The minimally furnished living room allows for a rich play of sunlight

Sunlight and wide, airy spaces greet you as you step into architect Nitin Killawala’s home. The architect’s duplex apartment within the Killawala family bungalow in upscale Juhu, Mumbai, is a study in contemporary design with its open spaces and plenty of natural light streaming in.

The Killawalas have been living in this house, which was originally a two-storeyed property, since 1962. But as the family expanded, so did the house which was restructured in 2005. While Nitin’s elder brother Deepak and his family settled into the ground and first floors, Nitin added his duplex on the 1,500-sqft terrace. Nitin stays here with his wife, Nita, while his daughter, Reshma, recently got married.

The living room opens onto a hanging balcony which is the family’s favourite chill-out zone

The bungalow, which sits on a 3,000-sqft area, opens onto a small garden in the front. A separate entrance on the ground floor leads to the two-bedroom duplex upstairs. The first thing that strikes you about Nitin’s section of the house is that it’s clutter-free and comfortable. The interiors are done in teak, glass and industrial MS (mild-steel) rods.

Nitin has kept the style minimalist because he loves open-plan designs. But he’s retained a touch of the traditional with the help of knick-knacks. “I avoid fancy and elaborate detailing. My house is very functional,” says Nitin, who recently designed financial expert Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s weekend home in Lonavala near Mumbai. The property has been documented in the recently launched coffee-table book 50 Beautiful Houses in India (White Flag Media).

Nitin Killawala’s duplex apartment is a study in contemporary design

Nitin chose an all-white colour scheme for most of the rooms. “White gives an illusion of added space and makes the interiors bright,’’ he says. He designed a vaulted (or slightly-curved) ceiling to make way for more natural light and to give the space extra height. “Ours is an old building, so I went with reinforced concrete cement slabs for the ceiling because it’s lightweight and doesn’t put excess load on the structure,” says the architect who’s earned awards for excellence like the Indian Institute of Architects award in 1989 for the TVS Berg Factory at Madurai.

Nitin’s company, Group Seven Architects & Planners, is involved in designing residences, research centres and corporate offices. Recently, he also designed the auditorium space for Infosys in Mysore.

The spacious living room is tastefully done and flooded with sunlight. The teak sofas are teamed with a low coffee table, which Nitin designed out of MS pipes and glass. Next to the huge, floor-to-ceiling windows is a low divan which has blue and green cushions strewn over it. “Instead of just placing a low divan on the ground I have got it to somewhat hang by placing it on the structural channels behind it,” he says.

A beaten copper clad wall is a conversation piece in the dining area; (top) a brightly upholstered mattress that serves as a day bed livens up the upper-level lounge area; (above) an old timepiece is one of Nitin’s treasured antiques

Nitin’s love for art is evident in this room from the large M.F. Husain canvas that adorns one of the walls and the sculptures of Karl Antao and Ankit Patel. The room opens into an open balcony that is Nitin’s favourite space in the house. The hanging balcony has teak flooring and offers soothing green views of the locality and the landscaped garden below. The deck is made comfortable with low wrought iron chairs while candles and diyas add to the ambience by night.

Doing away with compartmentalised spaces, the living and dining areas have been designed as a single unit. The dining space has a low, glass-top dining table and six jute-back chairs. “When we entertain, we usually serve a buffet. So during parties we place the coffee table on top of the dining table and the buffet spread is laid on it,” he adds. The dining table is placed against one side of the kitchen wall which has been creatively clad with a beaten-copper sheet.

Also on this level is the master bedroom — a rhapsody in white, and brightly lit by French windows. It has an interesting en suite bathroom. Sandwiched between a full-length mirror and a wooden wardrobe, with a teak and frosted glass door, it looks like just another cupboard.

Another unusual aspect of the house are the skylights in the living room and the master bedroom which accentuate the harmony between the exteriors and the interiors. Moreover, the windows in the living room also create a fascinating play of sunshine on the polished mosaic floor. Nitin picked up white mosaic floor tiles from Ahmedabad where they are used in traditional old-style homes.

The flight of stairs from the ground floor continues to the upper level of the duplex. This level has Reshma’s bedroom that opens into a small lounge. This is complete with glass bookshelves, a television and a brightly upholstered mattress on the floor which serves as a day bed.

Largely uncluttered, there are just a few knick-knacks strewn about the house. At the entrance is a copper thali filled with water with floating flowers and diyas. Apart from that, Nitin treasures an antique clock and a telescope that are kept in the lounge area of his daughter’s room. He says, “I don’t want my house to be a showpiece. I want it to be a peaceful open place where you can come back and unwind after a hard day’s work.”