Between interior designer Sunayana Rao and her latest clients, finance professional Pranay Desai and entrepreneur Aditi Ravi, deciding who’s the crazier one is no easy task. On one side, there’s Desai and Ravi, who stumbled upon Rao on Instagram, called her on a whim, and hired her three days later with the same conviction one might have when buying a bar of soap. On the other, there’s Rao, who meticulously added a bar-themed wallpaper to the mood board, stared at it for five minutes, muttered “too mental,” deleted it—then promptly sent the exact same link to the clients, only for them to reply, “OMG, we love this.” By the time the project got underway, the only real question was whether the house—a triplex tucked into a leafy street in Bengaluru’s Indiranagar—was going to be spectacularly insane or insanely spectacular. As it turned out, it was a little bit of both.
The Bold and the Beautiful
Desai and Ravi knew what they wanted for their Bengaluru home—but also what they didn’t. To wit: anything that felt soulless or like it belonged in a hotel. “We wanted it to be unique to our personalities,” says Ravi. And so it was. Rao excelled at bringing the couple's adventurous spirits to life through vibrant colours and textures, favouring bold, fun, and slightly unexpected choices. “They were drawn to textures, patterns, and statement pieces, and because they love to cook and entertain, they were keen on creating entertainment-friendly spaces,” notes the founder and principal of Bengaluru- and Dubai-based Soul Space Design Studio, who enlisted Structure Tone Design for the execution. This meant many things.
For starters, a kitchen with a breakfast window that overlooks the living room, alongside hyperfunctional spaces that could feel intimate for two but expansive for many. “Since there was no designated kitchen space, we had to decide whether to go open or closed. The semi-open concept with folding-sliding windows provided the best balance,” adds Rao, who has a knack for making the best of a challenging bargain, as evidenced by the sunken living room ceiling. Instead of concealing the existing void, the designer—assisted by in-house designer Neha Talreja—used Plaster of Paris detailing to turn it into a focal point, fashioning the room around it so that the end result looks like it could have tumbled out of a Mexican postcard.
Mid Century Modern Dream
If you had asked Desai and Ravi about their vision at the outset, they likely would have pointed to Mid-Century Modern (MCM). But to call their home purely MCM would be an oversimplification—a label that barely scratches the surface of its layered aesthetic. The interior is playful, eclectic, and funky. Some might even call it outré. “We really went for unconventional choices,” smiles Rao, whose decisions, more often than not, leaned towards unpredictability. From saturated hues to statement furniture, every element felt like a deliberate rebellion against the ordinary. “We wanted every detail to tell a story,” continues the designer, who used the couple’s previous life chapters to write the home’s next ones. For example, leftover balcony tiles were emblazoned onto the owners’ old coffee table, while their faded cane furniture set was reimagined with new upholstered cushions. Similarly, a broken rattan cabinet was thoughtfully revived and transformed into a storage unit for the terrace. Rao tread as lightly with the floors—retaining the builder-supplied flooring everywhere but the balconies—as she didn’t with the walls, designating them her canvas and using a combination of textured paints and wallpaper to create magnificently moody vignettes. Contrasts, it seems, were in her game plan all along.
Fantasy Escape
That Rao mentally checked into—and never quite left—Mexico is unmistakable on the terrace, a sun-drenched oasis of burnished orange that glows in harmony with the setting sun. “It’s definitely the crown jewel of this Bengaluru home,” she says warmly, noting that the rich, earthy hue comes from a deep terracotta-textured paint. Given Desai and Ravi’s penchant for entertaining, she transformed the once-lifeless space into a vibrant party retreat, complete with cosy seating, warm lighting, and an almost electric energy. It comfortably accommodates up to thirty guests—though, as Rao jokes, “with the right amount of tequila, that number becomes flexible.” Ravi agrees that the terrace is a standout: “It looks beautiful, and I still can’t believe it’s part of our home. During sunset, the orange and rust tones pop against the backdrop of green—it’s magical!” Between the three of them, it’s safe to say that their collective madness found the perfect canvas.
Styling by Shivani Raina