Space is a luxury not many are privy to in Mumbai. This 3,600 sq.ft penthouse in Mumbai, fortunate to have enough square footage, has been designed by Studio Lagom to capitalize on natural light and space. The result is an enchanting home spread over two levels with a slice of nature inside, hidden doors camouflaging mammoth storage from plain sight, and a distinctive staircase whose walls are peppered with hand-drawn Gond paintings. The home has been aptly dubbed “the house of hidden doors” by the architects.
About the project:
Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra
Size: 3,600 sq.ft
Type: Owned, apartment
Architecture & design firm: Studio Lagom
Principal architect: Hardik Shah
Brief from the client: The brief from the client, having seen the studio’s work and liked it, revolved around being connected to nature, having plenty of sunlight, a clean look rendered using minimal materials, a sense of space and plenty of storage. While the apartment was actually a duplex, the owners preferred all the primary areas to be located in the first level, with the second level being devoted to the entertainment zone/guest space.
Living + Kitchen
The lower level houses the living-dining, kitchen and three bedrooms, while the upper floor has the library, guest room (with attached sauna/steam), gym and the terrace garden.
The primary level, again, delineates the public and private spaces through a long 36-foot passage. The result is a L-shaped teakwood-batten wrap that camouflages extensive storage and access points, and has, in all, some 18 doors concealed in its facade — doors to the powder room, main entry and bedrooms and shutters to units that store everything from newspapers to luggage. Configuring this element was a study of storage needs, from both, outside (the public zone) and inside (bedrooms/private zone), with a jigsaw-like strategy applied to accommodate the requirements in a streamlined fashion.
Bedrooms
The public zone is a free-flowing seamless one that brings together functions of living, dining and cooking. It is shielded from direct view from the main door with the help of a partition — very lattice-like in elevation — that offers fragmented snapshots of the space beyond as well as serves as a display point for the family’s extensive collection of travel souvenirs and art. The orchestration of the bedrooms was dictated by family hierarchy and the clients’ request that bedroom doors not face each other as a respect for privacy.
Stairway to Terrace
The two floors are connected by a granite-treaded staircase with a landscaped water court at its base and a skylight overhead. The reflective properties of the water pool amplify the surrounding volume of the living-dining area. The wall of the staircase has an enormous rendition of a Gond-inspired painting, loosely based on the Tree of Life, by Kruti Sheta-Patel.
The upper level sees generously-proportioned, well-appointed guest rooms — the owners are very caring hosts — a TV room and a gym. This way, guests enjoy a certain independence while the daily household routines continue downstairs without disturbing visitors. The upper level also houses the terrace, a beautiful lush, lounge-like space — a rarity in Mumbai — complete with a well-equipped bar. Given their social nature, this was an important requirement for the clients.
The Terrace
This penthouse succeeds in giving the clients what they sought — a serene, almost resort-like habitat in the congested urbanity of Mumbai… in which sunlight, greenery, connections to the outside and within; and gregariousness and privacy in the right doses create a warm and welcoming home.
Image Courtesy: Studio Lagom
19 Comments
Hi Lakshmi
It was a serene home tour. In the master bedroom, the wall is covered with a nice background. Could you please help me as what’s the material of it( is that a wall paper )
Thanks
Geeta
Hi Geeta, yes it is a wallpaper.
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Beautiful! What’s the design on the stair walls? hand painted or wall paper?
It’s hand-painted.
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Beautiful house.
What is the floor? Kadappa stone or tiles?
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