A Modern Indian Home

A MODERN INDIAN HOME, JUHU
-By Gauri Kelkar

“We manifest spaces that intrigue, spaces that enrich daily life, spaces out of the ordinary.”
– Aayush Golecha & Kushaal Jhaveri, founders and architects, The Comma Collective

Homes unmistakably bear the hallmark of their residents—their unique tastes, their personal stories and the experiences that sum up the lives they lead. Articulating these narratives into eloquent spaces and building a visual pastiche from design briefs and lifestyle insights is the work of thoughtful designers.

That is what Mumbai-based firm The Comma Collective achieved with this 3BHK apartment in Juhu. They built a home that goes beyond the optimal functionality that city residents contend with; a home that bakes experience, warmth, and comfort into routine function; and a home that lets its inhabitants pause and take a breath.

ENVISIONING THE DESIGN
The twofold brief—for a warm and welcoming modern home with semi-outdoor spaces—formed the framework of a design vision that was anchored by tradition. The architects of the young firm, Aayush Golecha and Kushaal Jhaveri, formulated an aesthetic that accommodated binary sensibilities—the sleek lines of a modern canvas softened by the soft curves and accents of ethnic elements. The centrepieces for this vision were Patola textile heirlooms from Patan, Gujarat, which had been in the family for generations. The narrative that then emerged coalesced this dichotomy into a cohesive whole throughout the home.

BUILDING THE VISUAL NARRATIVE
The final outcome is a uniquely designed apartment that optimizes function, layers experience, integrates character and infuses warmth. The conduits to attain this overall sensibility were the complement of materials, ethnic elements offsetting the modern aesthetic and the conception of multifunctional “pause” spaces as spots of introspection.

This aesthetic manifests in different ways. It is evidenced in the play of materials and their interesting dialogues with surfaces; in the cleverly crafted spaces that combine modernity and tradition in seamless choreography; through the furniture choices; and the experiments of architectural volumes that have shaped this house into a distinctive contemporary home.

EXPERIMENTS IN ARCHITECTURE
Inherent to creating this apartment was to go beyond conventional notions of how to use indoor spaces. As a result, a significant aspect of this project was expressing architectural constructs within interior volumes and contexts. This is visible in the dining “wrap” in white oak veneer that embraces its inhabitants into a cocoon-like enclosure. It works at the tangible level as a soft partition between an open-concept living-cum-dining area. At an intangible level, it serves as a zone of intimate space for private meals and catching up.

Playing with architectural volumes on an interior scale also led to the interesting use of the floor, ceiling and walls. Instead of being passive elements, these surfaces have more dynamic roles, an objective that the architects accomplished through careful material choices and how they navigate surfaces. For instance, the dark marble flooring crawls up to become the TV shelf in the living room. The white oak wood used for the dining wrap curves upwards to form the ceiling. Materials bend, move, and flow uninterrupted, travelling horizontally and vertically, creating a striking visual interplay and amplifying the architectural volume within the interiors.

HARMONIZING MODERNITY AND TRADITION
The endeavour to create seamless spaces is also seen in the complementary use of materials and colours. The veneer dining wrap, for instance, is mirrored on the living room wall, in the custom-designed clay-based artwork designed to mimic its fluidity.

The marble and white oak veneer work in tandem throughout the rooms, adding a cosy vibe to the elegance. Overlaying this urbane modern framework are vivid colours, soft ethnic textures, furnishings and fabrics, curvilinear geometries, artworks and embellishments with a definitive Indian touch. The two family heirlooms find pride of place as showpieces on walls. The restrained use of myriad prints, patterns, art and textures inject unmistakable grace into contemporary luxury.

MOMENTS OF PAUSE
The homeowners’ desire for semi-outdoor spaces, while a challenge in a Mumbai apartment, worked well with the design philosophy that underpins The Comma Collective’s work. The architects believe in the vitality of “pause” spaces to break the cycle of a busy, almost robotic urban life; of going beyond optimum function—the raison d’être of city homes—and creating experiential spaces that are keyed to the lifestyle of the residents. Overcoming the limitations of space constraints presented by apartments is surmounted by creating adaptive, multifunctional areas, as was done for this house:

Multifunctional Pause Space 1: The Living-Room-cum-Balcony.
This semi-outdoor space has two sliding partitions that build a soft indoor-outdoor boundary. The covered balcony, with its mosaic flooring and ethnic accents, offsets the sleek marble-floored living area. When the inner sliding door shuts, this balcony becomes a space unto itself. When the partition slides back, it becomes a part of the living room—and a large space when hosting parties.

Multifunctional Pause Space 2: A Balcony Nook in the Master Bedroom
Also separated from its attached balcony by sliding doors, the primary bedroom has a den-like nook that doubles as an enclosed balcony, complete with a pull-out sofa perfect for lounging in. Here, too, the dual sliding doors allow for the space to either seamlessly add to the expanse of the bedroom or be a separate semi-outdoor area within the room when the partition is shut.

Multifunctional Pause Space 3: The Second Bedroom
The low seating in the form of a baithak is an architectural intervention designed to create a separate but integrated space meant for sitting, reading, resting, etc. The sense of separation is highlighted through material play, with marble and veneer used across the floor, the walls and the ceiling.

Multifunctional Pause Space 4: The Third Bedroom
The third bedroom functions as a bedroom one month of the year, when the fourth member of the family, who resides overseas, pays a visit. For the remainder of the year, this room lends itself to versatile functions—studio, additional den, library, lounging room, etc.

“The Comma Collective is built on the idea that homes in Mumbai need to be more than just about optimizing function. They need to go beyond the ‘eat sleep repeat’ idea of living. They need to be about indulging in some fun. We want to create more experiential spaces even in apartments like this one. And we express that through multifunctional adaptive spaces.”

At once modern and traditional, experiential and functional, expansive and intimate, this home is an evocative blend of some unique design goals for urban apartments. Made by a young firm that was established as recently as 2023, it manifests an objective to craft spaces that are built for stories and memories—and personal journeys.

DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS

Location: Juhu, Mumbai

Size: 1,800 square feet

Furniture: Comma Objects (custom-designed by the furniture wing of the studio)

Furnishings: Patola textiles from Patan(Gujarat), Sarita Handa, Obeetee, Minimal Indian, Altrove, TPC Home, Cottons and Satins, Nicobar

Lighting: Hatsu, Olie, Ikka Dukka, Gulmohar Lane, Inside Project, Mianzi

Stones & Flooring: Flora Marble, Belleza, Rawsteen

Rugs: Floor Art

Wallpaper: Kalakaari Haath

Artworks & Decor: Gradient India, The House of Things, Nicobar, MuseMART