Hello World - Issue 12, April 2020

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NTEN

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST INDIA` 200 OCTOBER NOVEMBER 2020 COVER at Les Ateliers 2M in Mumbai.
Ashiesh Shah collaborates with
THE MOST BEAUTIFUL HOMES IN THE WORLD For the first time ever, seven AD Dimapur-based Heirloom Naga for
editors from around the world— a Naga-inspired chair. Seetu Kohli
EDITORS China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Home brings the new Fendi Casa
AT HOME Middle East and Spain—open the collection to India. Jalebi, a book
doors to their homes, giving us a on Southall by Priya Ahluwalia,
PHOTO: NANDINI MEHTA NAIK. glimpse into their lockdown lives. celebrates diversity. Hong Kong–
The cover captures that typical based architect André Fu designed
sight—one we dearly miss—in an the perfect home for AD Casa, a
editorial office of a soft board pinned project by AD China. India Art Fair
up with all the editors’ homes. director Jagdip Jagpal reports from
the Berlin Art Week, with notes on
22 EDITOR’S LETTER new works by Olafur Eliasson and
24 CONTRIBUTORS Sajan Mani. Studio Lotus redefines
OCTOBER-NOVEMBER glamping at the Raas Chhatrasagar
31 ZEITGEIST tented boutique hotel.

Hermès turns Gianpaolo Pagni
artworks into rugs, handmade





NTEN

4 94 ENRIC PASTOR 120 LUCA DINI

4 The AD Spain editor-in-chief’s AD Italy editor-in-chief Luca Dini

PHOTO: BILLIE CLARKEN/NOME GALLERY. new home in Madrid is an exercise has refurbished his second home
PHOTO: DIRK WEIBLEN.
in colour that looks like his in the Marche region, a place with

magazine come to life. foundations that go deep into his

104 OLIVER JAHN family’s history.

70 ROLL CALL The editor-in-chief of AD Germany, 128 BERYL HSU

Presenting the new line-up of Oliver Jahn’s home is a tribute A new passion for florals and

Contributing Editors at AD—the to books and the written word, botanical sculptures is evident

tastemakers and experts who bring celebrating his penchant for throughout the Shanghai apartment

magic to these pages. collecting rare volumes. of the editor-in-chief of AD China.

82 THE MOST BEAUTIFUL ROOMS 112 MARIE KALT 1
2
IN THE WORLD The AD France editor-in-chief 8

To mark a century of showcasing photographs her daily routine

beautiful interiors, all AD editions over summer in Paris, revealing

present this gorgeously designed a stillness to the city never

and curated coffee-table book. seen before.

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NTEN

1 154 MIN HOGG 184 STYLE NOTES

6

6 The late founding editor of The Our selection of the best design

World of Interiors was a legend products to own this season.

PHOTO: EESHAAN KASHYAP. in the world of magazines and 190 STOCKISTS
PHOTO: GREG FOSTER.
decoration, as her own home in the An A-to-Z listing of stores.

Canary Islands shows. 192 THE CARTOON

134 TALIB CHOUDHRY 166 EESHAAN KASHYAP’S A hilarious new page by illustrator

Mini and Mouse, Talib Choudhry’s KITCHEN SECRETS Cyrus Daruwala.

unapologetic feline flatmates, offer Chef and restaurateur Eeshaan 194 THE MOOD: MARÍA ALCOCER

a tour of the AD Middle East editor- Kashyap takes the reins for a very The editor-in-chief of AD Mexico

in-chief’s Dubai apartment through special Kitchen Report, with hand- styles a personal, chic mood board.

a series of portraits. written notes and recipes. 1
4
144 GREG FOSTER 180 WEEKEND VIBES 4

From DIY to a spring clean, it’s A look back at the AD Weekender,

been one long styling session in which brought together a line-up of

the cosy Mumbai flat of the virtual home tours, art exhibitions,

editor of AD India. conversations and masterclasses.

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EDITOR GREG FOSTER CHIEF BUSINESS OFFICER ARJUN MEHRA
MANAGING EDITOR Komal Sharma PUBLISHER Armaity Amaria

