Zarir Mullan And Seema Puri

In this Mumbai apartment, architect Zarrir Mullan has used 2-tone colour accents and smart space divisions to create quietly stylish interiors.

“My style veers towards modernist interiors,” architect Zarrir Mullan states. “Of course, the structure and the layout determine the kind of space you create.”

At this Mumbai apartment, the entire emphasis is on the effective use of space. Aside from the materials, contrasting colours like silver-grey and black are offset by dull gold, deep reds and white to create a mood of quiet intensity.

A graphic image of Lord Ganesha, with a name plate and a bell attached to it, forms the entrance. An L-shaped sofa acts as a divider in the living room. A grey-green wooden panel, with a Plasma TV and an LCD monitor - through which the client can create different mood lighting or adjust the volume of music with just a touch of screen - mounted on it, forms the focal point.

The living space flows into the dining nook, with its 2-toned back wall. From the dining room one can get a view of the daughter’s room, while a veneered partition extends from the dining room to the kitchen. Two glass panels slide into this veneered wall, behind which is hidden a service passage. Once the glass slides in, it looks more like a doorway.

Adding visual interest to this dining-kitchen space is a niche in the ceiling that is festooned with red vinyl accenting. Mullan has used reflective light in this alcove which bounces off the tall furniture pieces to create interesting textures. The kitchen has a very international look, with its poly-coated steel cabinets. Huge windows, draped in cream curtains, form the focal point in the master bedroom. The side table emerges from the wall-to-wall bed back, and the curtains are interestingly draped around this bed back.

Mullan has equipped the long bathroom with a double-sink corner, which also separates the bathroom space. A common walk-in zone connects the two ends of the bathroom. Blue glass mosaic has been used for the walls in the shower stalls, and patch-fitted glass for the cubicles.

The son’s bedroom shares the straight lines of the other spaces in the house; veneered wardrobes in tones of deep brown and dull grey; all the accents, especially the accessories here, are of steel. The daughter’s bedroom is much brighter. An L-shaped corner storage cabinet is covered with 2-toned paint: red and peachy orange. The orange colour creeps into a cabinet within the bathroom too.