A Dramatic Mumbai Duplex

New Delhi- and New York-based firm DeMuro Das conceived a series of architectural interventions to combine two apartments into one family home, which is now filled with intriguing spaces, colours, artworks and custom-designed furniture

Design Anthology: How did you first meet the client?

Puru Das: The clients approached us after seeing our work in Architectural Digest India. We’d been featured in the AD50 list of top design firms in South Asia, which is where they first learned about us. As is often the case in India, during our first conversation we discovered we had many mutual friends, since I grew up in Mumbai.

What’s unique about the building and the location?

The building, Il Palazzo, is a 1970s apartment block located in Malabar Hill, with sweeping views of Marine Drive and the Arabian Sea. The building, like many of the towers built in the area in the 1970s, has a very desirable location and amenities, but suffered from low ceilings and boxy rooms.

What was the brief to you for the project?

The clients had lived in one floor of this apartment building for several years. They acquired the apartment upstairs, which they wanted to integrate by completely renovating both floors into a single family home. The homeowners, a well-travelled Mumbai couple with two young daughters, come from a family of prominent jewellers that owns one of India’s oldest jewellery companies. Since the husband is a jeweller, he has an appreciation for luxurious details and materials and was keen to incorporate them into the design.

How did you approach the project and what design references or narrative did you try to incorporate into the space?

The gut renovation of both apartments included significant architectural interventions that included completely reorganising the spatial plans of both floors and adding a staircase. Connecting the two floors to create a duplex involved designing a tight spiral staircase, which was painted a glossy blue to highlight the form of the ribbon and reference the Arabian Sea. We lowered the windowsill levels to the floor and used clear glass railings throughout the home to maximise the spectacular views of the Mumbai skyline, visible from all the primary rooms. The overall style offers a notion of modern luxury rooted in Mumbai’s uniquely cosmopolitan culture.

Please tell us about the material choices for the space.

The public rooms on the lower floor are all clad in grey tulip veneer with bronze portals that frame openings; the flooring in these areas is a dark grey marble with a geometric inlay pattern, which divides the formal living area from the bar lounge. Inlay is also used extensively in the bathrooms, particularly in the black Marquina marble-clad powder bathroom, where brass inlay and malachite handles create a jewellery box effect. The furniture also references the client’s profession as a jeweller and incorporates precious materials like green zebra agate and white quartz combined with cast bronze details.

Please tell us about some of the custom pieces.

To achieve a singularly unique residence, we custom designed almost all of the furniture, millwork and fixtures. These include the bespoke solid bronze door handles and the made-to-measure wall panelling that clads out much of the lower floor. A floor-to-ceiling shelving unit in the dining room, designed with cast bronze supports, is filled with a mixture of 19th-century Portuguese earthenware and modern accessories that hints at Mumbai’s rich history.

How long did the interior fit-out process take?

Including demolition, the entire renovation and fit-out took approximately 18 months.

Are there any other details about the project you’d like to share? 

DeMuro Das curated all the art in the home, which is primarily a collection of important Indian modernist paintings by well-known artists, including Ram Kumar, Francis Newton Souza and S.H. Raza. The objects are a combination of 19th-century antiques sourced from antique stores in Mumbai and accessories purchased on a buying trip to New York with the clients.

As told to / Suzy Annetta 
Images / Courtesy of DeMuro Das