RISING SUN, ROOTED SOUL

A contemporary residence that reinterprets the traditional Maharashtrian wada, Aarunya is a layered, deeply personal home where memory & craft coexist

- WORDS BY KASHISH KAUSHAL PHOTOGRAPHS BY TARANG GOYAL

Mumbai never judges you. It simply lets you be. That's what makes it a salad bowl of culture. Once you're here, the city and its culture are your own," declares founder and principal designer of Envisage Meena Murthy Kakkar. You can almost feel the endearment behind those words, the kind that comes from truly understanding a city's spirit. So, when the opportunity came to create a home representing this cross-cultural dynamism, she and her partner (in life and design) Vishal Kakkar, knew exactly where to look. Maharashtra's rich Maratha legacy, specifically the traditional wada—a style that is itself a fusion of Rajputana, Mughal, and Deccan architectural vocabularies became the emotional foundation of 'Aarunya' - The Wada House. Aarunya, meaning the rising sun, stands for hope, and can you think of a better city than Mumbai to represent it? The story begins at the mahadwar or the entrance, where doors defined the owner's prosperity through ornate carved detailing. Here, a traditional door is flanked by hand-carved panels depicting the Ashtavinayak on one side and an elephant bracket with a tradition