ART DIRECTOR Chandni Mehta ASSOCIATE ADVERTISING DIRECTORS Kapil Tolani, Loveleen Kahlon (New Delhi)
DIGITAL EDITOR Aditi Sharma Maheshwari SENIOR ADVERTISING MANAGERS Varun Sama, Aditi Sharma (New Delhi)
ADVERTISING SALES COORDINATOR Yesha Patel
COPY DIRECTOR Tyrel Rodricks ITALY SALES REPRESENTATIVE Angelo Carredu
ASSISTANT DIGITAL EDITOR Kriti Saraswat-Satpathy US ADVERTISING MANAGER Alessandro Cremona
MANAGER - DIGITAL SALES Shilpi Mishra
DESIGNER Akshita Shrivastava MARKETING DIRECTOR Madhura Phadnis
FEATURES WRITER Ritupriya Basu SENIOR MARKETING MANAGER Jaymin Dalal
PHOTO ASSISTANT Sarang Gupta MARKETING MANAGER Prem Bhatia
MARKETING EXECUTIVE Anaheez Patel
JUNIOR STYLIST Mitalee Mehta HEAD - ADMINISTRATION Boniface Dsouza
JUNIOR FEATURES WRITER Shristi Singh PR DIRECTOR Swati Katakam Samant
EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Shalini Kanojia SENIOR PR EXECUTIVE Waheeda Abdul Jabbar Machiwala
HEAD - EVENTS Fritz Fernandes
WATCH EDITOR Rishna Shah SENIOR MANAGER - EVENTS Khushnaz Daruwala
SYNDICATION MANAGER Michelle Pereira CNX
SYNDICATION COORDINATOR Giselle D’Mello CREATIVE DIRECTOR Dipti Soonderji Mongia

PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Sunil Nayak ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - CLIENT SERVICING & PROJECT MANAGEMENT Neha Dhanani
SENIOR MANAGER - COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION Sudeep Pawar MANAGING EDITOR - NATIVE STORIES Shivani Krishan

PRODUCTION MANAGER Mangesh Pawar COPY EDITOR - BRAND SOLUTIONS Tanuj Kumar (New Delhi)
SENIOR PRODUCTION CONTROLLER Abhishek Mithbaokar CREATIVE PRODUCER Mandira Sharma

PRODUCTION CONTROLLER Geetesh Patil INFLUENCER MANAGER Insiya Bagasrawala
SENIOR MANAGERS - BRAND SOLUTIONS Abigail Rodrigues, Shweta Mehta Sen
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
Channa Daswatte CREATIVE STRATEGISTS Karan Kaul, Sangita Rajan
Divya Mishra SENIOR DIGITAL WRITER Andrea Pinto
Gauri Kelkar DIGITAL WRITER Megha Sharma
GRAPHIC DESIGNER Ayushi Teotia
Gayatri Rangachari Shah
Malika Verma ASSOCIATE PROMOTIONS EDITOR Sneha Mahadevan
PROMOTIONS WRITER Tina Jimmy Dastur
Maximiliano Modesti
Mayank Mansingh Kaul SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Varun Patil, Atul Hirijagner
MANAGER - CIRCULATION OPERATIONS Jeeson Kollannur
Nazneen Jehangir
Priyanka Shah CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Amrit Bardhan
Roshini Vadehra FINANCIAL CONTROLLER Rakesh Shetty
Sunil Sethi
Vivek Sahni ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - PROCUREMENT Veerbhadra Maurya
SENIOR ACCOUNTANT Dattaprasanna Bhagwat
Yeshwant Holkar ACCOUNTANTS Nitin Chavan, Anthony Paulose

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS DIRECTOR - VIDEO COMMERCIAL Harmit Singh Sehmi
Ashish Sahi ASSISTANT MANAGER - PROCUREMENT Anubhuti Sharma
Ashish Shah ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - COMMERCIAL PLANNING Alisha Goriawala

DIRECTOR - HUMAN RESOURCES Coralie Ansari
ASSISTANT MANAGERS - HUMAN RESOURCES Ria Ganguly, Neha Pednekar

DIGITAL DIRECTOR Saurabh Garg
HEAD - AD OPERATIONS Sachin Pujari
SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER - DIGITAL Dipak Raghuwansi
DIGITAL GRAPHIC DESIGNER Deep Shikha
TECHNOLOGY PROJECT MANAGER Vishal Ingale
MANAGER - AD OPERATIONS Vinayak Mehra
AD OPERATIONS EXECUTIVE Akanksha Malik
MANAGERS - DIGITAL MARKETING Priyanka Shivdasani, Akanksha Naik
SENIOR MANAGER - DATA & GROWTH Tanvi Randhar
ASSISTANT MANAGER - AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT Khushali Gandani
SENIOR EXECUTIVE - EMAIL MARKETING Tanya Chhateja

DIRECTOR - VIDEO Anita Horam
SENIOR CREATIVE PRODUCER - VIDEO Preshita Saha

ASSISTANT CREATIVE PRODUCER Aditya Sinha
EA TO MANAGING DIRECTOR Karen Contractor Avari

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L SF M ILLUSTRATION: SHWETA MALHOTRA.
TE S

At the beginning of lockdown, some eight months ago, the ten international editors of AD
began a monthly Zoom call. Ostensibly, it was a forum to discuss the rapidly evolving edi-
torial landscape (hello, IG live) and mastermind our move into virtual events (goodbye,
cocktail parties). Perhaps the first few calls had some awkward silences but it quickly
evolved into something where big ideas were born: the ‘I Love Salone’ campaign in support
of the Italian manufacturers as their factories shut down; the panel discussion organized by
AD Pro; and a few co-produced shoots. Collaboration does not come naturally to tradition-
ally territorial editors, but we worked it out. Unusually, the AD editors are friends, not
just colleagues.

