete and woodâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the latter most prominently visible in the louvred walls that blur the line between the outside and in. Facing page: In the living room that opens out to a palm grove is a low table in Kaddapa stone, and rush chairs made on-site by the artisans of Studio Mumbai. Next to the louvred wall is an installation of pebbles on the cement floor.

ICONIC

The Palmyra House is the magical beachfront estate that put both Studio Mumbai and Alibag on the map. revisits the house that Bijoy built Writer Catherine ardouin PhotograPher PhiliPPe GarCia

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In the dining area, the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Tubeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; chandelier

by Michael Anastassiades hangs above a table designed by Studio Mumbai, which is surrounded by Hans J Wegner chairs. The ground is in coloured cement. Facing page: In the kitchen, the central teak counter has a concrete worktop; above it is a guest room.

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In the hall, the cement walls and latticed teak contrast with the palm trees outside; above, on the mezzanine, is the master bedroom. Facing page, top: In the guest room, the green of the palms is offset by the colours of the palm shutters, bamboo blinds, and the teak floors and walls. The towel racks and armchair were made in the workshops of Studio Mumbai. The bed linen is traditional cotton. Facing page, bottom: Another guest room in the house.

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Above: The entrance to the bathroom. Right: In the bathroom, the floor, ceiling and cupboards are made of the same teak as the bathtub, which is positioned to offer a perfect view of the coconut trees.

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o the south of Mumbai, running along the coastline of the Arabian Sea are a series of small resorts, farmlands and long, deserted beaches.

Close to the fishing village of Nandgaon—just outside Alibag—on smooth sandy ground, coconut trees with slender trunks balance their palm-leaf hats against the wind. It is in this astonishing setting, mere steps away from the sea, that the Palmyra House was built by the Bijoy Jain-led Studio Mumbai.

To minimize the home’s impact on the landscape, the Studio Mumbai team did not use any mechanical equipment. The foundations were dug by hand, and the wooden structure was built with ain (a local hardwood), using traditional joinery techniques. This is classic Jain. “It is important for me,” he says, “to understand the topology of the place, to preserve its energy, to not disturb the existing ecosystem. There are often restrictions, which give the direction of the project: the footprints of a river bed, a freshwater well, plantations, the presence of peacocks, agricultural furrows….”

Studio Mumbai, which was set up in 2005, brings together architects, carpenters, masons, engineers, tinsmiths, plumbers and artists. For ecological reasons, everything, from A to Z, is made by the studio, from windows to door handles to furniture—sometimes, on-site, as the house is being built.

In this palm grove irrigated by a network of wells and aqueducts, the firm constructed two wooden structures— anchored on stone platforms—to face each other across a pool. Their monochrome facades appear to be uniformly covered with a lattice net—but these are no nets; they are louvres, made from the trunks of the palmyra trees (also called round palms) after which the house is named. They ventilate the house, keep out the heat, subdue the light and provide protection from the rain, which slides off their angled strips. The hall, office, and owners’ bedroom are located in the building to the north, while the one to the south houses the dining room, kitchen and the guest rooms. Large openings allow for movement between outside and inside through the patio doors.

The house does not offer just a glimpse of the surrounding landscape—it is an ongoing tête-à-tête with the palm trees on all sides. “The interesting feature of this place,” explains Jain, “was this magnificent canopy, which is stretched out like a roof above the site. Half of our work was already done. The vegetation solved the question of shade. The plantations have been here for centuries and have a history. Finally, we tried to treat the scenery like we would an old building, with the same respect.”

The two buildings, uniformly covered with louvred shutters, face a pool surrounded by coconut trees. An aqueduct irrigates the land; next to it is an old planter’s chair.

THIS IS HOME

Pinakin Patel is one of the few outsiders to have made Alibag his main residence, on a spectacular estate that fuses vernacular architecture with tropical modernism Writer Gauri KelKar PhotograPher ashish sahi

The spread of fashion designer Pinakin Patelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s home seen from the first-floor master bedroom looks out at the spiritual pavilion with the pool area behind. A canopy of white bougainvillea shades your walk towards the area.

The view of the house from the driveway. The roof, made from local clay tiles, sits on a metal-and-wood frame. Facing page: The low-roofed spiritual pavilion, on the other side of the garden from the main house, is a contemplative space with no furniture except ledges. The organic lotus pond has small guppies that keep the water mosquito-free.

The final arrival deck before you descend into the house. The east-facing stone sculpture under the canopy of bottlebrush trees depicts Vishnu as the sun god. Facing page: The stone staircase leading up to the master bedroom enables a strong connect with nature during transit. A pair of south Indian granite temple lions guard the pathway.

The main living area on the lower floor features a traditional Gujarati gadda seating designed by Pinakin; it is meant to function as a casual relaxing area to gather for a chat, nap or play board games. On the left wall is a large work

by SH Raza hanging over some works by Zarina Hashmi. Facing page: A reading corner flanked by a vintage Ram Kumar.

Two white-leather-upholstered rosewood chairs designed by Pinakin face a sofa with Tibetan brocade cushions. On the ledge nearby is a Dashrath Patel oil-on-canvas, an antique alabaster lamp and work by Malala Andrialavidrazana, a Madagascarborn visual artist. The organic piece sitting on the ledge is a plastic-beaded creation that Pinakin found. The banana fibre carpet was made by karigars from Badhoi, Benares.

Facing page: Wooden ledges and shelves along the peripheries of all the rooms work as platforms for creating stillscapes, from books, art and craft that Pinakin collects. An antique Japanese porcelain lion sits above the books. The brass Ravana is from West Bengal. The cubic painting on the left is by Pinakin; the artwork on the adjacent wall is by Andrialavidrazana.

The pool houseâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the sideboard with antique Kerala hardware is by Pinakin. The artwork on rice paper, with tiny birds making up a skyscape, is by Aditi Singh. Facing page, top left: The master bedroom on the first floor.

Facing page, top right: One of the bathrooms has glass cubicles for the shower and water closet; an antique Afghan kilim is in front of the stone basin. Facing page, bottom left: The modernist chair in the veranda was designed by Pinakin. Facing page, bottom right: The veranda looks towards the arrival deck, which has a giant piece of white quartz rock that was found underground in the same spot during construction.

A shaded pathway in the garden.

Fallen flowers and leaves are collected in heaps by Dolly Patel for recycling into compost. Facing page: A godown space.

The swimming pool area has a seamless grey polycrete finish. The hot tub is set within an island in the pool.

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n a new moon night, when the lights are out, it gets so dark that you can get lost in your room,” says Dolly Patel. “And on a full moon night, you can read a book by the moonlight,” finishes Pinakin. The couple succinctly encapsulate the dichotomies that characterize the seaside hamlet of Alibag: remote but connected; nourished by dense nature, but embellished (increasingly) by visible pockets of incredible, man-made luxury; still and silent, but, on weekends, momentarily shaken by the frenzied city crowds that descend en masse; a holidaymakers’ haven just a boat-ride away, but a humble seaside town for locals who have called it home for generations—and for Pinakin too, one of its most famous residents since 2000. That was when he uprooted a thriving architectural practice, and outraced just about everyone, right across town, beyond the sea and into the jungles of Alibag.

“When [Dolly and I] came here, everybody thought it was the most regressive step I could take; because there was literally nothing here, only dense jungles—and connectivity was poor,” he explains. Till the disbelievers saw what the couple got for what they gave up.

For visitors, the journey, escorted by shrill, low-flying seagulls, begins aboard a crowded, open-roofed ferry charting an unhurried course across the waters of the Arabian Sea to the Mandwa jetty. From its gated entrance, you cut a straight route towards the village of Chondhi, where you come upon a nondescript wooden gate, set amidst dense greenery, pass through it, taking a couple of loops around a curving driveway flanked by a thicket of trees, walk down a trellised walkway and finally, reach your journey’s end—another magnificent patch of greenery accessible by a short flight of stairs abutting a quietly remarkable low-slung, two-storey house.

