One of the most acclaimed and awarded interior designers in India, Mumbai-based Shabnam Gupta is globally recognized for her stellar portfolio of iconic Bollywood celebrity homes and stunning commercial projects. Founder of The Orange Lane, a multi-disciplinary design firm, and Peacock Life, a retail brand for home furnishing, multi-award winning Shabnum is the face of eclectic designs peppered with traditional nuances. In an interview with Shabnam, Asia Designers Directory find out more about her career trajectory and what inspires her.
You founded The Orange Lane, a multi-disciplinary design firm in 2003. What inspired you to strike out on your own and what are some qualities that have contributed to your success?
The Orange Lane was founded like its name to be a personal journey, which was passion lead, “The Lane” signifying the path I choose to walk on. Every individual has to find their own calling, but I think here design found me. Some of the qualities that are required in our line of work is to be a team player and to always put the client’s requirement before your design. I think that is a great combination for success.
-
- The Raval House
-
- The Raval House
-
- The Raval House
Can you tell us about your design style and philosophy?
My design style I would like to think of it as being a window into modern India, where we can become the showcase for the revival process of a lot of craft and artisan lead work. My philosophy in design is always function over form.
Your designs combine colors, prints, textures and styles impeccably. How do you find the right balance without overwhelming the space?
Our design is an eclectic blend of India, and we try to create world travel spaces. We try to re-create and put together memories that the clients have collected over their travels, and the kind of lifestyle that befits the same. I think the balance is a tight rope walk, which is a constant endeavor to maintain.
-
- FC Social
-
- FC Social
-
- TBSE, Kamla Mills
How do you think you have evolved over the years and how does this translate into your designs and work?
As a studio our constant endeavor is to try to not repeat designs and to keep pushing ourselves to try newer skill sets, work with different artisans and I think that is the only method that we can keep evolving as a studio.
What do you think about India’s interior design scene? Are there new trends that are shaping the local scene?
It’s a great time to be a designer in India. People have a lot of exposure and people are very country proud, which is where our studio philosophy also stems from. There is a lot of newfound interest in giving a fresh lease of language to older skill set, which makes it relevant today. And that I think is shaping Indian design.
What are you working on at the moment?
We are working on a couple of very interesting projects, mostly high-end residentials and larger scale projects, where the client is open to experimenting and that’s a very exciting journey for us.