But by far the most delicious part of the call was the glimpse we got into each other’s
homes. There were no hostile grey boxes on this Zoom. Instead, I spied AD Spain editor
Enric Pastor’s sunny sofas, AD Germany editor Oliver Jahn’s library of old books, AD France
editor Marie Kalt’s collection of Noguchi lamps and AD US editor Amy Astley’s sexy floating
staircase. It got me wondering, what did the rest of their home look like? By my very nature, I
wanted to see more. And if I wanted to see more, then I was sure our readers would too.
I studied international relations in my final year at Oxford and, for the first time, I put my
degree in diplomacy to use as I negotiated/harassed six of my colleagues to open their doors
for AD India.
Editors at Home is a fascinating showcase of how we, the editors of AD—apparently the
arbiters of taste in the interiors industry—live. Certainly, these homes exhibit an authenticity
of family life and the new reality of working from home that you may not always see in some
of the interior-designed spaces we feature. While I’m still craving the inspiration of property
porn, I think that realness is what we want to see right now.
Which of the editors has the best home? Well, it’s not a competition. But the answer is
unequivocally AD Italy editor Luca Dini’s impossibly pretty weekend retreat near the Tuscan
border. Called Waterfall Mill, it is so close to the grotto-like falls that there’s a movement you
don’t often find in AD photographs. Talk about living the AD dream!
The story I’m most excited about is AD Middle East editor Talib Choudhry’s villa in Dubai.
Together, we worked on a story that used Mini and Mouse, his adorable cats, as a vehicle to
explore corners of his home. Lockdown chez Talib looks like a lot of fun. We should have more
pets in our pages, that’s for sure.
A huge thank you to the editors who took part. Despite the fact we ask this of people all
the time, I think we all discovered that it is a deeply personal thing to have your home photo-
graphed and then published in AD for all to see. Let this set the tone for the future. I look
forward to collaborating again.

GREG FOSTER



PHOTO: ATHUL PRASAD. TALIB CHOUDHRY
PHOTO: AARON SERRANO.
MARIE KALT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF,
ENRIC PASTOR AD MIDDLE EAST
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF,
AD FRANCE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, Prior to heading AD Middle East,
Choudhry held senior positions
At the helm since 2008, Kalt AD SPAIN at several magazines and
is the creative force behind newspapers in the UK. In this
AD Intérieurs, the magazine’s Pastor has been with AD Spain issue, he photographed his cats,
influential interior design event. since its foundation in 2006. Mini and Mouse, at his Jumeirah
“It was interesting shooting He took over as editor six years villa (pg 134), which, he says,
these pictures for AD India (pg ago and introduced a point of “was like herding cats!”
112). It made me look at places I view of optimism, fun and a bit
saw daily in a different way and of sensible madness. “Having my LUCA DINI
catch them in the right light.” flat photographed for AD India
was an adventure. It will be an EDITOR-IN-CHIEF,
BERYL HSU excellent memory of the shelter AD ITALY
that protected us during these
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, strange times.” (pg 94) Dini has always loved languages
AD CHINA and travel, which is why he
studied to be an interpreter, until
Hsu joined AD China in 2013 and he realized he found it boring.
has been developing it as a multi- Then, he started to write. He
platform space for architects and hasn’t stopped since. In this issue,
designers. “Home is where the mind he takes us to the east of Italy,
can rest. It is a pleasure to share where he has recently refurbished
my home, a place I find peace in, a house (pg 120).
and creativity and love.” (pg 128)

24 | ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST | OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2020

Rimadesio Zen door.

Design Giuseppe Bavuso

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Bengaluru +91 96 115 33 229 [email protected] Systa Works
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MANOLO YLLERA PHOTO: ANA HOP. EESHAAN KASHYAP JAGDIP JAGPAL
PHOTO COURTESY OF INDIA ART FAIR.
PHOTOGRAPHER CHEF & RESTAURATEUR CURATOR

“I began taking pictures because Kashyap heads award-winning Director of the India Art Fair,
I saw a picture of Henri Cartier- restaurants like À Ta Maison, Jagpal’s career also spans law,
Bresson that hooked me forever. Ping’s Café Orient, and Jamun, publishing, radio and TV, whilst
I was 26 years old,” says the between New Delhi, Kolkata and serving on the boards of the
Spanish photographer who is a Goa. In this issue, he gives a fun, Wallace Collection and Royal
regular contributor to AD. In this new twist to the AD Kitchen College of Art. In this issue, she
issue, he photographs AD Spain Report (pg 166). “AD pushed me writes about her travel to Berlin
editor Enric Pastor’s colourful to draw inspiration from materials, (pg 44). “What better way to
apartment in Madrid (pg 94). textures and colours, which share my travel diary than with
added a new dimension to AD India—a natural home for
the dishes.” everything art and architecture!”

