The Collected Home

The Collected Home – a crafted, timeless story

A story is a letter that the author writes to himself, to tell himself things that he would be unable to discover otherwise. ― Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Everyone is forever searching for a place to call their own. I am no exception. There were numerous hardships, especially in a city like Mumbai – years of hard work, saving money and finally, I zeroed in on that one spot that spoke to something deep inside me. It was a modest 480 square feet, one bedroom flat in a nice community, and it was mine. The question of what truly makes a home has preoccupied my mind since. They say home is where your heart is, but shouldn’t it also house your soul? In his novel, ‘The Shadow of the Wind’, Carlos describes it as a story about books. He imagines that - “Every book, every volume you see here, has a soul. The soul of the person who wrote it and of those who read it and lived and dreamed with it. Every time a book changes hands, every time someone runs his eyes down its pages, its spirit grows and strengthens.” He adds, that “books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside you.” Perhaps such a book- a story of collected intertwined narratives between the writer, reader and those who inhabit its experience best captured for me the idea of a home and its soul. After all they say, ‘home is where our story begins’ and that ‘the best journey takes you home’. So, I decided to weave a story about my ‘home’ and therein began a journey into my very soul that I would otherwise not have discovered.


Creativity is intelligence having fun – Albert Einstein

The architect in me was obviously enthused, but for this exercise, I decided to channel my inner child instead. I visited my most vivid memories of homes I grew up in. Each memory invoked in me a story that both elevated my soul, and grounded me with a sense of belonging. Much like Carlos’ book, these spaces had a soul where it was difficult to separate the story from the space and its spirit, which had only grown and strengthened over time. Being the architect and the client simultaneously has both its advantages and disadvantages, in that both want to lead the narrative. The client comes at the project with their deep aspirations, heartfelt desires and a modicum of romance for their past, while the architect brings contemporary, forward looking and practical visions to the table. This constant internal dialogue was confusing for me at first, but I sorted it out eventually. Einstein said that “People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.” So for my exploration, I used Einstein’s intelligence to have some fun. I made 3 buckets across time – what I wanted to bring from my past; how I wanted to live in the present and where my aspirations were headed for the foreseeable future. This time travel exercise was quite liberating - it was a story and I could creatively script the way I wanted to whilst best leaving its realization to the architect.



Be yourself, everyone is already taken – Oscar Wilde

To begin with, I made several ‘mood’ boards, sound bites and character sketches of my experiences, current state of mind and how the future could be – some in my head and others on paper. In doing so, I realized that this was as much of an opportunity in self-discovery as a journey to finding my way home.

Mr. Wilde said, “Memory is a diary we all carry.” So, from my past, I conjured up fond memories of my paternal grandfather’s house in Agra. He was a doctor and I remember spending time in his consulting room which was full of books, charts and strange medical instruments. This is perhaps the earliest idea of a home office that had stoked my curiosity. The adjacent living room was not very large, yet it cleverly seated a large number of guests when it had to. The room was adorned with old family photographs and a particularly vintage piece of furniture above which hung a painting. There was something I loved about that old relic that gave the room its character. The kitchen and dining areas were at the heart of the house where I remember enjoying several delicious meals together with family. Adjoining this space was a courtyard with a large, fragrant lemon tree. The facilities were old school, but clever in their layout where the toilet, bath and sink areas were separated for simultaneous multiuse. I remember the fresh smell of sandalwood soap entering the bath where one was able leisurely sit for your daily cleansing ritual. The walls of the house were modest with limestone plaster, which would get a new wash every Diwali. The cupboards were all built into the walls for clear circulation in all rooms. All rooms had niches for candlelight which I distinctly remember as a comforting sight, particularly when lit during power outages that were frequent in both summer and winter months. All kinds of antique objects like ‘laltains’, a table fan, hand fans, an old radio, copper and brass utensils, tins, glassware and vintage family paraphernalia lay well-kept and still functional around the house. I remember the home as happy, well lit, airy and open - working well both for privacy as well as lending all its spaces to community and camaraderie – a wonderland to a child running around and playing with much abandon.

