K JO

A SWEET, LONG FRIENDSHIP IS THE SPECIAL INGREDIENT IN THIS "SUBTLY OVER THE TOP BACHELOR PAD DESIGNED BY GAURI KHAN FOR HER FRIEND AND CLIENT KARAN JOHAR INARGUABLY ΟΝΕ OF BOLLYWOOD'S MOST INFLUENTIAL FILM MAKERS.

- PRIYANA KHANNA

I would highly recommend that if you have a friend who is an interior expert, you get them to design your home," Karan Johar says with a laugh. "Gauri gave this home so much love, which really shows in every corner." When you think about it, the interior designer-client relationship is one that is characterized by a certain shared intimacy; the job calls for a degree of familiarity from understanding routines (Is the client a morning person? How can a home be made durable for a family with rambunctious children?) to valuing long-held beliefs and tastes to respecting and creating boundaries between the different facets of the client's life. And yet, more often than not, relative strangers are tasked with the role.

 This is not to say that a professional does not create a beautiful home for their client, but like in the case of AD100 designer Gauri Khan and Johar, familiarity breeds a level of trust that is unparalleled.

The bond between Khan, who has successfully carved a career as an interior expert and entrepreneur with Gauri Khan Designs, and Johar-a director, producer, talk-show host, and author-dates back to when he, as a young assistant director on the seminal film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, and her husband, the film's star, Shah Rukh Khan, struck up a friendship. In the nearly three decades since, both Khan and Johar have seen each other through different professional paths, the birth of five children (Khan's three and Johar's twins), milestone celebrations, and even some personal setbacks. While "#friendslike family" is now a hackneyed term, Johar has long been unequivocal that Khan is and will always be his chosen family.