MARÍA ALCOCER OLIVER JAHN

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, AD MEXICO EDITOR-IN-CHIEF,
& LATIN AMERICA AD GERMANY

With a 12-year career at AD Mexico & Jahn is not only a design expert
Latin America, Alcocer was appointed but one in literature as well.
Editor-in-Chief in 2017, and has been He has been with AD since
working to reposition Mexico on the 2006 and editor since 2011.
global stage. “I believe the objects In this issue, we get a glimpse
we choose to live with create bonds of his home in Munich and
between past and present adding his expansive library of over
layers of richness and a depth of 20,000 books (pg 104).
meaning to the everyday.” (pg 194)

26 | ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST | OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2020

Skorpio Keramik table Wanda chairs Apollo lamps

cattelanitalia.com

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PHOTO: PRETIKA MENON.

EKTA RAJANI CYRUS DARUWALA DIRK WEIBLEN

STYLIST ILLUSTRATOR PHOTOGRAPHER

A Mumbai-based stylist and A creative director in advertising, A German architect and
creative consultant with over and author of two humour books, photographer based in Shanghai,
20 years of experience, Rajani’s Daruwala recovers from client Weiblen is interested in how
area of interest lies in conscious feedback through the therapeutic people interact with built
consumerism, cleaner materials power of creating comics. In environments. His photographic
and processes and human rights this issue, he launches AD’s work extends into habitual
in the fashion business. In this first comic strip, ‘The Cartoon’ aspects as well as lifestyle and
issue, Rajani styled our new (pg 192). “My blueprint for AD fashion. In this issue, Weiblen
Contributing Editors, remotely is to lay the foundation for a shoots the Shanghai home of AD
but personally (pg 70). few good laughs. I’m relieved China editor-in-chief Beryl Hsu
that I don’t have to submit scale (pg 128).
models for each comic.”
QINGTONG QIAN
NANDINI
STYLIST
MEHTA NAIK
A Design Shanghai award winner,
PHOTOGRAPHER Qingtong is passionate about
colours and flowers. In this issue,
For her second consecutive she styles the home of Beryl Hsu,
shoot for AD, Nandini shot the editor-in-chief of AD China, adding
editor’s board for the cover. stunning floral arrangements to
“From brief to studio to print, all show off Hsu’s newfound love of
in one day. It was a whirlwind botanicals (pg 128).
shoot for an issue otherwise so
meticulously plotted.”

28 | ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST | OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2020

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R
R

ZEITGEIST

The need-to-know news from the design world this
month includes: the graphic new collection of Hermès
rugs, which were hand-embroidered in Mumbai by
Maximiliano Modesti’s ateliers; the real-world (not virtu-
al) opening of a by-appointment apartment designed by
André Fu in Shanghai; and a diary from Berlin Art Week by

Jagdip Jagpal, India Art Fair’s director.

32

TEXT: RITUPRIYA BASU. PHOTOS: STUDIO DES FLEURS/COURTESY OF HERMÈS.

MAGIC CARPETS

A RARE FORM OF EMBROIDERY IS
THE BASE FOR A NEW COLLECTION
OF RUGS FROM HERMÈS, DESIGNED
BY GIANPAOLO PAGNI AND CRAFTED
IN MUMBAI BY LES ATELIERS 2M

I t all began with a few humble, handmade stamps. For Italian
artist Gianpaolo Pagni, the familiar printing tools became the
building blocks for his graphic artworks, brimming with arrest-
ing patterns. “First, I create a personal, graphic vocabulary made
up of shapes, lines and materials. Then these elements are turned
into stamps that allow me to draw and compose endlessly,”
says Pagni.

For the Cordélie collection launched earlier last month,
Hermès took two of Pagni’s artworks and turned them into rugs.
The architectural lines and curves of the two designs—‘Escalator’
and ‘Tremplin’ (pictured left)—were inspired by the geometric forms
of escalators and diving boards, and lent themselves beautifully to
a technique never before used to craft rugs at Hermès, in which
fine cotton cords are stitched atop a firm linen base. Each piece was
hand-embroidered by a group of karigars at Les Ateliers 2M, the
Mumbai-based studio of embroiderer and craft entrepreneur
Maximiliano Modesti.

“Cornely, an age-old European hand-guided machine tech-
nique is what we took inspiration from, which we tweaked to
harmonize with the design,” says Modesti. “Historically, Cornely

33

uses threads with a certain thickness, but
for these carpets, the cotton cord that we
created in-house was much thicker, which
meant the only way to embroider it prop-
erly was by hand.”

