For friends, films and fun
Sumon Reddy’s house in Jubilee Hills clearly reflects his love for nature, Ganesha, antiques, friends, films and more.
Plot No. 159 in Jubilee Hills reflects advocate Sumon Reddy’s love for nature. The house is flanked by a beautiful garden.
Sumon Reddy, who owns this three-storey house along with his parents, shifted here in 1997. Sumon’s mother and her friend Satya designed the house. The front porch has a swing from Sumon’s mother’s native West Godavari district. Even the wooden pillars on either side of the the swing have been sourced from a dilapidated house there. The iron pot in the garden is 70 years old, as is the Tanjore painting which adorns the wall above the winding marble staircase and a bed.
The living room has plush black sofas, a massage chair and a wide collection of Ganesha idols. Sumon says, “My father loves collecting Ganesh statues. Each piece of art in our house is a prized possession.”
A huge Swarovski chandelier hangs in the living room.
A black spiral stair- case winds down to the ground floor office, full of law books arranged neatly on shelves. Yes, the entire family loves to read. It is adorned with two sand paintings — one, of a horse and the other, of Ganesha — made by Sumon’s mom.
The upper floor has two rooms that belong to Sumon and his sister. Both rooms are done in white, which is the predominant colour-code in the house.
The verandah has a small lounge, where the family chills out over coffee in the evenings, especially during rains. Sumon says, “Earlier you had a view of the Golconda Fort from the verandah but now the view is obstructed by high-rise buildings.” The wooden stairs lead you to a terrace, which houses a spa-cum-massage room in one corner (Sumon’s idea!) along with a bar-counter for his official parties.
Adjacent to the terrace is a room designed by Sumon, now occupied by his parents. The wooden-floored room has artefacts from Indonesia and Africa, speaking about the welltravelled occupants.
Beside the parents’ bedroom is a home theatre. There is a prop from a film set and a photograph of Heath Ledger as the ‘ Joker’ from the superhero film Batman. Movie buff Sumon spends time here with his friends.
One truly remarkable aspect of this room is the single handprint on the wall made by his friend before leaving for the US; Sumon plans to get all his friends’ footprints and handprints on the wall.
After all, friends are life’s greatest gifts, aren’t they?