THE ROAD LESS TRAVELLED For the architect-turned-fashion-designer, the road to Alibag started with an inward journey when he turned 40. “I started reading Indian philosophy and realized that man and his relationship to the environment, sustainability, reverence and beauty is understood in one deep breath. Here we are, with a culture that is so rich, and we are still trying to learn a way of life from the viewpoint of a Western education. I wanted to shift that perspective,” explains Pinakin.

He found a well-greened plot of land, right on the main road, because “having shifted my practice here at a time when Alibag was still so remote, nobody would have been able to find me if I had chosen to go to some scenic location”. And then, he got down to the nitty-gritty of unlearning. “When we decided to come here, it wasn’t to sip a glass of beer or Bacardi by the pool on a weekend. It was an ideological shift. We wanted to live here, lead a natural life; and nobody can teach that to you like the locals, because they have survived here.” That exploration took the form of a home that bears Pinakin’s imprint superimposed on all things local. “Everything was sourced from here—the stone (Dholpur), the labour, the traditional Mangalore- or clay-tiled

roof, which I swear, 20 years later, is still damp-free.”

Crafted in a local language articulated in the humble architectural vernacular of the region, the house is as understated as it is incredible, and follows an uncomplicated geometric design—“It’s a simple, symmetric layout. I’m obsessed with symmetry.” If you can tear yourself from the landscape, the veranda leads into a large living area with two rooms—Dolly’s and Pinakin’s at either end, with the layout replicated on the upper floor. On the lower floor, beyond the front living room, are the dining room, powder room, personal kitchen and staff kitchen. All spaces face north. “My understanding of buildings is always in relation to the land, and the land in relationship to the geographical attributes and climate. In these parts, the north is the most beautiful—the heavy rain and sun move southwards, so they go to the back of the building. The direction was made parallel to the best views, which were north-facing.”

NATURAL SELECTION Across the garden is the pool house, which serves as an informal gathering area. Nature is at the centre of it all, with Dolly laying the groundwork; she ran a nursery back when the couple lived in Mumbai. Sustainability, ecology and greenery were as intrinsic to the design as the house itself. “Living with nature is the highest form of aesthetic beauty or pleasure that one can aspire to, because nature reinvents itself for you every day. In that sense, it’s like fashion,” he says.

In this barely-there footprint of a house, there’s a fair bit of art as well—a given in an inveterate collector’s home with the Dashrath Patel Museum next door, built and named after the late, anonymously legendary founder-director of Ahmedabad’s NID, who was a close friend and mentor. “I have been collecting since I was 18. Modern art was just about raising its head, so I have grown with the movement.” And like any other connoisseur, apart from the familiars, including Dashrath Patel’s works, he has expanded his collection to include contemporary artists too, including a Damien Hirst that hangs on a living room wall. In this home, where time seems fluid, life seems to slow down, and your senses are heightened in the stillness, the art, the space and the greenery are an intensely transformative experience. It is one that extends to the Alibag seen through Pinakin’s perspective.

That’s saying quite a bit, given that the little seaside town has become a newly discovered blip on the radar, with speedboats depositing city slickers to their luxurious nests in this not-quite-yet Hamptons of Mumbai to enjoy the weekend, while sipping on that Bacardi by the pool. “I hope that the people who come here find it easier to understand the ecology, observe life and blend into it, instead of looking at it as one more land to conquer.”

For Pinakin, Alibag has been about responding to something deep within, to change, be changed—to see his adoptive home change, and be invested in its future. One of the only outsiders to become a true local.

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You cannot drive up to the front door of this Alibag house; you get dropped off at a lower level, and then a buggy takes you to this impressive old temple doorway, which leads you to the fountain courtyard.

Facing page: Part of the original architecture of the house, this fountain area was painted teal to refresh it. A driftwood sculpture of a dancing Ganesha looks out over the water. The copper bowls above the lights embedded in the fountain refract the beams when the lights are switched on. The steps beyond go up to the temple courtyard.

NOZER THE GREAT

Shy away as he might from self-promotion, Nozer Wadiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work speaks loud and clear of his common-sense approach to designâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;as this sprawling Alibag home attests Writer Genesia alves . PhotograPher Tom Parker . StyiSt samir Wadekar

The lounge is a gorgeous indoor space that looks out towards the sea from one window and the fountain courtyard from the other.

On the wall beyond is a painting that featured as one of the backdrops at the homeowner’s wedding. Made in Bali, the oversized daybeds— in bamboo and rattan—were designed to be almost indolently luxurious. The table is decorated with bronze koi fish and the lamps overhead are made of onyx.

One of the two master bedrooms features a cane sofa, a sunburst mirror and an altar container from Thailand.

Facing page, top left: The mural on the wall of this bedroom is by an artist known only as ‘Babloo’. The table and chair in the background, finished in abalone shell, are from Bali. The blue bed linen is by Sarita Handa. Facing page, top right: Past 21-foot-tall doors, this room by the pool functions as a party space. The lamps overhead are repurposed lobster traps. The painting on the wall is by a Japanese artist who creates banana fibre art.

Facing page, bottom right: An al-fresco dining space is made useable even during the summer months via an air-conditioning innovation installed beneath the table.

Facing page, bottom left: The bathroom, connected to a walk-in closet, in one of the master bedrooms—the walls are lined with Indian travertine from Ahmedabad.

The lights on the wall are vintage ship lights. The infinity mirror effect is courtesy two old mirrors, newly refurbished. The washbasin counters are custom built.

A birdâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eye view of the infinity pool that was reshaped and refurbished. Facing page: Floating 30 feet above the ground and accessible only via the bathroom in one of the master bedrooms, this red-tiled hot tub on a pedestal has all the thrills of a machan and is completely private.

Reimagined as a social space, the timber deck around the pool was extended and outfitted with stone planters and deck furniture from Thailand.

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his home sits on a hill—the sunrise at the aft, the sunset to the fore. The original structure was created by Pinakin Patel, himself a resident of Alibag, but it has been recently refurbished, reimagined even. The author of this reimagining, however, is as private as some of these Alibag hideaways.

THE RELUCTANT STARCHITECT Nozer Wadia revamped the house—within and without. His stellar reputation as one of the city’s most sought-after architects is rivalled only by his notoriety for spurning interviews (a comprehensive list of his work and clientele is nigh impossible to uncover). It has been suggested that he is mercurial.

In conversation, though, he is affable, no-nonsense and explains his distaste for self-promotion. “I made the decision many years ago to remain a very private person. Architecture is a serious profession. There are very few things that history can rely on.

When civilizations end, what is left is their architecture. Selfpromotion is distracting. Over time, we will see the void left by [the vanities] of this era.”

He believes that architecture is not about bricks and cement, but about soul. And so, “The house is my client; the people who live in it become an element of the project.” Which is why working on a structure that had already been designed by a stalwart barely fazed him. “Many people would be hesitant about doing a job like this—having to think through someone else’s mind. But that’s part of doing something different….”

NEEDFUL THINGS The initial brief was, in his words, “a fix-it job. I was asked to look at the technical aspects of deterioration, leakages and the like.” The usual wear and tear of the tropics was evident. “But I think the owners didn’t realize what they were getting into by appointing me,” he says, laughing.

Nozer says his first thought was that the “property had great bones”, but “it seemed disjointed. Only about 10 per cent of the area was actually in use. The owners would eat a meal in one room.

Then go to another room to watch TV in air-conditioned comfort.

The nicer portions of the house, like the swimming pool area, for example, were used almost as destinations within the property.

Then you’d have to take an umbrella to go to your bedroom in the monsoons! Of course, it’s fine. You can afford to do silly things in a

holiday home.”

For the architect, there are a few criteria that dictate what must be done. He enumerates these, “You have to consider how the client uses the house. Then you must plan the house using logic, figuring out what works and what doesn’t. The design sensibilities come in after these are in place.”

The homeowners wanted to enhance both the intimacy and the social potential of the space. Adding rooms, redrawing lines, recreating shapes—the restructure focused on the property fulfilling its true potential. “We had to optimize the sexy parts of the house and do it holistically,” Nozer says, “The home had a drop-dead view but an introverted feel. The sloping lawns of the gardens were decorative but not usable. The pool deck area was extremely tight.

Their friends would come to Alibag to ensconce themselves in air-conditioned rooms. That’s what I set out to change.”