Using a hook, each artisan attaches a
two-millimetre-wide cord to the linen base
with a series of stitches. In the hands of a
karigar, the cord almost turns into a brush,
as the stitches colour large swaths of the
rugs in jewel blues and toasty oranges. The
process itself is rigorous, with each rug de-
manding upto 2,600 hours of intensive
handwork. “The rarity of the know-how
and the beauty of the artisan’s gestures
deeply informed this project,” says
Florence Lafarge, Hermès’s creative direc-
tor of home textiles. “The process requires
precision and concentration because it is
important to preserve the dimensional stability of the rug, while
also maintaining the consistency of the embroidery.”
Even before work had begun at Modesti’s studio, Lafarge had
already spent 18 months researching the craft, testing the designs,
deciding the direction of the embroidery, setting its density and
ensuring the robustness of the final weave. Not a detail was amiss.
For anyone unfamiliar with the embroidery technique, Lafarge has
a quick tip. “To understand the craftsmen’s meticulous work, sim-
ply turn the rug over,” she says. “It’s impossible to miss the intri-
cacy when you see just how many stitches each rug involves.”
The art, then, simply switches mediums. Whether stamped on
paper in Pagni’s studio in Paris, or embroidered on fabric by arti-
sans at Modesti’s atelier in Mumbai, the magic of it is still
the same.

34



A NAGA STORY TEXT: RITUPRIYA BASU. PHOTO COURTESY OF ATELIER ASHIESH SHAH.

ASHIESH SHAH TURNS A
TRADITIONAL RAINCOAT
BY HEIRLOOM NAGA INTO A
CLOAK FOR HIS NEW CHAIR

T he lean frame of the ‘Naga’ chair seems
impossibly fragile. And still, cloaked in
Heirloom Naga’s voluminous hand-
made raincoat, the chair’s design finds a
curious balance. Imagined by architect and
designer Ashiesh Shah in collaboration with
Jesmina and Aku Zeliang of Heirloom Naga,
the chair was born out of a need for an office
chair for Shah’s atelier in Mumbai. While his
initial design for the tactile, aluminium body
of the chair was ergonomically sound, Shah
noticed that it didn’t seem quite complete.

“The chair was originally titled ‘Maman’,
as a nod to the sculpture by Louise Bourgeois
that inspired its form,” says Shah. “While it
sat comfortably at our conference table, it
lacked the warmth to offset the cold metal
surface.” The problem found the perfect
solution in a traditional raincoat called enhyie,
hand-braided by artisans from Heirloom
Naga using tender strands of a wild palm.

Shah discovered the Dimapur-based design atelier as a juror for
the AD x JSW Prize for Contemporary Craftsmanship; Heirloom
Naga won the award in 2019. “A collaboration with them, while
pairing their philosophies with ours, was inevitable,” he says.

The raincoat, which wraps around the chair, is traditionally
used by members of the Chakhesang Naga tribe as protection from
lashing rains while they’re working on their farms. When weaving
the cloak, the harvested leaves are cured for three days, and are
then soaked in water and twirled into long strands, which are
knotted using a macramé process. “The form of the chair allows
you to appreciate the handwoven piece,” notes Shah, while the
trailing cloak “reiterates the wabi-sabi aesthetic, where nothing is
finished, nothing is perfect”. The warmth of the leafy cloak cuts
through the coldness of the metal, and in tempering the two, Shah
creates a chair that is a study in considered, untippable balance.

36



SHADES OF CHANGE TEXT: GAURI KELKAR. PHOTO COURTESY OF FENDI CASA & SEETU KOHLI HOME.

THE FENDI CASA 2020 COLLECTION, WHICH
WOULD HAVE DEBUTED AT SALONE DEL
MOBILE, SEES ITS MOST ICONIC DESIGNS
REIMAGINED IN BOLD MONOTONES

W ith the absence of Salone del Mobile
this year, Fendi Casa resorted to the
next best alternative, as did most
other brands this year: A virtual
launch of its 2020 collection of furniture.
And for its design cue, it delved into that in-
exhaustible crucible of inspiration, nature.

Elegant shapes were expressed with
unique materials and layered with colours
found in nature—ultramarine blues, garnet
reds, the deep greens of a tropical forest. And
all of it was fused with variations of the
brand’s signature shades of black, tobacco
and amber. The collection was brought to
India by New Delhi–based lifestyle brand
Seetu Kohli Home. “Fendi Casa is usually
extremely guarded when it comes to show-
ing their collection but we were thrilled to be
personally presented with the collection—
virtually, of course—by Olga Vignatelli and
her team. The collection is gorgeous and fun
with movable pieces and bold colours,” says Seetu Kohli, the
founder of the eponymous lifestyle brand.

The effortless harmony of bold colours and clean lines charac-
terize the range of furniture pieces that comprise the collection.
The ‘Anya Lite’ coffee tables and side tables, for instance, now
come in a simplified base, a reference to the brand’s archetypal
Astuccio pattern. And the maison’s iconic ‘Margaret’ armchair is
reinvented with a padded frame and metallic details in gun-metal,
Bronze Shadow and Palladium finishes.

