Homeowners Sapna and Bobby Mendiratta know what their future looks like. It is every day around the sun in a new country, experiencing everything that life has to offer. NRIs from New York, their retirement plan—amid constant globetrotting and wanderlust—involves buying a home in India, and Goa felt like home. They promptly approached designer Vibha Hooda (aka BegumPoivre) to give their 1,500-square-foot seaside apartment in Goa a facelift—one filled with collectibles, antiques, refurbished furniture, and salvaged treasures gathered over the years.
It isn't uncommon to base the entire interior theme of the house on personal belongings. Often aspirational and thoughtful, such homes are well-styled living biographies unto themselves. The couple's conversations with Vibha always started with where life has been and where it was taking them. “We discussed the concept together—light and airy interiors to complement seaside living. Sapna is passionate about art; she has collected unique works from around the world, and those had to be considered in the colour scheme and layout. She was particularly keen on cement tiles, and that turned out to be the biggest challenge for me,” says Vibha. Vibha's aversion to the ‘one-size-fits-all’ design philosophy is another quality that lends this apartment in Goa a flavour of its own. She adds, “I never think of a design style. I think of what the space is asking of me when I first see it. I get the answer in visuals of colours and shapes that will fit the space—its size, light, ceiling height, surroundings, and ventilation. I also take into consideration the climate and culture of the area.”
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Since Vibha's approach was bold and decisive, her initial notes came from everything that struck her at first sight: “light colours paired with the visual delight of reclaimed wood, solid brass, iron, pure fabrics, and wispy sheers. And a Portuguese connection, which in my mind was creamy walls, window dressing, and blue and white floors,” she summarises.
The apartment is compact, featuring three bedrooms and a joint living and dining area. The furniture was carefully sized to ensure an ideal spatial configuration. Vibha tells me this was another challenge: trying to find a balance in small spaces since every inch has to be planned for longevity. She shares, “In small apartments, particularly, one needs to find equilibrium between used and empty space. It’s a fine line between clutter and legroom. An area bereft of any art or furniture, if too large, draws attention to the small apartment size. It’s my interior layout psychology for small spaces—finding equilibrium so the mind feels at ease.”
Upon entrance, the first thing that catches your eye is the bespoke vintage flooring, which took six months to complete. Vibha calls it the soul of the home. “I was unable to find anyone in the county willing to fabricate the stencils of the design I wanted for a single apartment. I searched high and low until I chanced upon a Rajasthan-based company, Lioness Tile. I was absolutely staggered by the effort of the processes. The eight tile stencils took weeks to sculpt by hand in brass, following which the fabricators had to match the dull shades I wanted, which are not popular in India. The fact that colours had to be blended into cement and poured into sections as thin as 5 mm, knowing what they will look like post curing and polishing, is nothing short of magical. A true form of talent if you ask me,” narrates Vibha. This tale alone is a testament to the mastery of craftsmanship—something people often fail to notice in the larger scheme of things when building spaces.
The house is replete with detailed stories—a nod to Vibha’s sense of playfulness as well as her ingenuity with found materials. About 90% of the furniture is made from reclaimed teak wood. She used salvaged teak to create new doors and repurposed the apartment’s existing doors into the dining table. She also sourced a few pieces of reclaimed furniture in Mumbai and Gujarat and some new furniture fabricated in Delhi with elements of brass and iron, which are thoughtfully placed throughout the residence. Lighting is layered—fabricated wall lights from Jaipur, lamps from Beyond Designs and Hesperus, and a pair from Camelot Designs punctuate the rooms. It is tactile, inviting hands to touch and feel before making it your own. Vibha says, “I paired the old and salvaged with classic pieces—brass, a marble centre table, wood, and iron consoles, to name a few. It was my favourite thing to do.”
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Art feels serendipitous here. The couple, especially Sapna, began collecting art during their travels, valuing their time on the road as experiences rather than lacklustre wanderings. A piece titled “The Silver Years,” commissioned from artist Raine Roberts, serves as an ode to the 25 years they have spent in the US thus far. The mountains of Colorado—where Bobby first entered the United States—intersect with New York City buildings, which have been the Mendirattas’ home base for the last decade. Each artwork is a curation of memories: a Japanese tree painting on silk by Usha Hooda; a Pichwai by Maharani Emporium; 19th-century stone lithographs sourced by Ankush Sharma, a creative consultant based in the Netherlands; and a bar cabinet hand-painted in collaboration with Ankita Arya Designs.
For the Mendirattas, this apartment in Goa is designed to feel like a pause, not a halt. A place to decompress, wake up to the sound of beating waves, and soak in the languorous summer. What's not to like?
