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Vaishnavi Nayel Talawadekar is an internationally published architecture, design and art journalist.

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Vaishnavi works out of a sunny studio called Mangomonk where she writes for publications big and small.

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Latest Articles

Architectural Digest •

This 50th-floor home in South Mumbai bridges art, sound and space

Combining two apartments, more often than not, is a conundrum in and of itself. But in this home in South Mumbai, the apartments in question are separated by a skybridge, so the challenge shifts from clever planning to near-architectural gymnastics. Luckily, architects Amit Khanolkar and Advait Potnia enjoy a bit of mental parkour—and the occasional design puzzle that refuses to sit still. And if there was one thing about their latest brief that hit the spot, it was that: a spatial riddle that r...
Architectural Digest India •

Inside the restoration of Kerala’s Kilimanoor Palace, the birthplace of Raja Ravi Varma

Walls, as historians will avouch, are enchanting relics—holding on to architectural memory even when everything else has faded. Few places demonstrate this better than the Kilimanoor Palace, the famed ancestral home of Raja Ravi Varma, where long corridors, quiet verandahs, and timeworn masonry speak more eloquently than ornament ever could. Recently, one small yet significant fragment of this vast palace complex—the southern wing known as the Thekkekottaram—was gently coaxed back to life. The task, however, was far from straightforward. There were no old photographs to refer to, no grand restoration budget, and nary any pressure—none whatsoever—to turn the house into a polished showpiece. Instead, architect Aswathy Ganesh of Kochi-based The One Architecture Studio was presented with a deceptively simple question: how do you restore a home that survives largely in memory? The brief came from eminent Malayalam literary translator Prasanna Varma and seven of her cousins, the current custodians of this inherited wing of the palace—family friends of the architect, and quietly confident that she would understand what the place truly needed.
Architectural Digest •

Inside a 10,000-square-foot holiday home in Kullu where the hills set the brief

Nestled deep within the forested expanse of Tirthan Valley, this home in Kullu began not with a blueprint, but with a walnut tree. Long dried up, standing as a silent sentinel to the valley’s changing seasons, it was the first thing entrepreneur Kanishk Gupta and his mother, Mrinalini, noticed when they stepped into the little Himalayan dell they would ultimately purchase.
Architectural Digest •

This bungalow in Bengaluru is a joyful nod to its owners’ ancestral home

The courtyard quickly becomes the heart of the home, both spatially and emotionally. It is framed by antique wooden pillars reclaimed from the clients’ ancestral house—elements Padmam treated not merely as structure, but as storytellers. “They carried memory,” she notes, “and it felt important that that memory wasn’t just preserved, but lived with.” Installing the pillars, however, was far from plainsailing, for their original proportions had to be carefully adapted to suit the height and struct...
The Local Project •

Gruyere Farm by Simone Haag and Manifold

Among the rolling vineyards of Victoria’s Yarra Valley, time slows to a whisper, revealing a home that lets go of the city’s restless hum. At Gruyere Farm, nearly 40 hectares of bushland, vineyards and grazing Angus cattle set the stage for a story of quiet renewal. Originally designed by John Pizzey in 1986, the home has been tenderly reawakened with a contemporary sensibility – one that honours its roots while embracing the present, carrying echoes of Alistair Knox, Glenn Murcutt, Harry Seidle...
The Local Project •

[Print] Architects at Home: Inside Rob Mills's Howqua Home

Long before he created Howqua River Lodge in the Victorian Alps, architect Rob Mills knew that a quiet life in the countryside was written in his stars. “I had already built a beach house in the city and enjoyed that experience enormously, but as I grew older, I was in search of something quieter,” says the founder and principal of Melbourne-based Rob Mills Architects, whose pursuit, in due course, led him deep into the Howqua Valley—a region prized for its magnificent panoramas. “I'd been holidaying there with my family and friends my entire life, but land in this valley is very rare. Then, by chance, about 15 or 16 years ago—maybe more—a parcel of land became available.” Seeing it as an opportunity to step into his next chapter, Mills purchased the land, spending the following years manifesting a residence grown slowly from the earth, nourished and sustained by the elements themselves.
Livingetc •