Fendi Casa is known for its flair to fuse design with fashion and
this collection upholds that tradition. Only this time layering its
timeless design in nature’s best shades. “The launch of this collec-
tion was surely our silver lining through this pandemic,” asserts
Kohli. Design watchers and discerning homeowners
definitely concur.

38

THE 21ST
CENTURY ICON

Reserved for discerning
connoisseurs of luxury,
The iconic World Towers
by Lodha is a tranquil
oasis that is equal parts
extravagant and opulent

When we think about New York and Step out onto level six, and you A trio of iconic towers offering
it’s most iconic structures, the Empire will be greeted with a clubhouse, a lifestyle beyond compare
State building comes to mind first. indoor and outdoor pools, a children’s
Similarly, architectural marvels, Eiffel outdoor play area, and an outdoor team strives to meet and surpass all
Tower and Burj Khalifa, are synonymous gym. Fitness and sports enthusiasts residents' expectations. A never seen
with Paris and Dubai. One such iconic will love the two-acre rooftop sports before service in a residential setting,
structure redefining Mumbai’s skyline arena, which comes equipped with all your demands—from the routine
is The World Towers by Lodha Group a lap pool, athletic track, tennis and to downright whimsical—will be taken
which is truly a masterpiece that squash courts, and a football turf. care of by the staff who have been
joins the ranks of these noteworthy While, those looking to rejuvenate handpicked from five-star hotels.
structures. Located in the heart of mind, body, and spirit can indulge
Mumbai, at the confluence of Lower in immersive wellness treatments Luxury living really does take on
Parel and Worli, The World Towers is a at the Six Senses Spa. That’s not all. new meaning at The World Towers.
manifestation of India’s stature on the The World Towers is home to an Art Akin to checking into your own five-
global stage in the 21st century. With Lounge and Café along with a grand star property, here, your every desire
its commitment to provide the highest ballroom, which makes for the perfect will be taken care of, and with a touch
standards of luxury living to the new venue to host all your soirées. of class only made possible by the
age Indian connoisseur, The World iconic development.
Towers is undeniably the city’s most A WORLD OF
sought-after address. For more information,
UNRESTRICTED ACCESS visit www.lodhagroup.in/twt
Designed by Pei Cobb Freed & No matter what your idea of luxury, the or call 022 61131113
Partners (the minds behind the Lodha Group’s in-house hospitality arm
Pyramid at the Grand Louvre, Paris), has got you covered. In its constant
The World Towers comprises three endeavour to bring its patrons the
soaring structures—World One, World finest living experiences, Saint Amand
Crest and World View—each of which is
a gateway to a world of unimaginable
indulgence and comfort. Legendary
designer Ken Smith has bestowed the
property an expansive seven acres of
lush green landscape—a rare luxury in
Mumbai. Sprawled across 17 acres, the
residential property flaunts capacious
apartments kitted with modern
amenities that offer idyllic views of
the Bandra-Worli Sealink, Mahalaxmi
Race Course and, on clear days, of
the Elephanta Caves, too. Given its
strategic location, The World Towers
also offers easy access to the city’s elite
restaurants and luxury shopping malls
and entertainment hubs.

A WORLD OF INFINITE EXPERIENCES
Luxury at The World Towers isn’t
limited to the three iconic structures;
it is equally evident in the multitude of
experiences that are on offer.

TEXT: GAURI KELKAR. PHOTO: LAURENCE ELLIS/AHLUWALIA.

A photograph from Jalebi by Priya Ahluwalia. “Some things are very SOUL FOOD
recognizable across the Asian and African diasporas. One of them is the
way people cover everything in plastic, whether it’s sofas or cars. What LONDON-BASED DESIGNER
better way to elevate plastic than turning it into silk?” says Ahluwalia. PRIYA AHLUWALIA
CAPTURES THE DELICIOUS
F or Priya Ahluwalia, fashion designer and founder of the cloth- DIVERSITY OF SOUTHALL
ing brand Ahluwalia, her lived experience of Southall became IN HER NEW BOOK, JALEBI
the springboard for Jalebi, her second book. Much like the
syrup-drenched sweet it has been named after, the self-
published book is a visual feast of images that make a compelling
narrative of the book’s primary focus—Southall, London. The
inspirations were, in a sense, familiar—and familial. “I am really lucky
that my family has a great archive of family photos. I have always
looked at them for inspiration,” explains Ahluwalia, the daughter of
an Indian mother and Nigerian father. “The aim was to celebrate
[Southall] and all the beautiful nuances of diversity it represents.”

Ahluwalia roped in photographer Laurence Ellis when she had
the idea for the book. “We both care about sustainability and
community so we have that in common. Laurence is from
Hounslow and I was interested in how he would come at the story,
having grown up nearby as a non-ethnic minority person.” Then
she brought on board stylist Riccardo Maria Chiacchio, “who is a
great visual storyteller”, and Troy Casting, “to cast families and
people from the area”. Overlaying it all is Ahluwalia’s own instincts
as a designer: “I often juxtapose different references and put things
together in unexpected ways [and] I think this was the same while
making the book.”

