Faisal Manzur Design Studio, Chennai
Faisal Manzur
Project in focus: Lime plaster walls, leather-finished marble floors, oakwood furniture and muted furnishings define the Urban Retreat, a three-bedroom apartment designed for a young couple in Chennai. The apartment was reconfigured into two bedrooms, a study, a powder room and a home theatre to create more wall space to display the couple’s art collection as well as to enable an open flow of spaces for entertaining guests.
Upcoming projects: Three beach houses; four luxury interior apartments; two restaurants; two commercial stores all based out of Chennai.
Richa Bahl Design Studio, Mumbai
Richa Bahl
Project in focus: Peach Hill, a serene house nestled in the oak-studded hillside of Saratoga, New York, was designed for an Indian couple who met in the US. It was of the utmost importance to them to retain the essence of India while keeping the home contemporary. The design needed to complement the bones of the house, originally created by architect Kirk Hillman, without completely altering it. This harmony was achieved by thoughtfully integrating both Indian and American materials.
Upcoming Projects: Renovation of a house in New Jersey; Oberoi 360 in Worli, Mumbai; Smeg Showroom in Mumbai; Lovefools - an outdoor cafe in Mumbai.
Material you’re obsessed with: Antique Mirrors with an acid wash finish
Philosophy: “Here are few things I like to follow in my style of designing; 1. Inside a room I want to feel the drama; 2. Serious is not a word that should be used for decorating; 3. A room should feel collected, not decorated.”
Tejal Mathur Design, Mumbai
Tejal Mathur
Project in focus: A house in Lower Parel designed for a client who describes himself as, “a true-blue old Bombay guy”. The client wanted a reinterpretation of his childhood memories of a traditional mosaic-floored Matunga home. Thus began the work of recreating the feel of a Bombay home with understated organic elegance. The client wanted the space to be devoid of unnecessary decor, instead desiring the walls and floors to be the standout features of the home.
Upcoming Projects: A French culinary offering in a heritage bungalow; a private home in Pune.
Material you’re obsessed with: Concrete in various forms and hydro-finished stone
Philosophy: “We are known for the handcrafted quality in our projects where detailing is heavily layered with traditional plastered walls or stone which gives the feeling of a home in India.”
Begumpoivre, New Delhi
Vibha Hooda
Project in focus: A three-storey home in Gurugram with 13-foot-high ceilings, four bedrooms, living areas, hallways and terraces. Ensuring natural light and views of surrounding trees were among the primary concerns while drawing the plan for the home. The primary vision for the home was to create an airy haven ensconced in curated greenery in the limited space of an NCR plot.
Upcoming projects: A second home in Chandigarh; an apartment in Goa; a country estate and hill home; a lifestyle store.
Material you’re obsessed with: All flooring—Indian stone, marble, cement tiles, wood, terrazzo
Philosophy: “Spend time on the land before you put pen to paper. Let the space and climate speak to you. Observe, then create.”
Studio VDGA, Pune
Deepak Gugarii
Project in focus: The House of Courtyards, a villa in Dubai, aims to combine the principles of Vastu with the vernacular architecture and context of the UAE. A series of courtyards and high turrets are among the architectural features introduced to modulate sunlight. The home uses a minimal material palette, defined by a mud-plastered exterior.
Upcoming projects: A Spanish villa; yoga and surfing resorts on the Mentawai Islands of Indonesia and Atlantic coast of Morocco; a private villa at Beau Champ, Mauritius.
Material you’re obsessed with: Adobe and natural Indian stones
Philosophy: “Architecture, we believe, is a journey of spaces, manifested through various mediums: sun, shadows, air and form being just a few premises on which it is built.”
JOSMO, Goa
Anjali Mody
Project in focus: A 3,300-square-foot three-bedroom apartment, designed to be a warm, tactile sanctuary, set on the 32nd floor of a building on the outskirts of Bengaluru. The apartment features numerous windows, light-filled corridors and a large terrace garden that looks out to uninterrupted views of the city, and uses a rich range of materials ranging from wood to brick to accents in cane. Each space within the home draws from various influences—the lines of art deco, murals inspired by the flora and fauna of the Western Ghats, and brick wall cladding as seen in Brooklyn brownstones.
Upcoming projects: New collections of furniture and carpets; a line of accessories and design objects.
Material you’re obsessed with: Faux fur and metallic pigments
Philosophy: “As an artist in my personal life, I spent many years questioning my role as a designer and the role of design in the world. Intuitively, I knew good design had the ability to influence how we live, love and learn collectively. But after a decade of running Josmo, I have the proof to back up these initial instincts. After years of fine-tuning, I discovered that the best design comes from listening deeply to the people we make with, the people we make for, and the culture we all coexist within.”
Elicyon, London
Charu Gandhi Pominkiewicz
Project in focus: A 5,457-square-foot penthouse apartment, located atop The Broadway, one of London’s newest developments. Spread across two storeys, the residence was designed to serve as a “sanctuary in the sky” for a young family of five—a retreat from city life—all while offering stunning views of iconic landmarks such as Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, and Westminster Cathedral.
Upcoming projects: A 15,500-square-foot family home in Dubai; an expansive villa complex in Saudi Arabia; the redesign and refurbishment of a large 9,000-square-foot family home in New Hampstead, New York; a waterfront Italianate mansion in Miami.
Material you’re obsessed with: Onyx
Philosophy: “Our approach is defined by a commitment to bespoke design, meticulous attention to detail, and a collaborative approach that honours each client’s unique vision.”
Sona Reddy Studio, Hyderabad
Sona Reddy
Project in focus: Clay, a 11,000-square-foot residence in Hyderabad’s Jubilee Hills, follows an extensive renovation effort from the ground up. The resulting structure features a bold, monolithic facade punctuated by geometric breeze blocks on the southern and western fronts. Inside are communal areas with double height walls, lofty glass fenestrations and furniture—both refurbished from the original structure and curated new additions.