ALL-WEATHER FRIEND Nozer opened the house up—both visually and physically—to nature, veining the structure with airflow and natural light to create better circulation. A timber deck was added around the pool and the adjoining veranda had 21-foot-tall doors installed. Opened, the area is a poolside party space; closed, it is a room with a view. The landscaping was restructured by Kunal Maniar, and an al-fresco dining space added. In another part of the house, an all-weather ‘cool space’—open air, but also air-cooled from below—was created for dining and lounging. It’s an innovation the architect has fashioned to encourage the homeowners to enjoy the (sometimes not so great) outdoors. “The entire house is now usable,” says Nozer.

The word ‘usable’ seems restrained. Each of the two master bedrooms and three family bedrooms were appointed with sit-outs. A hot tub, built on a pedestal, “as if in a machan”, is accessible only via a master bedroom. The pool deck (which used to double as a cricket pitch) now sprawls out lazily, welcoming, pool loungers basking in the sun. Cricket is still played by the family and folks who visit—on a properly levelled pitch.

The house is a treat in all seasons, making even the trek by road during the monsoon worth it. “It’s fabulous year-round; it’s fabulous all day,” the architect says. Rain or shine, in harsh or mild weather, the revitalized house on the hill is even more beautiful now, inside and out. What hasn’t changed are the gentle sunrises at the aft and the spectacular sunsets in the fore.

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NATURAL HABITAT

Mumbai-based landscape architect Kunal Maniar is behind some of Alibagâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most spectacular gardens, including this seemingly natural private oasis, which surrounds a landmark contemporary house Writer RajashRee BalaRam . PhotograPher ashish sahi

The infinity pool is integrated into the landscape in a cohesive design, its boundaries outlined only subtly.

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An uneven hardscape of granite slabs creates an interesting pattern on the grassy terrain that is thoughtfully punctuated with sand. Facing page: Succulents and casuarinas dominate the garden.

The reflection of the foliage on water is a carefully contrived design element that Maniar describes as fluid paintings.

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The layered deck creates an optical illusion of a uniform level between the swimming pool and the sea. The island platform, which is paved with basalt chips, makes for an informal seating space with benches hewn from casuarina wood and cosy room for a bonfire.

I

dislike gimmicks in landscapes, no matter how pretty they may seem,” says Kunal Maniar. One of India’s leading landscape architects, Maniar admits his skills come at a premium as much for what he can do to a patch of land as what he won’t. We are standing in the middle of a 30,000-square-foot garden that he has designed around an extensive sea-facing villa in Alibag.

Though there is more than enough room to go overboard with all kinds of garden exotica, Maniar has made it an unconventional story of minimalism, all nurtured over a span of two years. It helped that his design ethic was in sync with the clients’—Naivedya and Ananya Agarwal— pithy brief: “keep things natural and free-flowing”.

“I have always been partial to landscaping that is organic, indigenous and natural. Plants arranged in strict geometry and symmetry don’t excite me,” he says. For Maniar, landscape design is not primarily about the spectacular possibilities of horticulture as it tends to be with many practitioners of the art. “Nature does not grow things in measured uniformity, does it? Instead, there is a beautiful symbiosis and integration of elements. I strive not to interfere with that grand design and find it thrilling to collaborate with it.” The conspicuous absence of excessively manicured foliage around the property speaks volumes; there are no potted plants, carefully trimmed hedges or contained bunches of colourful blooms. Any subtle hints of colour are limited to the white bougainvillea vines that cascade over the retaining walls, and the trees of white frangipani planted towards the back garden.

As the swimming pool at the centre of the property, laid out on a layered deck, divides the landscape into two halves, the greatest challenge for Maniar was to conceive and execute an uninterrupted, cohesive design. Eventually, the answers he sought to resolve the problem emerged from the sea outside. “It struck me that everything in here just had to serve as an accent to that stunning view.” He got the landscape elevated three metres, so the outdoors of the house sat on a perch that looked out at an unhindered view of the beach—and instead of a flat surface, the lawn is laid out in mounds and waves. He further aced his game with an unusual choice of hardscape. The boulders that were excavated when the property was being dug up were arranged in intimate gatherings on the lawns, where the family could sit together, chat and enjoy the view outside.

STONE WORK Things didn’t exactly get easier though when Maniar opted for granite slabs of different textures, shades and thicknesses to dress up the floors of the garden. “Back in the 1990s when I visited Milan, I

had seen a profusion of wonderful stone work around the Duomo, and it has remained a persistent memory and inspiration.” There are over 600 granite slabs used in the garden (similar to the ones cladding the exterior of the house); each one was numbered like puzzle pieces of a barcode design, so contractors and workers could figure out the exact positioning unerringly. The juxtaposition of the various granite slabs was painstakingly worked out over several drafts on his laptop. The slabs are partially embedded in sand without any cement or mortar to hold them in place. Even the sand used has a generous mix of shells—whole and broken bits—so the garden seems like a natural derivative of the surrounding beach.

“In the dry months, sand tends to fly around and becomes bothersome. The bits of shell add the necessary density to keep the particles in place, and also lend a subtle, unusual character to the area,” says Maniar. Slivers of grass and sand are deliberately allowed to peek out through the spaces between the granite slabs: “That’s because I like leaving room for nature to take over. And I also hate that demarcating line coming in between man-made design and nature’s inimitable plan!”

Even tiny elements of drama around the property are worked in without screaming for attention—a swath of reddish riverwashed pebbles, an island deck in the pool with benches in abstract design hewn out of old casuarina trunks lying in the garden area, and the lone showstopper of sorts—a tadgola (ice apple) palm transplanted from the neighbourhood. “Typically, the tree does not take too kindly to transplantation. So, we had to treat it with hormone shots and other medicinal interventions for a month so the roots could gain a stronghold.” Maniar also planted several casuarinas around the property to create a loose semblance of a grove—not in neat rows but at angles from each other to lend depth and background. In fact, there are no more than eight varieties of plants, mostly xerophytes—cacti and succulents—that don’t need much water to survive, and that have been tucked away so as not to abrade unsuspecting passers-by.

The back garden of the villa is in proximity to the master bedroom. Though it does not have a beach view, it is a secret niche filled with the fragrance of night jasmine and the sweet sounds of birds attracted by the berries of two stocky Singapore cherry trees.

“People would typically want to hang around in the front garden.

I wanted something here at the back that would pull people in without actually pointing to the place. So, we decided on a night jasmine shrub. Its nocturnal vibe also seems just right, planted under the bedroom window.” In the hands of a less gifted artist, that could have been just another pretty, colourful flowering tree.

The night jasmine is neither too pretty nor colourful, but it’s pure poetry. Kunal Maniar wouldn’t have it any other way.

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The driveway is flanked by dense foliage and subtly demarcated margins.

RICHLY LAYERED In this second Kunal Maniar-designed Alibag garden, the landscape architect fuses bursts of planting with antiques and installations Writer RajashRee BalaRam . PhotograPher ashish sahi StyliSt samiR WadekaR

A dining table made of brass is paired with granite benches in the outdoor dining area, surrounded by mango and mud-apple trees.

A cascade of ferns arranged as massive chandeliers makes a dramatic statement in the backdrop. The floor around the dining area is scattered with brick and cinder chips that also serve to cool the space in the warmer months.

Reflections are critical to Kunal Maniarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s design ethic. The tall coconut palms edging the pool appear like a serene painting in the blue waters.

Landscape architect Kunal Maniar

ight years ago, Kunal Maniar’s sister asked him to buy her a Sabyasachi Mukherjee outfit for her wedding. “I had a rather vague idea about his work back then, and felt mildly irritated when she insisted on dragging me to his studio.” Today, Maniar is glad he indulged his sibling, and credits that day at the studio for nudging him to focus on storytelling in landscape design. “I was fascinated by how Sabya’s designs were filled with a mysterious mix of motifs and textures that revealed themselves in layers. I’ve got to say this garden is inspired by Sabyasachi Mukherjee.”

Indeed, the 2.25-acre property in Kihim, north of Alibag, that Maniar is referring to is a richly layered tale, with the house sitting on the western tip, facing the sea, and the entry from the east pronounced by a 500-metre driveway in black gravel. “There is a lovely, crunchy sound that the gravel makes when you walk on it.