As romantic as I am about the past, I tend to be a pragmatist in present life. A decade of living overseas has taught me the importance of how efficiently the home should work for its inhabitants. With smaller spaces and with little help to manage the home, it has to lend itself to flexibility and ease of space, storage, use, maintenance, comfort and lifestyle. I find that the choice of materials used tends to make a significant difference not only in how the space looks but truly in how it works and wears best for its purpose. Furniture, in particular, needs to be ergonomically designed for long periods of use and comfort. The choice of built-in and loose furniture can be a clever device, particularly for smaller spaces. I have always enjoyed repurposing and creatively adapting found objects, old things and erstwhile technology for new use. This is also evident in my work as an architect.

Having lived in different cities across the world, I can distinctly recall each home rooted contextually to that city, be it Boston, London or Hong Kong. This one had to be quintessentially Mumbai. I have always been fascinated by the Art Deco heritage, Bollywood’s glamour and the city’s vibrant nightlife. I enjoy cooking and entertaining friends, reading graphic novels, drawing and sketching in my free time. More recently, I have started collecting some art and old maps, particularly centuries old urban plans and etchings from my travels overseas. Strangely, the collection of art has by default emerged as a set of characters almost like in theatre – The Blacksmith, The Clown, The Actor, The Saint, The Lady, The Samurai, The Collector and so on. This collection, I imagined, along with other curiosities including antique objects, toys and a love for vintage motorcycles would make for a rich canvas to bring alive the walls and surfaces of my new home.

Today as I gaze into the future, I see my urban lifestyle as compact yet productive, versatile yet not devoid of style or luxury, soul lifting yet rooted to context, and, most importantly timeless in the way things age. Typically, small apartments tend to make one feel pared down and constrained for space on one end of the spectrum, and overdone in luxury to feel museum like on the other. But there is a sweet spot in the middle that works – where it feels right. A home that nourishes the soul- that evolves and matures with time, almost acquiring a patina whilst celebrating its glorious journey along the way. I find that ‘timeless’ quality in all homes that I can remember well. A quality not achieved by design alone, but how spaces are appropriated, and the stories they weave. Making memorable and meaningful spaces takes effort. So many years in the future from when my grandfather’s house was first built, its timeless quality has this wonderful ability for even the third generation to be able to live well in it with minor updates. It reminds me of the responsibility and agency of architects, where their work outlives them in most cases.

In any case one could never quite guess if the sweet spot has been achieved until time has passed for the spirit of the home to be strengthened along its passage. I would leave this part of the script open with a question - could I see myself growing old here and could the next generation feel in a similar way about this home as I do, bringing to it their own new stories for keeping its spirit alive?

Home is a name, a word, it is a strong one; stronger than magician ever spoke, or spirit ever answered to, in the strongest conjuration – Charles Dickens
I have had the privilege to work with the best – real magicians who crafted together the strongest conjuration to bring alive the spirit in my home. These include engineers, designers, masons, craftsmen, fabricators and artisans. We began with stripping down all non-structural walls to reconfigure the space. Utility areas were minimized for optimal use of internal spaces. The heart of the house came first - a day-lit, open kitchen with a bar, adjacent to a home office that also doubles up as a dining space. The kitchen is modular, and articulated in a warm oak wood envelope with quartz counters and a full height Volakas marble dado separated by intermittent vertical brass strips to match the brass sink and the window grill on its far end. It has ample storage for all appliances, including a washing machine, dishwasher, hob, microwave, refrigerator and freezer integrated within its compact footprint. The home office/dining table is a ‘found’ log of oakwood that was naturally split down the middle and later ‘repaired’ by an infill of brass much like the Japanese technique of Kintsugi. It pairs with a table lamp repurposed from a 100-year-old bicycle light mounted on an oak stand. The two chairs designed for dual purposes of both working and eating were made in oak with leather trim for better wear and aging. This warm heart at the center of the home, separates two large well-lit areas of the living room and the bedroom. It opens generously into the living area making it feel a lot larger and airier.

