Grand’s New Address
PRIYANKA KHOSLA
It is impossible not to stop and stare at every corner of this mansion. Boasting of a glass front sans grills, Priyanka Khosla’s house in Sector 6, Panchkula, is all about reinterpret- ing the word ‘grand’ in all its manifestations. Boasting of an indoor swimming pool, a pool table and a personal gym, Khosla, the Director of International Institute of Fashion Design (INIFD) and a fashion designer, has done up the place herself. “You must have realised that I am fascinated by the colour red. Invariably, it seeps into every corner, ” she says. Khosla insists that she wanted to do up the place more like a top hotel. “For my husband and me, luxurious is the way of life. We wanted the house to give us all the comforts that a top hotel promises. In fact, this house has become a landmark of sorts in this area,” says Khosla, who along with her husband Anil Khosla built the house in 2005 and renovated it in 2011. Pointing at the huge sofas in the drawing room, she insists, “I can’t help but doing things in a grand manner!” Her two 2000 sq ft of landscaped lawn has won several awards in the ‘Best Lawn’ category. She says, “Most people in Chandigarh prefer to have a big lawn at the back. But I did the opposite. A huge lawn in the front gives the house a massive presence.”
STRIKING FEATURES ❍ Indoor swimming pool with built-in jacuzzi ❍ Sitting area on the mezzanine ❍ Elaborate use of toughened glass ❍ Massive crystal chandelier from Belgium
where I eat. And come back to,” he says. Ask Manna if the place is an absolute extension of him, and there is a pause. “Honestly, no. It is just a part of that extension. I would have loved to do it in a better way. Maybe different colours for curtains, seating arrangement etc. The study table is always chaotic, which is something I hate. I would also want much more space to store my art,” he complains.
But it is important to ‘come back’ here, right? “Yes, very. I am me here. This is the space that has everything that belongs to me. Everything that matters to me,” he says. Talk about the interiors, and Manna makes it clear on the onset, “I don’t follow any particular school of art. I haven’t hired any interior decorator. When you do that, the place looks so overdone. Moreover, that person brings in his/her own sensibilities and not that of the person who is supposed to be living there. And sometimes they just get influenced by somewhere and bring to the house the essence which can be very alien,” he clarifies. Notice the enticing colours of the upholstery and curtains, and Manna asserts, “I don’t believe in what is supposed to be in vogue. For me, the colours and textures like ocean blues and yellows work best. Look around, you’ll notice them everywhere.”
Manna maybe a private person who operates in a small group, but he ensures that house looks all inviting. “We ornament the house with superior aesthetics for our own sensibilities, right?” he asks.
STRIKING FEATURES ❍ Art on every wall ❍ Backlit bookracks ❍ Intelligent use of compact space ❍ Warm colours