You can hear your footsteps, and, rather subtly so, you are made more aware of your presence amid nature.”

Maniar is obsessed with detail, going so far as to tell his assistants not to design, but to detail things well. “Any beautiful picture is a sum of the time you spend perfecting the details that go into it.” It’s obvious that his passion is aided by extraordinary clarity and the gumption to fight for his ideas. Fortunately, his strong convictions on design have won over clients who are just as exacting: Mukesh and Nita Ambani, Shah Rukh and Gauri Khan, Rani Mukerji, MS Dhoni, Katrina Kaif and Gautam Singhania, to name a few.

Landscape designing is a soulful experience, according to Maniar—one that is shaped by sounds, textures, colours and smells. “You need to design holistically while taking into consideration everything that the land has to offer. It’s not just about horticulture, as people are so quick to assume.” His key strength, he believes, is making room for studied negligence— the ability to consciously stand back and allow nature to assert its design statement freely. Maniar has used over 50 varieties of plants all over, including many fruit-bearing trees that had originated on the property. A large bauhinia near the entrance gate is in full pink bloom, and also home to a noisy party of different birds.

50 SHADES OF GREEN The colour code in the garden encompasses nearly every shade of green, gently interrupted at intervals by large cement urns adorned with red hand-cut tiles; boulders that, over time, have turned into receptacles and now hold water for birds; granite stone benches; and curious arrangements of unpolished granite slabs placed vertically. “I wanted to figure out a way in which I could explore verticality without always using tall trees,” says Maniar.

The key highlight of the front garden, though, is the al fresco dining area, which is dominated by a massive table made of a single 12-foot-long sheet of brass. The table is more than a tasteful design element for Maniar; it’s also a symbol of his unwavering

perseverance and conviction towards his design ideas: “Initially, the client was unsure about the design, so I commissioned one for my office conference room and showed her exactly what I had in mind.” Maniar admits that he thrives on pushing the envelope every chance he gets. For instance, the black Balinese lamps suspended from the branches of a mango tree, looming above the dining table, would have been enough to pump up the aesthetics, but he also fashioned three large chandeliers from naturally cascading ferns. [“Landscape architects don’t get to use fancy Lalique chandeliers outdoors, so we source our decor elements from nature.”] The chandeliers are not grouped together in an obvious, showy arrangement at one spot but spread in a sequence that draws people into a circuitous path of discovery.

“You need to walk around the area and find it. It is tucked away like a little secret.”

The layering continues further with a step-up area where kids can lounge, while adults linger after lunch at the table. Even the seating arrangement has been worked out after a careful study of behavioural patterns: “The long bench on one side is for people who prefer to have a meal together with others and don’t like moving around much once they are seated. For the seating on the other side of the table, I have split the granite slab into two benches, so it allows more free movement for those who like to get up in the middle of a meal as and when they wish to.”

IN THE DETAILS The hidden surprise in this intriguing subplot in the garden, is a gathering of colourful fish installations made from mild steel. One of them spouts water, on tap, into a large Burmese urn. “I was not keen on installing a ceramic washbasin in the garden,” says Maniar, adding “so we came up with a solution that meshes utility and art.”

There are loads of such thoughtful interventions everywhere. For instance, as the client enjoys a betel leaf after lunch (it is traditionally used as a digestive), Maniar has planted a shrub close at hand, so she can pluck one whenever she wants.

The woody hush of the front garden gives way to a breezy back garden where the design elements are all about minimalism, to draw attention to the expansive view of the Arabian Sea. There is a profusion of coconut palms creating a screen of sorts on one side, juxtaposed against an unhindered, naked view of the sea on the other. The sprawling deck that spills out of the house in subtle layers is made from tiny hand-cut granite squares. “I could have simply ordered small Shahabad tiles, but the uneven edges you get with a manual cut adds a certain natural appeal.” The decor elements in the back garden have been carefully chosen to weave a tale and not just to sit pretty: a large antique urn that was once used to mix batik dyes now holds a profusion of succulents; driftwood from old casuarina trees is showcased as an installation in one corner; a line-up of frangipani trees is angled by the wind; a pergola with a wooden boat is nailed to the ceiling, that serves as an overhead lighting fixture. Another boat in the garden holds seasonal flowers. For now, it’s poinsettias. Says Maniar, “A burst of colour is all you need here in Alibag. The sea is enough.”

SIGNE VILSTRUP

SAVE THE DATE 7TH EDITION OF THE

VOGUE WEDDING SHOW

2-4 AUGUST, 2019 NEW DELHI TO REGISTER visit www.vogueweddingshow.in

BY INVITATION ONLY

Subject to change

A T OA S T T O S I M O N E

At the Sunday brunch hosted by in collaboration with Simone Arora, at the latter’s Amarchand Mansion store, Mumbai’s design cognoscenti raised a glass to the designer’s extended space and newest line of fabrics

CNI’S ARJUN MEHRA, SHEETAL PARIKH, SIMONE ARORA, AD PUBLISHER ARMAITY AMARIA, AD EDITOR GREG FOSTER

NOZER WADIA, CNI’S ALEX KURUVILLA

KRISHNA MEHTA, MAXIMILIANO MODESTI

HAFEEZ AND PEARL CONTRACTOR

BINA AZIZ, BRINDA MILLER

ERIKA AND PETER BORN, NISHA JAMVWAL HARSH AND MALA GOENKA

AJAY ARORA, ALFAZ MILLER

ASHIESH SHAH

SIMONE DUBASH PANDOLE

SANJAY KHAN, NIRANJAN HIRANANDANI, ZARINE KHAN, KAMAL HIRANANDANI

AMIT DESHMUKH, SIMONE ARORA, ADITI DESHMUKH ARMAAN ARORA, AMY VASUNIA

FARAH KHAN ALI

ABHA NARAIN LAMBAH

DELICACIES BY HARSHA KILACHAND

ZARIR MULLAN AND SEEMA PURI RAJ ANAND, UDIT OHRI

PHOTOS: COURTESY OF SIMONE AND KEDAR NENE PHOTOGRAPHY.

ADARSH GILL, TASNEEM ZAKARIA MEHTA, RACHEL ZAKARIA

KHOZEMA MOHAMED AND KEHKASHAN MERCHANT

ANNKUR KHOSLA

RENU CHAINANI GARWARE POOJA AND AMEY DAHANUKAR

THE NEW EXTENSION OF THE SIMONE STORE

DARSHINI SHAH

EKTA PAREKH, APOORVA SHROFF

LAILA AND FARHAN FURNITUREWALA

MADHURA PHADNIS QUEENIE SINGH, SIMONE ARORA

SAM MANECKSHAW

CORMAC LYNCH

DABBOO, MYRA AND MANISHA RATNANI

FARZEEN ADENWALA, ABHI LULLA

HUZEFA RANGWALA, SARAH SHAM, NISHITA KAMDAR

KISHOR, KARYNA AND KINTU BAJAJ, KRESHA ZAVERI, KRYSH BAJAJ

SANJAY PURI

PAULINE DE MUIZON, VIDISHA NORONHA

MALAVIKA SANGGHVI

MANSI PODDAR, GREG FOSTER

MARCH-APRIL 2019|

HARSHA KILACHAND

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|355

GQ's Che Kurrien & Kartik Aaryan

DLF Emporio

ROOM FOR THE GROOM

Peter Nagy

WHAT: GQ Wedding Collective WHERE: DLF Emporio, Delhi

GQ hosted the first ever, much-anticipated Wedding Collective in association with Chivas Studios in the capital. In addition to the blowout shopping op, a lavish brunch and the launch of the GQ Wedding Guide by cover star Kartik Aaryan, the two-day extravaganza was packed with masterclasses by the country's leading designers, as well as in-store experiences with nine fashion labels, including Berluti, Canali, Corneliani, Ermenegildo Zegna, Gaurav Gupta, Giorgio Armani, Louis Vuitton, Molton Brown and Tom Ford.

