A compact Mumbai apartment retains nostalgia while receiving a facelift

Mindspace Interiors undertake a complete overhaul in terms of design and planning with emphasis on storage and natural light.

Curated by: Rupali Sebastian
Photographs: Ruhma Ukaye; courtesy Mindspace Interiors

The site

The project is a typical suburban Mumbai apartment on the 5th floor of a residential society and has easy access to the road. The windows face north and south direction, and therefore sunlight enters the space in a restricted manner.

The brief

“The client was open to changes in the structure and material but wanted to retain a few pieces from the old interior and incorporate it with the new decor,” reveal Samia Khan and Mansi Shah of Mindspace Interiors. “The client required a modern looking house with a smart use of old furniture pieces such as the dining table and bed. They also wanted their home to appear as spacious as possible. The use of white had to be restricted but other ways to maximise space needed to be thought of.”

The design intent

The design team felt that neoclassical decor would do justice to the project that combined the modern with the vintage and bring in the element of luxury where required. “We wanted it to be chic and poised and used decorative motifs and shapes to show that in design,” says the duo. “We wanted to lean more on the clean lines and minimal philosophy but reserved places that would add that vintage charm. As the client is a plant-lover we wanted to display the foliage in every area.”

The civil intervention

In view of the client’s request for storage and a sense of space, the plan was recaliberated by taking down a few walls that created wasted pockets and an awkward programme. The apartment had a store room in the passage area which took up a lot of space. Additionally, a long, narrow passage needlessly ate up precious square footage. These made way for a laundry area and smart cupboards.

The spatial configuration

At the right side of the entrance is the living area with a large sofa for three which doubles up as a bed for two whenever required. Adjacent to the sofa is a big window, lowered to add additional seating. To the centre left of the entrance is the dining area and extreme left is the entry to the kitchen. To the left of the kitchen is the entryway of the passage leading to the common bathroom and bedroom. The passage is large enough to have a laundry area fitted in it. The renovated apartment has two full size bathrooms complete with shower cubicles. “As a one-bedroom apartment with an area demarcated for every activity, no two spaces clash with each other and that is visually also very pleasing,” say Samia and Mansi.

The material palette

Vitrified tiles were selected for the floor and composite marble for all window frames and kitchen tops. The carpentry work entailed use of plywood and laminate, and solid wood for mouldings and cornices. The colour palette was fresh and hues of pink and green dominate the living room. The purple and white bedroom also uses similar materials, with the added presence of glass for the closet shutter to bring in natural light.

The challenges

The air-conditioning piping work had to be cleverly concealed within the structure and every article within the house needed to be given its own space so that the home would be clutter-free. To create French windows out of a small window in the bedroom was a little tricky as well.

The highlights

“The black framed kitchen sliding door, the arched columns and the wooden moulding motifs are the striking features of the living room,” the designers tell us while picking out the highlights in the narrative. And then there’s the refurbished bed of the bedroom with a brand new headboard created in a vintage style. But their personal favourite is the walk-in closet in the bedroom, “because it was quite unthinkable in the previous plan,” they say. “It was now possible for the client to have her own dream closet in a limited space!”