In continuation of the kitchen dado, slabs of white Volakas marble interspersed with brass strips running intermittently in one direction makes a modern flooring pattern, yet it is reminiscent of stonework techniques used in old houses. The vertical wall surfaces are articulated by a flush marble skirting topped with a brass strip in section. This course is followed by wainscoting of a warm toned rough limestone plaster which transitions via a slim brass band into finished white paint finally terminating with a cornice at the ceiling junction. The long wall to the left along the home’s entrance makes for a sleek metal storage unit leading to the home office. This multiuse unit houses the shoe rack, DB box, television, library, display case and an art exhibit neatly rolled into one. The living room comfortably seats 9 adults on its two sofas (couch and a settee), leather bar stools and office/dining chairs respectively while the host can entertain comfortably from behind the kitchen counter. The couch is fully upholstered and cozy while the settee is light and styled in wood and leather to match the two office/dining chairs. The center piece of the seating arrangement that works as a table, is an original thangka art piece framed in brass, which also works as a display case for various artifacts.

On the far-right corner of the living room stands a small fragrant lemon tree. Next to it is an unusual relic (of French origin) reminiscent of an apothecary’s desk fully adorned by hand painted glass. On closer inspection, it reveals an aged patina as the mirrored surfaces cast playful reflections on the wall against which it stands. Above this relic, is the painting of ‘The Blacksmith’ and along its either side are mounted two antique candle stands. When candlelit, the painting comes alive almost to make an illusion of burning embers that lend the painting its intended light quality. The opposite corner is punctuated by a century old hand painted window from Jaisalmer alongside an authentic camel saddle finished in brass and copper of a similar vintage. The couch is framed by ‘The Lady’ on the wall - an eastern European nude painting on coarse cloth from the 1950s. The art hangs between two Deco inspired brass light fittings which are also used in the bedroom and the bathroom. These light fittings are cast in brass and fitted with a custom-made fluted glass tube. They are designed to work both as an electrical light with an Edison bulb as well as a tealight with a flame when needed. Directly upon entering the home and on axis with the circulation, to the privacy of the bedroom stands the bar unit. Made in brass with mirrored interiors and fluted glass shutters framed between filleted edges using glass rods, the waist high Art Deco inspired unit is topped with black marquina stone. Somewhat ironically above the bar hangs a 200-year-old double sided painting of ‘The Saint’ that was retrieved from a demolished old chapel in Portugal.

On the other side of the heart lie the day lit, airy master bedroom and the facilities. These are accessed through a doorway with the kitchen marble dado wall on one side and a black framed fluted glass partition on the other behind the home office/dining space. The matching door and the glass partition are mirrored so as to maintain privacy when closed. When open, the private space is designed in such a way that it exaggerates the depth of the apartment making it appear a lot deeper than it actually is. On the axis from the bar unit in the living room through the doorway, one can see a matching full height feature cupboard complete with filleted edges using glass rods on the far end of the bedroom. Upon entering the bedroom, on the right lie the facilities which are separated for the shower, wash basin/vanity and the toilet respectively. The shower area finished in white Volakas marble, is a black metal framed structure with fluted glass above sill level to allow for natural light to penetrate through. The sink/vanity area is at the same floor level allowing for the bedroom to include it as part of its larger spatial experience. A tabletop black marquina sink frame on brass supports encases a hand beaten brass bowl punctuated by a matching faucet. This is set against a large mirror, illuminated by the dual-purpose light fittings which make for a luxurious statement in the bedroom. The toilet, also finished in white Volakas marble with a feature wall and brass grill matching the kitchen, is a day lit enclosure separated by a door beyond the vanity. ‘The Actor’ in true knife and palette painting style of the 1970s Bollywood takes centre space on this feature wall. On the left side of the entry to the room lies the bed which is crafted in oak and punctuated with woven leather on its headboard. While it is supported on four legs off the ground, it conceals an invisible drawer with adequate linen storage underneath. Two simple brass framed black marquina marble top side tables lie on either side of the bed. Above it hangs the kabuki artwork of ‘The Samurai’ between the dual purpose brass light fittings. Finally, directly in front of the bed and alongside the feature cupboard is a black framed, fluted glass sliding wardrobe unit with ample storage completing the tour of my new home.

When the entire home is illuminated with candles, a comforting yet playful dance of shadows and firelight across various reflective surfaces instantly transports me across time – lifting my soul yet making me feel rooted to this space that is as much an extension of me, and my story as it is of bricks and mortar. Thanks to the story I told myself, I just may have found my way home.

The sweetness and delights of the resting-place are in proportion to the pain endured on the journey. Only when you suffer the pangs and tribulations of exile will you truly enjoy your homecoming - Rumi