Siddartha Tytler

Abhishek Paatni

Salesh Grover Navkirat Sodhi & Gaurav

Prashant Gaurav Gupta, Dinaz Madhukar, Sriram Khattar

Gupta

Mario Felisari

Pulkith Modi & GQ's Almona Bhatia

Varun Bahl & Kalyani Chawla

The Chivas bar

GQ's Akshay Chowdhary, Harpriya Singh & Manak Singh

Kanika Sud

GQ's Kapil Kapoor

A fashion masterclass with Shantanu & Nikhil and Rohit Bal

Mohit Hemdev

Chetan Seth

Declan McCrossan & Prachi Singh, Dhruv Kapoor & Kanika Goyal Rajan Virdee

Elixir Nahar Srimoyi Bhattacharya

Karishma Manga Bedi & CondĂŠ Nast's Arjun Mehra

waj ndra Bhard a, GQ 's Vije Tanya Vohr gi Lolayekar ivan & GQ 's Sh

Gautam Bhimani Gaganmeet Singh

Rajat & Kanika Suri

Prem Dewan

Gaurav Khanijo, Amrita Thakur & GQ's Sneha Mahant Mehta Ashish Kumar Rai A fashion masterclass with Gaurav Gupta and Ashish N Soni ThE

WEDDING COLLECTIVE I N

Uday Pratap Singh

a s s O C I aT I O N

W I T h

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ATUL! To celebrate Atul Dodiya’s 60th birthday, Czaee Shah and Shireen Gandhy hosted a party at the latter’s Chemould Prescott Road gallery in Mumbai in the midst of the artist’s latest work. joined in the celebrations that saw the art world raise a toast

SHILPA GUPTA AND RAJIV SAINI, REENA AND JITISH KALLAT MORTIMER CHATTERJEE, SHIREEN GANDHY

CZAEE SHAH SONAL SINGH

SUNIL AND USHA GAWDE, RUPAL SHAH

DIA MEHHTA BHUPAL

NYNIKA AND MUKEETA JHAVERI, FARAH SIDDIQUE, BIRAAJ DODIYA

ROSHINI VADEHRA

MINAL VAZIRANI

SUNITA CHORARIA, ATUL DODIYA, VIJAY CHORARIA

AREESH AND ATYAAN JUNGALWALA

ABHAY MASKARA AND SONIA NAZARETH, KURUSH JUNGALWALA, SHIREEN ADENWALLA

TASNEEM ZAKARIA MEHTA

VIKRAM MEHTA

DADIBA PUNDOLE, BINA SARKAR ELLIAS, KHORSHED PUNDOLE

RANJANA AND BERNHARD STEINRUECKE

ANU NANAVATI, POONAM BHAGAT

PHOTOS: KEDAR NENE PHOTOGRAPHY.

ANJU AND ATUL DODIYA, BIJOY JAIN

From architects to interior designers, The List is an indispensable directory for every home decor solution.

Search by service and location at architecturaldigest.in/the-list

A PROMOTIONAL FEATURE

PHOTO: ASHISH SAHI

Want to be on the list? Write to thelist@condenast.in

FROM THE DESIGNER'S PORTFOLIO Studio Wodehouse

The Studio is known for its high-end design expertise for the luxury residential projects of their discerning clients. It works with real estate developers in Mumbai, Pune and Alibag to offer all encompassing solutions for interior and architectural design, execution, project management and manufacturing. With floor-to-ceiling glass doors and exquisite master suites, Villa 6B by Studio Wodehouse in Alibag is a stunning example of their aesthetic brilliance.

THE DESIGNER

Shonali Mahajan

Studio Wodehouse is the brainchild of Shonali Mahajan, whose design sensibilities are inspired from her travels and experiences across Italy, the Middle East and India.

Mahajan graduated from the Domus Academy in Milan with a major in Interior Design and dived into the world of design and interior solutions. She experiments with different styles and various materials, challenging conventions to create fascinating residential concepts for Studio Wodehouse.

FROM THE DESIGNER'S PORTFOLIO ABACA

Inspired by nature and a simplistic design philosophy, ABACA features an extensive range of furniture, lighting solutions and accessories, suited for the outdoors. Known for their responsible manufacturing practices and keen attention to detail, its products are curated from ateliers in South East Asia and Europe.

Since ABACAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all-weather furniture is made from contemporary, light-weight materials, it is elegantly robust and convenient to move around.

THE DESIGNER

Rashida Baker Asrani

Rashidaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tryst with interiors began in 1999, when she sourced Italian modular kitchens to refurbish her cooking space. It was during her trip to South East Asia that she developed an affinity towards handcrafted outdoor furniture. Having found her calling, Rashida gave up her career in law and founded ABACA in 2004. With ABACA, Asrani is constantly focussing on quality, value and functionality.

THE DESIGNERS

Cherag and Roozmehr Bardolivala

RC Design Studio, founded

by Roozmehr and Cherag Bardolivala, prioritizes two things—the client and the design. While the client is given top priority, they believe the design too should always be of prominence. Great emphasis is given to uniquely designing the architecture and interiors of a space rather than merely decorating it.

Handling prestigious highend interiors throughout the country, and some overseas, RC Design Studio is renowned for designing villas, apartments, office spaces, retail establishments and showflats. Architect Cherag also partners in the running of a bespoke lifestyle store, The Design Artifacts Haven, which provides a one stop solution for all interiorrelated requirements.

FROM THE DESIGNERS’ PORTFOLIO RC Design Studio

This plush three-bedroom apartment, sprawling across 1,200 sqft has been designed in hues of white and grey and tastefully paired with coloured accents that have been introduced by way of soft furnishings and highlighter panels. The crushed box stone pattern from World of Stone, Mumbai, stylishly emphasizes the entrance and the dining console. A corner at the entrance also roleplays as a small study area, which has leather and statuario marble cladding on the walls. The apartment houses a dedicated media room with a state-of-theart Ad Notam© mirror television set against an acoustic rust coloured wallpaper for an enhanced auditory experience.

The master bedroom features an Affreschi & Affreschi wallpaper backdrop and has an all-black bathroom with a switchable glass that transforms into a partition wall to make the bathroom an extended part of the room. The fully automated lighting system, with lights designed by Hatsu, provide an overall enhanced experience for the visitor.

N E WS R E E L From the hottest products to the coolest launches, here’s the low-down on the latest in the market this season

GET FLOORED

Making strong strides for over a decade now, D’Decor is one of the largest makers of soft-furnishing fabrics in the world. Celebrating the idea of home, D’Decor unveils the Feel the Change collection, which embraces the best of innovation, quality and creativity. The collection features an eclectic range of abstract, geometric, floral and classic designs that are enhanced by beautiful textural facets and versatile weaves. This rug (pictured below) is a blend of patterns, textures and colours that has been created to bring a modern elegant touch to any room. (ddecor.com)

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

MASTERPIECES

Art and luxury converged once again on 5 February at The World Villas in Mumbai, with a combined celebration of two of the greatest masters of the art world—Pablo Picasso and FN Souza. Lodha Luxury and DAG co-hosted #PicassoMeetsSouza, an event that celebrated the individual and collective journeys of the two legendary artists. The event displayed two iconic works from their respective collections—Pablo Picasso’s La Plage, Juan-les-Pins (1932) and FN Souza’s Man and Woman Laughing (1957) (pictured right). Embarking on a new journey together, Lodha Luxury and DAG planned the event with the aim of honouring the legacy of the celebrated artists and kick-starting a series of experiences for art connoisseurs and young millennials in India. (lodhaluxury.com)

WINTER IS COMING

New Delhi-based Lucere Lighting recently launched the winter-inspired ‘Ice Rain’ chandelier (pictured below) from the Novelties collection. A renowned name in decorative crystal-trim chandeliers and contemporary lighting fixtures, Lucere is also known for its custommade lighting and wide range of components. Freezing rain is one of the most dazzling sights to be seen in some of the coldest parts of the world. An interpretation of this beautiful sight can now be enjoyed in your home with this splendid chandelier made of hanging Murano glass leaves in shiny silver, golden, opal and transparent finishes. (lucere.in)

SITTING PRETTY

Bold and vibrant is the new look for Sandler Seating.