[Print] Mumbai: Diamond in the Rough

Whoever said diamonds are a girl’s best friend—the whoever being Marilyn Monroe—clearly never met Ekta Parekh or Maithili Raut. Or, for that matter, their fellow co-founder Rajiv Parekh, who’ll tell you that the three architects behind Mumbai-based reD are far more fascinated by diamond cutters than diamonds. Take their latest adventure: an 11,000-square-foot duplex in Mumbai’s Worli, stitched together from two apartments stacked one atop the other. The challenge? Connecting the units without losing access to the upper-level, sea-facing balcony. Ambitious, yes—but so were the architects. What began as a routine structural check soon turned into a full-blown diamond-cutting escapade, opening the slab and carving a discreet, hidden passage from two rooms to the balcony.
The Local Project •

Woollahra Apartment by Porebski Architects

There’s something special about designing a home for oneself – but something even more meaningful about creating one for one’s parents. Perched atop a building in a leafy enclave beside the heritage-listed Rosemont Estate, the three-bedroom residence offers beautiful harbour views, but its true charm lies in how the duo transformed it into a timeless setting for their mother’s cherished collection of antiques and art. “We were lucky to get the opportunity to redesign it,” says D’Alisa of the home, which they thoughtfully downsized to accommodate her sculptures, vintage furniture and beloved objets d’art – treasures gathered over the years with their father, retired architect Andre Porebski. “These pieces really informed our approach; the challenge was finding ways to integrate them seamlessly into the new design.”
Architectural Digest •

This Kerala home enlivens an ancient legend for two sisters and their families

Architect Amrutha Kishor of Elemental isn’t one to believe in folklore—but if her latest Kerala home project taught her anything, it is to rethink where myth ends and meaning begins. “During our first meeting, our clients had an interesting story to tell,” Kishor recalls, referring to sisters Rekha Utham, based in Bahrain, and Renu Krishnadas, based in Dubai, along with their respective husbands and children. “The scope of work was not merely to design a holiday home on their ancestral land wher...
The Local Project •

Ricotta House by Paul Tilse Architects and Sarah Gibson

From the street, Ricotta House appears to be just another century-old Spanish Revival residence in Griffith, one of Canberra’s original suburbs. In reality, it’s a sophisticated exercise in illusion – an elegant reinvention of its 20th-century form. Designed by Paul Tilse Architects in collaboration with the owner, furniture designer Sarah Gibson of Design By Them, the revitalised home and its extension embody Gibson’s modern yet grounded approach to materiality and form.
domino •

Behind the Design of Two Siblings' Side-by-Side Cedar Cabins in Japan

Never in a million years did Koji Inafuku think he’d build one home—let alone two—on his late grandfather’s farm in the Japanese city of Nanjo. “It was never part of the plan,” says Inafuku. “But when my father inherited the land, he suggested that my sister and I build houses there.” So, back in 2010, they did—but not before tapping a talented architect friend, Hiroyuki Yamaguchi, and showing him a photo of a warm and minimal wooden cabin by Yoshifumi Nakamura. “I told him, ‘I want to build som...
Livingetc •

[Print] Bangalore: Soul from Spain

Architects Sridevi Changali and Rosie Paul like to believe they can bite off as much as they can chew. But when help comes wagging, they seldom say no—as they discovered on their last project, when a neighbourhood streetie joined the team uninvited, turning up daily for site inspections. “He must have been an architect in his past life,” quips Sridevi—from somewhere along the Spanish coast, no less. Because while Casa 503 might have been located in Bengaluru, its soul, like its owners’, belonged to blue waters and golden shores somewhere across the Atlantic.
Livingetc •

[Print] Mumbai: Vintage Vignettes

There’s something quietly enchanting about old homes—the way they hold the fading light, let time settle into their walls and let every creak sound like a memory finding its way back. But ask any designer who’s ever revived one, and they’ll confirm that the upsides often equal the downsides. Still, when the home in question has soaring ceilings, stained glass windows, terrazzo floors, and is bathed in coastal light under a canopy of gulmohar trees, designers Aarti Somani and Kruti Sheth of Mumbai-based A&K Design Studio develop a convenient case of selective blindness—to peeling paint, temperamental plumbing, and gravity-defying walls. After all, who can argue with that kind of charm?
The Wall Street Journal •