Jalebi, Ahluwalia writes in her book, is “a love letter to diversity,
and all the quirks and nuances that come with it”, but it is also a
significant statement about the need to accept, acknowledge and
embrace diversity in all forms. “When we started this book there
was, and still is, so much hostility towards immigrants with Brexit.
It’s offensive to read [this rhetoric] when you’re from an ethnic
minority background. And it’s unfortunate because so many
wonderful things come out of immigration. That’s the message
Laurence and I want to send.”

40



SHANGHAI HOUSE TEXT: SHRISTI SINGH. PHOTO: JONATHAN LEIJONHUFVUD FOR AD CHINA.

THE AD CHINA TEAM COMMISSIONED
INTERIOR DESIGNER ANDRÉ FU TO DESIGN
A POP-UP APARTMENT OPEN TO EVERYONE

D oing shoots for so The TV room on the basement level—the oak armchairs and chaise
many people’s longue are from André Fu Living. The ‘Beovision Harmony’ TV is
homes made us from Bang & Olufsen. The floral arrangement on the side table is
wonder what it by 21, and the artwork on the adjacent wall is by Zhang Tian-Jun.
would be like for AD
China to have its own
home,” says editor-in-
chief Beryl Hsu. For a
month starting mid-
August, AD Casa took
up space in one of the
Capella Shanghai hotel’s
last-standing 1930s shikumen townhouses—symbols of the blend of
Chinese and European architecture that was popular at the time.

The East-meets-West theme greatly informed Hsu’s choice of
interior designer. “André Fu immediately came to mind. He’s born
in Hong Kong and studied in the UK. He could integrate both
styles and cultures into his design language.” Fu’s vision for the
420-square-metre residence was dominated by colours and the
moods they dictate—from the dusty burgundy in the living room
that references the past to the shades of green that bring nature
into the dining area and the gentle beige that adds a touch of ele-
gance to the bedroom.

A collaboration followed soon after that saw floral artist 21 liven
up the home with his oriental-inspired, bamboo-led arrange-
ments; designer Danful Yang dot its walls with artworks from Pearl
Lam Galleries; and Fu bring in homeware from his own atelier,
André Fu Living. The three lend AD Casa a “compilation of rem-
edies for metropolitan symptoms”, as Hsu puts it. She recalls her
first reaction to the big reveal: “I wasn’t convinced it would be a
real home. I thought it’d be more like a ‘model house’. But when
I first stood at the entrance, I realized it was something you could
actually live in. It’s very human.”

42



TEXT: JAGDIP JAGPAL. PHOTO: BILLIE CLARKEN/NOME GALLERY. Artist Sajan Mani at the
Nome Gallery, Berlin.

BERLIN DIARIES A way from my home
in Delhi and after
TAKING A BREAK IN THE MIDDLE six months in isola-
OF A PANDEMIC, JAGDIP JAGPAL tion at my brother
VISITS GERMANY’S ART CAPITAL Raj’s in London—“rent-
IN SEARCH OF OLD FRIENDS AND free”, as he often likes to
NEW WORKS BY OLAFUR ELIASSON remind me—I decided to
AND SAJAN MANI, AMONG OTHERS take a trip to Berlin for a
socially distanced cultural break. I set out hoping to shake off my
44 lockdown torpor. Upon arrival at Tegel Airport, I was greeted by a
stern immigration officer who suggested that I move to Germany
after Brexit in order to lead a happier life. After a mandatory
change of protective mask and gloves, I jumped into a taxi to Hotel
Amano on Augustrasse—one of my favourites in the city for its
warmth and simplicity, and all the art galleries, bookshops and
eateries located around the corner. That first day, I walked all over
the city, and eagerly looked forward to dinner—my first night out
in a very long time—with a local art collector at Borchardt’s famous
terrace courtyard.
Having read about a project called Studio Berlin, a collaboration
between collectors Christian and Karen Boros and the notorious
nightclub Berghain, the next day I jumped on a bike to check it
out. I cycled through Berlin’s hipster Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg
district until I spotted a large banner with the words “Morgen ist die
Frage” or “Tomorrow is the Question” wrapped around the iconic
concrete building, which started life as a power plant. A clever use
of existing space while nightclubs are not allowed to operate, the
exhibition featured works by over 85 artists. Striking works by
Julius von Bismarck, Alicja Kwade and Julian Charriere decorated
the walls and ceilings. My personal favourite was a video work by
Wolfgang Tillmans in which he is seen singing—a must for all Flight
of the Conchords fans.
I spent the next couple of days exploring the 11th Berlin
Biennale spread across multiple venues. A scaled-down biennale
for the current times, the exhibition of extraordinary stitched can-
vases by the Ivatan and Philippine-American artist Pacita Abad at
Gropius Bau shone—an artist that my Instagram followers from
India demanded to know more about.
I was lucky enough to join friend, Indophile and now visitor-
assistant Ingrid Jochheim’s 32nd public tour of the unique ‘Christo