The ‘Flat’ chair (pictured) designed by Martin Ballendat is the newest addition to the Tonon collection. A flexible padded seat with a 360-degree swivel feature, the chair comes in a variety of finishes and a wide range of colours and materials. Catering to a global audience, the brand’s portfolio spans from sophisticated seating to comfortable lounge chairs. Its reputation for high quality combined with its use of certified sustainable materials has gained Sandler Seating popularity with some of the most prestigious brands around the world—including Google, Starbucks, Marriott Hotels, Netflix, LinkedIn and Disney. (sandlerseating.com)

WO O D WO R K S

Mumbai-based Blue Loft is a design-centric furniture brand that combines contemporary styling with rustic and mid-century modern elements. It has launched the ‘Prana’ bed and side table with fumed black legs as part of a new collection celebrating French oak and American walnut wood. With its clean-line aesthetic and natural, organic spirit, the range is perfect for tropical weekend homes. In addition to retail, Blue Loft works with interior designers and clients as a turnkey furniture solution provider for a variety of spaces. (blueloft.com)

R AIN OR SHINE

Abaca, the iconic furniture and accessories brand introduces Caroline, a collection of all-weather outdoor furniture that’s perfect for your al-fresco needs. Made with polyrod, the collection (pictured) comprises a two-seater sofa, an armchair and a side table, and is the ideal choice for a tropical verandah, hillside terrace, poolside lounge or garden. You can also customize the upholstery in a wide range of stain-resistant fabrics. (abaca.in)

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

T H E U LT I M AT E A N S W E R

The largest producer of glazed vitrified tiles in India, Kajaria Eternity raises the bar once again with its latest series of tiles—The Ultima. Available in various sizes up to 1.2 by 1.8 metres, this premium collection of extra-vitrified tiles and slabs offers some of the largest tiles available. The brand also offers slabs with digital printing—a first in the industry. (kajariaceramics.com)

KEEP IT PRISTINE

Conceptualized in a modest, minimalist style, the Pristine marble collection from A-Class Marble is a testament to Leonardo da Vinci’s adage ‘Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication’. The collection is an homage to the raw, untouched beauty of natural formations. ‘Panda White’ (pictured) is a monochromatic spectacle targeted at connoisseurs with refined taste. (aclassmarble.co.in)

BON APPETIT!

More than ever, the kitchen is becoming the centre around which family life revolves—family and friends gather to talk and catch up, for hobbies, for learning and other leisure activities.

This is the thought that has guided Panasonic Kitchens in creating its L-Class kitchens (pictured). Truly functional and an easy fit with a variety of aesthetic styles, this is the answer to your dream kitchen. With over 55 years of experience in the home and living segment, with made-to-order options to match a range of lifestyles, Panasonic Kitchens offers a new paradigm in kitchen design. (panasonic.com)

GIVE IT A SPIN

A brand dedicated to “giving a spin” to the conventional designs of everyday objects—from desk organizers and lighting to home bars and furniture—Spin has opened its first-ever experience store in the capital. The brand aims to develop an atmosphere of happiness, fun and creativity in the Chhatarpur store. Along with displaying the brand’s entire range of products, it will also showcase a few in-store exclusives. (madewithspin.com)

S O FA S T Y L E

Just like its name indicates, the ‘Mystique’ sofa (pictured) from Stanley Furniture has been created to pique the curiosities of even the most discerning customers. With a high backrest that offers lumbar support, the sofa brings an ergonomic design to the traditional seating system. Custom designs are available in brass, copper or steel for creating a wide range of looks. (stanleyfurniture.com)

TA K E A M O M E N T O F C A L M

Duravit’s XSquare range of bathroom furniture—designed by Kurt Merki Jr—breathes new life into these spaces with contemporary style and sophisticated designs. The floorstanding console vanity (pictured) in stone grey satin matt perfectly harmonizes with the ‘DuraSquare’ above-counter basin and ‘XSquare’ mirror with its chrome profiles. (duravit.in)

MONOCHROME IS THE NEW BLACK

India Monochrome 2019, Casa Paradox’s latest collection, is a kaleidoscope of designs that highlight black and white—and the grey areas in between—and offers something for everyone. The collection features historical references with a modern twist and includes iconic furniture, opulent props, soft furnishings, layered graphic wallpaper and the founder Raseel Gujral Ansal’s individualistic art from the Illustrati series. The pictured coffee table with brass and marble inlay is a stylish example from the range. (casaparadox.com)

KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL

For nearly a century, Nolte Kitchens has been crafting high-quality furniture with a focus on innovation, to design products with recycled materials using renewable energy sources. A family enterprise, the German brand has over 90 years of expertise and has earned the prestigious Red Dot Design Award, Golden M certification and the Blue Angel eco-label. The VIDA collection (pictured) is the result of this approach, where environmental awareness meets exquisite design. The harmoniously combined details emphasize natural charm and impress with the ultimate in practical functionality. (nolte-kitchens.com)

MARCH-APRIL 2019|

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|367

INDIA

FEBRUARY 20 2019 9 `150 ` 0

RANVEER

PHOTOGRAPHED BY R BURMAN

FORM IV (See Rule 8) Statement about ownership and other particulars about newspaper AD Architectural Digest (English) as required to be published in the first issue every year after the last day of February.

1. Place of Publication

Conde Nast (India) Pvt. Ltd. 2nd Floor, Darabshaw House Shoorji Vallabhdas Marg Ballard Estate, Mumbai 400 001

2. Periodicity of its Publication

Bi-Monthly

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Armaity Amaria for Conde Nast (India) Pvt. Ltd.

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Address:

A L L I N T H E D E TA I L S

With stores across the country and an online retail portal, luxury lifestyle brand Shazé is synonymous with jewellery, fashion and home decor accessories. It presents a striking range of cufflinks for men capturing trending styles with fine detailing. These exceptional adornments are sure to add panache to your ensemble. (shaze.in)

4. Publisher’s Name

Nationality Whether a citizen of India?

Address:

5. Editor’s Name

Nationality Whether a citizen of India?

Address:

6. Names and addresses of individuals Inc. who own the newspaper and partners or New York shareholders holding more than one per cent of the total capital

T H E N E W WAV E

Hettich’s ‘InLine XL’ door-closing system creates a new vocabulary for your doors by fusing functionality with visual appeal, bringing a new aesthetic to your home. Finding its way into your bedroom or kitchen with equal ease, the system combines technology with ergonomic designs to amplify functionality and enhance the visual experience of your space. (hettich.com)

Indian Yes A-20, Rustom Baug, Sant Savata Marg, Byculla East, Mumbai-400 027 Armaity Amaria for Conde Nast (India) Pvt. Ltd. Indian Yes A-20, Rustom Baug, Sant Savata Marg, Byculla East, Mumbai-400 027 Greg Foster for Conde Nast (India) Pvt. Ltd. British No Villar Ville, First floor, Ramchandani Marg, Apollo Bunder, Colaba, Mumbai – 400001 1. Advance Magazine Publishers 4 Times Square NY 10036, USA 2. Conde Nast Asia/ Pacific Inc. 4 Times Square New York NY 10036, USA

I, Armaity Amaria, hereby declare that the particulars given above are true to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Sd/Signature of Publisher Date: March 1, 2019

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Guests enjoy a fabulous evening

Mithila Palkar

Manika Batra

Aditya Munjal

The Glenlivet bar

Ananya & Kumar Mangalam Birla

Sahil Aneja & Suket Dhir

Pulkith Modi

Rajiv Satyal

Amit Aggarwal, Samyukta Nair & Ashiesh Shah

Prabhat Choudhary

Sharad Agarwal & GQ’s Almona Bhatia

RAISING A TOAST

WHAT: The GQ 50 Most Influential Young Indians in association with The Glenlivet WHERE: Oval Room, Hyatt Regency, Delhi

GQ’s Che Kurrien & Ayushmann Khurrana

Changemakers, newsmakers, artists, disruptors, innovators and mavericks across various fields – from green tech to music to sport to hospitality – were felicitated at GQ India’s fourth edition of the 50 Most Influential Young Indians under 40, held at the Oval Room of the Hyatt Regency, Delhi. Following a conversation between GQ Editor-in-Chief Che Kurrien and actor Ayushmann Khurrana, host Rajiv Satyal wrapped up proceedings early into the night, leaving plenty of time for some convivial networking and serious partying, including a surprise set by rappers Prabh Deep and Lit Happu of Azadi records.

