A boutique with a library

Couturier Tarun Tahiliani’s Mumbai store mixes artistry with adventure 

Tarun Tahiliani’s new 4,000 sq. ft flagship boutique in Colaba, Mumbai.

It almost feels like a walk across the courtyard of a childhood paradise: a little tropical, a lot classical and infinitely magical. The gilded universe of master couturier Tarun Tahiliani’s brand new flagship boutique in Mumbai promises the luxury of intimacy—it is visual poetry in motion. 

Interestingly, the space, in its previous avatar, stocked the designer’s ready-to-wear pieces. Tahiliani and his interior design partner, Bindu Vadera, refurbished the space in a span of just three months. Located in a majestic heritage building in Colaba, the boutique’s view of the soaring horizon is painted with the Gateway of India and boats docked at the marina. This particular building, Tahiliani tells us, was designed by an Italian architect. 

The 4,000 sq. ft boutique is reflective of Tahiliani’s vision of couture: drama and decadence, classicism with contemporary opulence. Filled with nostalgia for a simpler time, Tahiliani says, “I wanted to create a space that would be reminiscent of the Bombay I grew up in: a tropical home with terrazzo tiles, Indian stones and palm trees swaying around us.” The boutique, with its mix of flooring ranging from Indian marble to sagar black, kadappa stone and natural wood, is a masterfully executed example of reimagining this space with a modern architectural elegance. 

Tahiliani’s Midas touch is evident in every corner of the sun-drenched boutique. A wall of antique mirrors greets you, while the floor-to-ceiling brass sculpting of “T-jaal”, the ornate jaali pattern printed on the tissue paper used to wrap the clothes is a sensorial treat. The space is a celebration of dramatically inventive detailing. Case in point: the extraordinary inlay work of mother-of-pearl motifs, resembling a peacock’s plume, on taupe-coloured walls across one section of the store. Tahiliani is a fan of a neutral colour palette that includes beige, sand and mud. He says it is the “patina of the subcontinent”. One of the other rooms in the boutique has custom-made wallpaper from British manufacturer Zoffany, which makes for guilty viewing pleasure. 

Tahiliani’s private art collection, portraits of Indian nobility and works from acclaimed photographer Rohit Chawla’s series on the Kumbh Mela and Kutch line the walls. The store is built around a central library—the idea is referenced from the designer’s home study, which is an enviable repository of quirky collectibles from around the world. At the boutique, the library is the central spot leading to each section: ready-to-wear, bridal and bespoke. The shelves, made of glass on lacquered panels with fabric, stock objets d’art, accessories and jewellery.

Designed like a sumptuous private salon, the boutique has spaces marked meticulously to highlight the different sections of the ready-to-wear lines and men’s collections. However, the most beautiful feature of the boutique is the uber luxe fitting rooms with sensual mood lighting by Singapore-based specialist Suman Agarwal. “I wanted to create a space where I can maintain the sanctity of couture,” says Tahiliani. This is where “by-appointment-only” clients can sink their toes in soft “Agra” carpets—made by the designer, of course—and take a deep breath before bracing themselves to comb through an exquisitely edited curation of the collections. But the real masterpiece here is the intricately hand-painted Danielesque mural of a royal procession across a 15ft wall. 

“Redoing this store has helped us understand how we want to approach our next level. We were keen to develop an honest identity that defines our ethos and expresses our voice, one that is attuned to the times we live in,” says Tahiliani. Step in and surrender to a soul vacation.

Below in pictures are the different sections of Tarun Tahiliani’s new 4,000 sq. ft flagship boutique in Colaba, Mumbai.

 

Source | Mint – The Wall Street Journal | 30 March 2016

Regards

Pralhad Jadhav

Senior Librarian

Khaitan & Co

Upcoming Event | National Conference on Future Librarianship: Innovation for Excellence (NCFL 2016) during April 22-23, 2016.

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