Interpretive flare display of unthought thoughts by and Jeanne Claude: Projects 1963-2020’ exhibition at Deutsche
Olafur Eliasson at the neugerriemschneider gallery. Bank’s very own art space PalaisPopulaire. Ingrid’s love for the art-
ist duo and passionate storytelling brought the place to life.
PHOTO: JENS ZIEHE/NEUGERRIEMSCHNEIDER GALLERY.
Next I made my way to neugerriemschneider gallery on
Linienstrasse for Olafur Eliasson’s latest show. This relatively small-
er show proved just as wonderful as his blockbuster exhibitions at
Tate Modern, if not more so. It had an elegant sculpture in the
gallery courtyard and a wonderfully calming digital installation
placed in a black-box environment. I was pleasantly surprised with
a cheeky hello from Burkhard Riemschneider and had the privilege
of a personal tour by gallery director Augusta Joyce. We hadn’t
seen each other since the India Art Fair in February and found
time to share stories on the impact of the pandemic on Asia and
Asians around the world. I slipped back later in the week to grab
some books and for the most delicious vegetarian meal in the gal-
lery’s canteen with Tim Neuger, one of the most quietly intelligent
people in the global art sector.

A 20-minute Uber ride later, I arrived to see my dear friend and
artist Sajan Mani’s solo show and performance at Nome Gallery’s
space near the Landwehr canal in the Kreuzberg district. Known
for consistently lending a voice to marginalized Dalit communities
in India, he rarely creates works for sale. I couldn’t resist an
opportunity to see the works that had been created as part of his
process and the makeshift library of reading materials. Not unsur-
prisingly, news about him and his show has spread by word of
mouth and social media, leading to an extension of his exhibition at
the gallery.

I took some photos and short videos of his performance to send
to my sister who was so concerned about Sajan’s well-being at the
Heritage Hotel Art Spaces show at Chatterjee & Lal in 2015, that
young Mortimer had to keep reassuring her that he would eventu-
ally emerge from the large pot. I know how much Sajan loves and
misses his parents but it’s obvious that Berlin has had a positive
impact on him. I recalled Nikhil Chopra reminiscing about his
time in Berlin and his performances in a shop front in the
Wedding district in the former East Germany. And look where he
is now!

One of Berlin’s many thriving art districts, Linienstrasse is lit-
tered with ground-floor galleries where works can be seen through
windows. Although a much quieter than usual Berlin Art Week,
there were plenty of reasons to step inside. Local artist Fiene
Scharp’s papercut works at Kuckei + Kuckei, Ethiopian artist
Dawit Abebe and Nigerian artist Gerald Chukwuma’s show at
Kristin Hjellegjerde, and Andreas Eriksson’s landscape paintings at
neugerriemschneider—all warranted further investigation. And a
little further afield, based on a local tip, I managed to get to the
show by Japanese artist Takashi Murakami at the former studio of
the late artist Michel Majerus, which is now maintained by the
Michel Majerus Estate. My week in Berlin was a real tonic for my
mental health. My memories and books got me through my return
to isolation in London. Needless to say, my brother Raj too
enjoyed his break!

46

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THE NEW GLAMP

STUDIO LOTUS AND PRINTMAKER
DHVANI BEHL BRING THE
WILDERNESS RIGHT INTO THE
TENTS AT RAAS CHHATRASAGAR

TEXT: RITUPRIYA BASU. PHOTOS: ANDRÉ J FANTHOME/©️NOUGHTS AND CROSSES.

Perching on the branches of the woodblock-printed local A t Raas Chhatrasagar, the birds are everywhere. They linger
trees are embellished appliqués of indigenous birds, hand- amidst prickly bushes and stroll past the shallows of the lake;
embroidered by artisans working with designer Dhvani Behl. some can even be found inside the Raas tents, imagined in
delicate embroidery, flitting past woodblock prints of knob-
48 bly trees. The birds, in fact, are the headliners of the diverse wildlife
that envelops Raas Chhatrasagar, a boutique tented camp perched
atop a dam built in 1890 by Thakur Chhatra Singh of Nimaj. In
2019, his great-grandsons Harshvardhan and Nandivardhan
Rathore—who created the camp in 2000—joined forces with
Nikhilendra and Dhananjay Singh of Raas to reimagine the
Chhatrasagar experience.

The site itself brims with wildlife. A sprawling lake circles acres
of grasslands that were rewilded in 2005 by the Rathore brothers.
“Over the past few years, my approach to building hotels has
changed,” says Nikhilendra Singh. “I have been longing to do
something in the wild, with close proximity to nature, so when the
owners of Chhatrasagar approached us to redo the camp on their
lands, it was the perfect opportunity to do exactly that.” Singh
commissioned New Delhi–based Studio Lotus for the project, the