Prabh Deep, Mo Joshi & Uday Kapur

Parth Jindal & Rahul Mishra

Manvendra & Jatan Singh Shekhawat

Karan & Naamah Singh

Karan Virwani

Jaspreet Chandok

Sandhya Menon GQ’s Vijendra Bhardwaj, GQ’s Shivangi Lolayekar & Pareina Thapar

Devina & Akshay Narvekar

Shivali Chopra, Joseph Radhik, GQ’s Akshay Chowdhary & GQ’s Shikha Sethi

Zorawar & Dildeep Kalra

Sushant Divgikar/ Rani Ko-HE-Nur

Ruchika Sachdeva

Vicram Sharma

Ramakant Sharma

Mallika Bajaj

Arman Sood & Rebekah Blank

Tanya Puneet

Harleen & Prabhtej Singh Bhatia

The Lamborghini Huracan Spyder

Anuradha Kapoor & Meenakshi Sachdev Varma

Gautam Vazirani

Ajai Thandi & Ashwajeet Singh

The Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 and Interceptor 650

Aseem Kapoor

Luke Coutinho Gautam & Aaina Raheja Punam & Aadesh Gupta Shagun & Rakshay Dhariwal

Vidheesh Tyagi Shalini Bath & Thomas Preising

Rajat & Kanika Suri

Nikhil Arora Sonal & Nikhil Arora

Aabha Pusalkar

Vikramaditya Sharma, Anushka Prasad & Priyanka Deo Anuj Gautam

Vikram Bajaj The dessert bar at the Hyatt Regency, Delhi

Sakshi Sehgal & Rahul Mehra

Anuj Choudhry

stockists

The merchandise featured in the magazine has been sourced from the following stores. Some shops may carry a selection only. Prices and availability were checked at the time of going to press, but we cannot guarantee that prices will not change or that specific items will be in stock when the magazine is published.

ALEXANDER MCQUEEN: (ALEXANDERMCQ UEEN.COM) ATMOSPHERE: INDIA 09980599805 (ATMOSPHEREDIR ECT.COM) BLUE LOFT: MUMBAI 08861177182 (BLUELOFT.COM) BOCONCEPT: MUMBAI 022-49731531;

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NEW DELHI 011-41663554 (BOCONCEPT.COM) BORSALINO: ITALY 0039-01-31214211 (BORSALINO.COM) BVLGARI: ROSE THE WATCH BAR, MUMBAI 022-23620277; JOHNSON WATCH CO, NEW DELHI 01141513121; ZIMSON WATCH WORLD, BENGALURU 080-40913800; MEENA JEWELLERS, HYDERABAD 040-44767758 CHANEL: NEW DELHI 01141116840; PARIS 0033-0820002005 (CHANEL.COM) CHOPARD: ENGLAND 0044-20-74093140; MUMBAI 022-22884757; NEW DELHI 011-46662834 CLASSIC MARBLE COMPANY: MUMBAI 022-41404140 (CLASSICMARBLE.COM) CLOVE: MUMBAI 022-22021470 (CLOVETHESTORE.COM) COCOON FINE RUGS: MUMBAI 022-24928647

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST|MARCH-APRIL 2019

(COCOONCARPETS.COM) COLLECTION PARTICULIERE: (COLLECTIONPARTICULIERE.FR) COTTONS & SATINS: MUMBAI 022-40143005 (COTTONSANDSAT INS.COM) D’DECOR: AHMEDABAD 079-69000105; BENGALURU 08041236677; MUMBAI 02266782030; NEW DELHI 011-41436677; INDIA 1800267-9008 (DDECOR.COM) DEREK CASTIGLIONI: (DEREKCASTIGLIONI.COM) DOKTER AND MISSES: CAPE TOWN 0027-214612856 (DOKTERANDMIS SES.COM) DREAMS FURNISHINGS: NEW DELHI 011-45070809 (DREAMSFURNISH ERS.COM) ECRUONLINE.COM: KUWAIT 0965-90065205; AT LE MILL: MUMBAI 022-22041925

(LEMILLINDIA.COM) FENDI: NEW DELHI 01146040777 (FENDI.COM) HERMÈS: MUMBAI 02222717400; NEW DELHI 01143607780 (HERMES.COM) IDUS: NEW DELHI 09871500042 (IDUS.IN) INTERSEKT: NEW DELHI 09818193161 (THEINTERSEKT.COM) IQRUP & RITZ: GURUGRAM 09599110672 (IQRUPANDRITZ.COM) ISHATVAM: NEW DELHI 011-26804344 (ISHATVAM.COM) JANDRGURAM.COM JIL SANDER: (JILSANDER.COM) JUMBO COLLECTION: ITALY 0039-03-170757 (JUMBO.IT) KALPA DRUMA: CHENNAI 044-28117652 (EXIND.COM) KANCHI BY SHOBHNA & KUNAL MEHTA:

PHOTOS: ASHISH SAHI; RAJESH VORA.

MUMBAI 022-24101628 (KANCHIDESIGNS.COM)

HYDERABAD 040-23331144

MARC JACOBS: NEW YORK 001-212-8323905 (MARCJACOBS.COM) MAUD AND MABEL: LONDON 004420-74352099 (MAUDANDMABEL.COM) MOLTENI&C: ITALY 003903-623591 (MOLTENI.IT) MONT BLANC: (MONTBLANC.COM)

PARCOS: BENGALURU 080-22682118; CHENNAI 044-43582897; MUMBAI 022-23643685; NEW DELHI 011-25674578 PERENNEDESIGN.COM: INDIA 09811461540 PERSOL: (PERSOL.COM)

NADA DEBS: LEBANON 0961-01-568111 (NADADEBS.COM) NICOBAR: MUMBAI 08588000151; NEW DELHI 08448095480 (NICOBAR.COM) NO-MAD.IN: MUMBAI 09820361687 (NO-MAD.IN) ORLEBAR BROWN: (ORLEBARBROWN.COM) OMEGA: MUMBAI 02230602002; NEW DELHI 011-41513255; BENGALURU 080-40982106; CHENNAI 044-28464092;

QAALEEN: NEW DELHI 011-69000130 (QAALEEN.CO.IN) RAYDEN DESIGN STUDIO: PUNE 020-64004811 (RAYDENDESIGN.COM) ROLEX: DIA, MUMBAI 022-22042299; KAPOOR WATCH, NEW DELHI 011-46536667; THE HELVETICA, CHENNAI 044-28490013; LUXURY TIME, AHMEDABAD 079-26469797; MEENA JEWELLERS, HYDERABAD 040-44767758 ROSE UNIACKE: LONDON 0044-20-77307050 (ROSEUNIACKE.COM)

RR DECOR: NEW DELHI 011-41731107 (RRDECOR.COM) RUEMMLER: (RUEMMLER.US) SAFOMASI.COM: 011-41600863 SARITA HANDA: MUMBAI 022-40052686; NEW DELHI 09555733344 (SARITAHANDA.COM) SKIPPER FURNISHINGS: KOLKATTA 033-40515253 (SKIPPERFURNISH INGS.COM) STEPHEN ANTONSON: (STEPHENANTO NSON.COM) SUNBRELLA: INDIA 09619536455 (SUNBRELLA.COM) SEETU KOHLI HOME: NEW DELHI 09999966702 (SEETUKOHLIHOME.COM) SWAROVSKI LIGHTING: CHENNAI 09789076666; HYDERABAD 09100083667; NEW DELHI 09810042300 (SWAROVSKI-LIGHT ING.COM)

TAANNAZ: THANE 0251-2696904 (TAANNAZ.IN) THE LÃ&#x2030;L COLLECTION: (THELELCOLLECTI ON.COM) THE PURE CONCEPT: MUMBAI 022-61559898 (THEPURECONCEPT.CO.IN) THOMAS GOODE: MUMBAI 022-66325757; LONDON 0044-20-74992823 (THOMASGOODE.COM) TOILE INDIENNE: GURGAON 09810110781 (TOILEINDIENNE.COM) TRISARA: NEW DELHI 0114110069 ULTIMATE EARS: (ULTIMATEEARS.COM) VALENTINO: MILAN 0039-02-62492584 (VALENTINO.COM) VALEXTRA: (VALEXTRA.COM) VAYA: BENGALURU 080-27820020 (VAYAHOME.COM) VISIONNAIRE: ITALY 0039-05-16186322 (VISIONNAIRE-HOME.COM)

1 The Bombay Canteen’s Sameer Seth, Raul Raghav, Thomas Zacharias, Floyd Cardoz and Yash Bhanage

The setting for the Top Restaurant Awards 2018, at St. Regis, Mumbai

Excellence Award winner, SodaBottleOpenerWala’s Anahita Dhondy

NourishCo Beverages’ Kuttiah KS

Arianna Huffington

India’s F&B industry turned out in full force for the second Condé Nast Traveller & Himalayan Sparkling Top Restaurant Awards, held at The St. Regis Mumbai in December. Co-hosted by pastry chef Pooja Dhingra and restaurateur Manu Chandra, the awards, voted for by over 100 tastemakers, honoured India’s top 50 restaurants. Bespoke Partner for the celebrations was Johnnie Walker The Journey.