The Secret Ingredient to Their $200,000 Kitchen? A Massive Marble Island

When a California couple, both around age 50 and the founders of a creative marketing agency, purchased their 3,500-square-foot Spanish-style home in Los Feliz, Calif., in 2021, for $3.147 million, they were unfazed by its cramped 1920s kitchen, with its low ceilings and lack of circulation. They figured they could tackle the renovation once they moved in and enlisted designer Merissa Haas of Los Angeles–based studio M. Haas to lead the way.
The Local Project •

Pittella Celebrates 50 Years

For more than five decades, Pittella has quietly shaped Australia’s architectural landscape through the language of Italian craftsmanship. Known for its meticulously crafted architectural doorware – designed and manufactured in Italy – the family-owned studio has become synonymous with detail, material integrity and subtle luxury. As it celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, the architectural doorware brand continues its legacy of innovation and design excellence while exploring new directions in bathroom fittings.
The Local Project •

SABI Launches its Béton Collection - The Local Project

As pets become more intrinsic to the rhythms of our lives, the gap between our thoughtfully designed spaces and the objects our pets use each day feels increasingly disparate. SABI emerged from this cultural moment, with a recognition that the products our pets live with deserve the same level of consideration we grant to the rest of our homes. In place of accessories, the brand imagines something more deliberate: objects conceived as part of the interior landscape, shaped with the same sensibility and intention we bring to furniture. This became the foundation for what SABI calls pet furniture – sculptural, tactile forms designed to belong, not simply exist, within a room.
Design Anthology •

[Print] Top of the World: Inside Amaya

A decade from now, Amaya—a resort situated in a 25-acre private forest in the Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh—will likely be imperceptible from the sky, courtesy of its patinated copper roofing that will camouflage against the treetops. Centuries from now, if left unused, the resort may well disappear into the earth. The self-sustaining property, designed by Indian architect Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai and Voon Wong of London-based Viewport Studio as an unobtrusive outgrowth of the surrounding pine forest, is a habitat of villas, farmlands, walking paths, and water-harvesting systems, spread across acres of pristine, reforested terraces.
The Local Project •

Mondrian Gold Coast by Fraser & Partners, Studio Carter and Alexander &CO

Beachside locales are often characterised by a free-spirited charm and laid-back energy, but Mondrian Gold Coast, Australia’s first luxury lifestyle property by Mondrian Hotels, elegantly breaks the mould with its elevated coastal flair. Situated at Burleigh Heads, Queensland, a seaside suburb known for its sparkling sand and surf, the 24-storey hotel comprises studios, suites, private beach and sky houses, a bio-wellness spa and event spaces, and two podium restaurants. The architecture and construction were respectively helmed by Melbourne-based Fraser & Partners and Brisbane-based The Barrett Group, while the interior design was divided between Sydney-based Alexander &CO. and Studio Carter, a California-headquartered practice previously enlisted to design Mondrian Singapore Duxton.
The Local Project •

120 Collins Street by Hassell

Some things get better with age—though, as Ingrid Bakker, Principal and Co-Leader of the Commercial and Workplace sector at Hassell, will attest, they sometimes need a little help along the way. Such was the case with 120 Collins Street, a landmark skyscraper on Melbourne’s Collins Street, originally completed by Hassell in association with architect Daryl Jackson in 1991, whose ground floor and entrance had gradually lost their lustre. To restore the 35-year-old spaces to their former glory, Hassell returned to lead the transformation, drawing on their deep connection to the building’s heritage to create a revitalised, future-facing experience that honours the original while meeting contemporary expectations.
The Local Project •

Michael Kirby Building by Hassell

A few years ago, Macquarie University’s Wallumattagal Campus, situated on Dharug Country in Sydney, Australia, looked a little different. Where now stands Michael Kirby Building was a tired circa-1985 structure that masqueraded as the administration centre. When Hassell ultimately took up the gauntlet of reimagining the space into a modern learning destination, the intent was never to undo the past, but to honour it in making room for the future. Inaugurated in March 2024, Michael Kirby Building—christened after the former Justice of the High Court of Australia and the university’s first Emeritus Chancellor—is an object lesson in adaptive reuse. The 8,500-square-metre upcycled building emerges from the shadows of its predecessor, serving as a modern home for Macquarie University Law School and the University’s Department of Philosophy. In remaining committed to its lifelong pursuit of educational excellence, the institution has also positioned the building as a support facility for the larger campus.
Architectural Digest •

