In Mumbai, Deepal Parekh Design Studio crafts a 2,600 sq ft home defined by warm minimalism, soft modernist undertones and flexible spaces that adapt elegantly to urban life.
Curated by: Rupali Sebastian
Photographs: Aaditya Kulkarni + Shubhangi Gupta I PHX India; courtesy Deepal Parekh Design Studio
The project
Conceived as a calm counterpoint to its urban setting, this home at The Imperial Towers embraces contemporary minimalism shaped by warmth, material restraint and quiet confidence. Designed by Deepal Parekh Design Studio, the interiors balance functionality with softness, resulting in a space that feels composed, luminous and deeply personal. As principal designer Deepal Parekh notes, the aim was to achieve “contemporary minimalism with warm modernist undertones,” allowing comfort and clarity to coexist.
The site
The apartment arrived as a light-filled shell with sweeping city views. The expansive glazing and natural illumination formed the foundation of the design approach, guiding the orientation of the primary living spaces and informing the palette’s understated calm.
The brief
The client sought a clutter-free, elegant home with clean lines, abundant natural light and a spatial plan that could transition between work, relaxation and family life. Flexibility, intuitive circulation and visual harmony were essential, along with storage solutions that would remain unobtrusive in a minimal interior.
The design intent
The design expresses a warm, modern minimalism rooted in clarity, comfort and subtle luxury. A calm, neutral shell ties the home together, while bold accents are used sparingly to introduce depth without overwhelming the visual field. Texture becomes an architectural tool—a means of softening volumes, grounding spaces and defining zones. Lighting is deliberately restrained, designed to highlight surfaces rather than fixtures, giving the home a quiet, diffused glow.
The civil intervention
The key structural modification involved reworking the original two-bedroom layout into three fluid zones: a daughter’s bedroom, a study and a dressing area. The newly created study/lounge is designed to function as both work space and retreat, with sliding partitions enabling the room to shift between openness and privacy without interrupting the home’s spatial continuity.
The spatial flow
The apartment opens into a bright, open-plan living area that connects seamlessly to the balcony. Private bedrooms anchor the quieter end of the home, each designed as a restful sanctuary. The versatile study/lounge sits at the intersection of the social and private zones, its sliding partitions allowing it to expand or contract depending on use. The flow remains intuitive throughout—a gentle rhythm guided by light, material consistency and subtle transitions.
The material palette
Materiality shapes the home’s character. Light oak veneers, natural cane wallpapers and concrete wall panels introduce warmth and texture, while Italian marble flooring provides a polished, timeless base. Custom furniture reinforces visual cohesion, and concealed lighting is aligned to softly wash surfaces. The palette stays intentionally neutral—beige, taupe, ivory and greige—with accents of burnt orange, deep navy and cobalt blue punctuating the calm to create depth and personality.
The challenges
Achieving the balance between minimalism and functionality required precise planning. Integrated storage had to be seamless, and lighting alignment demanded meticulous execution to ensure concealed fixtures illuminated surfaces without visual clutter. Flexibility within the plan — particularly the dual-purpose study/lounge — required thoughtful detailing to maintain both openness and privacy.
The highlights
The study/lounge emerges as the project’s most distinctive feature. Its sliding partitions allow the space to transition fluidly between productivity and relaxation, embodying the project’s ethos of adaptive modern living. Custom feature lighting across the home adds character while emphasising textures and architectural lines. The neutral shell acts as a sophisticated backdrop against which materials and accents find clarity.
The takeaway
For Deepal Parekh Design Studio, the project underscored the importance of balancing material harmony with spatial flow. Every design decision was guided by the need to unify aesthetics, comfort and functionality—creating a home that feels timeless, composed and intimately attuned to its inhabitants.
Fact file
Project: A Refined Canvas – The Modern House at the Imperial
Design firm: Deepal Parekh Design Studio
Area: 2,600 sq ft
Location: Mumbai
Principal designer: Deepal Parekh
Design team: Samiksha Kadam
Styling: Ankita Shukla I Stylefix
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