Beyond Labels

Interior designer Ashiesh Shah tends towards imperfect beauty as his preferred aesthetic, and India’s A-listers are buying into this approach too.

- Benu Joshi Routh

FROM OFFICE SPACES AND PENTHOUSES TO CONCEPT stores and restaurants, architect and interior designer Ashiesh Shah’s portfolio is extensive and diverse. His aesthetic sensibility has found its way to Hrithik Roshan’s sea-facing apartment and Ranbir Kapoor’s penthouse as well as to filmmaker Abhishek Kapoor’s office, Cecilia Morelli-Parikh’s home and her concept store, Le Mill, actor Jacqueline Fernandez’s residence, and restaurant Nido in Bandra’s upscale Pali Hill area. His approach to design has made him a favourite among A-listers.

He, however, says it’s not about a signature style, but a philosophy of life. “I don’t want to be bracketed as a signature style artist. I prefer evolving with every project, challenging myself with newer concepts every time,” says Shah, 37.

His practice, he says, is rooted in the Japanese philosophy of Wabi-Sabi, which has influenced his vision of space and his choice of materials. The aesthetic is described as beauty that is imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete. “It is a philosophy of life, and once you accept it, everything trickles down to it. I don’t make a special effort to bring it to my practice, but if you look at my spaces, you see that element of finished and unfinished. It is a tightrope you are walking, but you have to maintain that,” he says.

Born into a family of doctors, Shah was initially studying to be a dentist when he realised it was not his calling. Considering his flair for science, he thought architecture would fit the bill since it combined art, technology and creativity. So he enrolled at the Rachana Sansad Academy of Architecture in Mumbai, took a year-long break after the course and studied Interior Architecture at Parsons School of Design in New York. After graduating, he started his career in New York City in the mid-2000s and eventually moved back to Mumbai.