CNI’s Alex Kuruvilla Co-host Pooja Dhingra

HAS YOUR FAVOURITE RESTAURANT MADE IT TO THE TOP 50 LIST? Log onto: www.cntraveller.in/cnt-himalayan-top-restaurant-awards/ Bespoke Partner

Hospitality Partner

Co-host Manu Chandra

W Wine P Partner r

Celebrate responsibly re y

Olive Bar & Kitchen’s AD Singh and Sabina Singh

Impresario’s Riyaaz Amlani

CNI’s Arjun Mehra

3

2

Rahul Bose

Indian Accent’s Manish Mehrotra

CNT’s Divia Thani

The Table’s Jay Yousuf, and Gauri Devidayal

Diageo Reserve Brand Ambassador, Khushnaz Raghina pouring the newly launched Singleton of Glendullan

Shenaz Treasury

Guests enjoyed Himalayan Sparkling water

Vicky Ratnani

Massive Restaurants’ Dildeep Kaur

Ranveer Brar

Sachin Mylavarapu

Jury member Shuchir Suri

Bastian’s Kelvin Cheung

Olive Bar & Kitchen Mumbai’s Rishim Sachdeva

Sula’s Rajeev Samant

4

Roshni Chopra

The “Himalayan top 10 Raw & Fine” list represents and applauds restaurants who differentiate themselves with their unique, naturally sourced ingredients that play a central role in providing a superior “raw and fine” experience, very similar to Himalayan Natural Mineral water which draws its uniqueness entirely from nature.

1 AnnaMaya, Andaz Delhi 2 Wasabi by Morimoto, The Taj Mahal Palace Mumbai 3 The Bombay Canteen Mumbai 4 The Table Mumbai 5 Yauatcha Mumbai 6 Artusi Ristorante New Delhi 7 Gunpowder Goa 8 Toast & Tonic Bengaluru 9 6 Ballygunge Place Kolkata 10 Masque Mumbai

Bawmra Jap B s of Bomra’s

5

Diageo’s Subroto Geed

Gusto Wines’ Kadambari Kapoor

Masque’s Aditi Dugar and Prateek Sadhu

Rahul Akerkar

Gul Panag

10 ANUJ SRIVASTAVA

Favourite holiday destination: Syracuse, Italy.

A museum you enjoy visiting: The Museum of Modern Art, New York.

A book that you are currently reading: Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou.

A brand you’d like to collaborate with: Apple, as their store displays are the epitome of product and spatial design.

Favourite international restaurant: I enjoy eating at Bombay Brasserie in London.

Favourite piece of furniture: The ‘Louis Ghost’ chair by Philippe Starck.

Your biggest splurge: I own over 100 pairs of shoes and among them, I love those by Berluti.

An architectural marvel worth visiting: The Roman Forum in the Italian capital.

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Favourite automobile: The allelectric, batterypowered Tesla Roadster.

On your wish list: A Royal Oak timepiece by Audemar Piguet.

AS TOLD TO RHEA VARGHESE. SYRACUSE PHOTO BY WEAD/SHUTTERSTOCK. THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART, NEW YORK PHOTO COURTESY OF MOMA. BAD BLOOD: SECRETS AND LIES IN A SILICON VALLEY STARTUP PHOTO COURTESY OF PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE. APPLE STORE, THAILAND PHOTO COURTESY OF APPLE. BERLUTI SHOES PHOTO COURTESY OF BERLUTI INDIA. THE ROMAN FORUM PHOTO BY CARLA TAVARES/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS. AUDEMARS PIGUET ROYAL OAK WATCH PHOTO COURTESY OF AUDEMARS PIGUET. TESLA ROADSTER PHOTO COURTESY OF TESLA. ‘LOUIS GHOST’ CHAIR PHOTO COURTESY OF KARTELL. BOMBAY BRASSERIE PHOTO COURTESY OF BOMBAY BRASSERIE.

The co-founder and CEO of Livspace, a home interiors and renovation platform, Anuj Srivastava aspires to redefine how interiors are designed. Here, he tells AD about the things that inspire him—from a holiday destination that never fails to surprise, to a favourite restaurant where, he believes, originate the best of his ideas.

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THE MOOD: SHIMUL JAVERI KADRI “I discovered this wooden rice weeder in a Chettinad store. I love the form, the gentle ornamentation and the beautiful quality of the jackfruit wood. I now use several of these as coasters, which we refresh with a coat of linseed oil.”

“I enjoy metals. The idea that they came from the earth, and that intense human processes have catalysed them into such useful avatars excites me. With Corten steel, I enjoy its warmth, colour and texture. It is rugged, hardy and already aged.”

“This neckpiece has an amazing emotional connection for me. It was the first piece of jewellery I discovered from my mother-in-law’s chest of drawers after she passed away. It was not her style, but is very much mine.”

“The combination of discovering architecture in Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Hampi (Karnataka) and Mandu (Madhya Pradesh) with an old SLR camera was the highlight of architecture school.

As students, we were modernists worshipping Louis Kahn and Le Corbusier and enamoured by the Bauhaus. But the ornamental and vernacular in Indian architecture were exciting and I tried to make sense of the dichotomy— something that still interests me.”

“Bob Beckley, the dean at the University of Michigan, gave me the book Six Memos for the Next Millennium by Italo Calvino. Each value is important because its opposite is equally so. The choice is critical; so we create a set of values that we believe is the DNA of each project and refer to them at every crucial decision.”

“This is a wooden model of the faceted roof of the Lotus Cafe at the Marasa Sarovar Premiere hotel in Tirupati. The hotel is inspired by Lord Vishnu whose vehicle is the lotus flower. The cafe ‘floats’ in the centre of a large waterbody surrounded by the hotel’s built form. The roof is built in steel with ferrocement and the inner skin— which houses the ducts—is built in ply and veneer.”

“As a practice, we use natural materials as far as possible.

We tend to use one particular stone across a project in all its various finishes: rough or natural for the outdoors, sand-blasted or leather-finished in semi-open spaces, and polished or honed indoors.”

“This model of an agricultural research and training centre in Latur was made by Vijay Sakpal, our model maker; he is by far the most popular member of our team!”

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“I write down everything—from notes in a meeting to random thoughts. Though I rarely refer to them, I find the process of writing helps me to absorb and get clarity. I bought this notebook at the store in the Richard Meier-designed Getty Center in Los Angeles.”

“We make quick sketches all the time despite all the modelling and software. These were made by Vaishali Shankar, a project director.

She and Sarika Shetty lead the architectural projects with teams of their own. I appreciate these sketches where she creates visual options as solutions to a problem that we can discuss and take a call on. It saves us all a lot of time.”

PHOTO: TALIB CHITALWALA. STYLIST: SAMIR WADEKAR.

The principal architect behind Mumbai-based firm SJK Architects has spent the last 20 years designing environments that are rooted in the earth. With this mood board, she showcases a collection of objects that draw from Indian traditions and spiritual metaphors, and provide inspiration in her work and life