This home in Bengaluru has a soul straight from Chikamagalur

All that effort wasn’t without reason—nor without a clear vision. From the outset, homeowners Rakhee and Ravindra Mysore knew not only how they wanted the house to look, but how they wanted it to feel: warm, grounded, and evocative of the landscape that shaped them. As a fifth-generation coffee planter who had spent as much time away from the Ghats as amidst them, Ravindra hoped for a home that could hold both worlds with grace. “They imagined something beautiful, but still deeply connected to n...
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Architectural Digest •

Inside a coastal Karnataka bungalow inspired by childhood memory

As sometimes happens when inspiration strikes, Salian found himself guided by flashes of memory, or as he puts it, “a faint, sensorial fragment from childhood. I remember stepping into a Mangalore tile factory, now long vanished, and being enveloped by its vastness. A double-height roof stretched overhead, its terracotta tiles resting on an exposed lattice of wooden trusses. The air was thick with the scent of sun-baked clay and ash. Light filtered in from high openings, casting long shadows acr...
Architectural Digest •

AD Visits: Diipa Büller-Khosla's canal house in Amsterdam is a postcard from 1614

Even from 6,000 kilometres away, Diipa Büller-Khosla’s energy is palpable through the screen. It’s morning where she is, and she and her husband and business partner, Dutch former diplomat, Oleg Büller-Khosla (the couple legally adopted each other's last names when they married in 2018) are perched in the kitchen of their Amsterdam home, in the company of their pet pooches, Kubii and Bimbo.

By their own admission, it’s a scene that just a few years ago, was a figment of their imagination. “We'd
Architectural Digest •

AD Visits: Ishaan Khatter’s Mumbai apartment is a sunset sanctuary

When he isn't busy filming or promoting or air-dashing off to exotic locales, Ishaan Khatter likes to appreciate the little things in life. “On Sunday mornings, when time permits, I slip off for a bike ride. In the evenings, I like to watch the sunset with some music and coffee,” says the actor, who was last seen in supernatural comedy Phone Bhoot, alongside Katrina Kaif and Siddhant Chaturvedi. So when he moved in a three-bedroom apartment along the Bandra sea face, naturally, his first priorit
Architectural Digest •

AD Visits: Actor Aahana Kumra’s Mumbai apartment is a pretty-in-pink princess pad

In a building full of identical brown doors, Aahana Kumra's entrance is the only non-brown curiosity. "I absolutely love pink. It's my all-time favourite colour—that's why it's right at the front," she laughs, holding open the candyfloss-coloured opuscule as she ushers me inside. For Kumra, the home is a manifestation twenty years in the making, and one that nods equally to her Lucknowi roots and her life in Mumbai. "There are whiffs of Kashmir, London and Delhi too. It's a collection of all my
Architectural Digest •

AD Visits: Actor Aparshakti Khurana’s Mumbai home displays drama in the details

Even before they had finalised their house, or decided who would design it, actor Aparshakti Khurana and his wife, events entrepreneur Aakriti Ahuja, had a chandelier picked out and stowed away in storage. "I had spotted it some years ago in Delhi and just knew I had to buy it," laughs Aakriti, and Aparshakti chimes in, "We had no idea what our future house would look like. Nothing was set in stone, except this big, blue bhaisahab." The bhaisahab in question now occupies a corner of their living
Architectural Digest •

AD Visits: Singer Armaan Malik’s Mumbai home is halfway between London and Los Angeles

At 10 AM on a Sunday, the last thing you'd expect is for Armaan Malik to be crisping the edges of a frittata. And yet, that's exactly the sight that greets me as I step into his kitchen, a California-cool bolthole with a London-esque edge. "I love making breakfast and treating myself to a good spread," he says, drizzling butter on bruschettas. Dressed in a casual button-up and chinos, he looks like a laid-back version of his on-screen alter ego, who, as fans of The Voice (on which Armaan appears
Architectural Digest •

AD Visits: Actors Aditya Seal and Anushka Ranjan’s newlywed nest is a storybook come to life

At the door of actors (and newlyweds) Aditya Seal and Anushka Ranjan Seal's new Mumbai duplex, the nameplate is conspicuous by its absence. What is not is the cheery (LED) baby seal that takes its place, animating the wall and nodding to its namesake owners. “It's fun to watch people guess," says Anushka. "Those who get it, get it. And it makes for a great conversation-starter." But the unlikely sea creature isn’t the only thing setting the entryway apart—because if the peach-toned front door (a