Cultures and periods converge in this home to create an interesting collage of art. They all reflect the deep fascination of the home owner with art, especially traditional handmade art—Indian or Oriental. For Sandesh Kumar Reddy, chef de cuisine at a local fine-dining restaurant, and floral designer for a five-star hotel chain and for celebrity weddings too, art is also what his profession is all about. He has trained at the famed Blue Elephant school in Thailand which taught him a lot about artistic presentation of food besides cooking; and has recently enrolled for advanced training in floral design at the renowned Jane Packer Floral Design School in Tokyo.
He says he probably imbibed his love of art from his mother who had a keen aesthetic sense. His own collection was built over time and through his travels around the world as he believes in bringing back at least one souvenir from each trip. It all began with a few artefacts purchased on his first foreign trip and that was in 1989 to Japan. And he has been on a roll ever since, having travelled to 19 countries, clocking 60 trips to Japan alone.
His apartment can be described as a skillfully assembled collage of assorted objets d art from around the world. And all these objects are handmade—that is the operative word. Reddy believes firmly in patronising traditional crafts, of whichever region and hence every piece is one created lovingly by some artisan in some part of the world. Also, like most collectors of handmade crafts, he abhors the machine-made product finding it too impersonal. Moreover, assembly-line factory-made products don’t really make a home unique as you are quite likely to run into replicas or similar products at other houses too.
Modest beauty
The objets d art give character to the small space he calls home, a modest, two-bedroom duplex apartment in the heart of Bangalore. The drawing room into which the front door leads, has seating which takes us by surprise—large and ornate silver chairs and a big swing also in pure silver. Does he actually use them, we wonder. Reddy assures us he does, telling us that he believes that “Anything one purchases, however exquisite or rare, must also be used on an everyday or at least occasional basis. It should be as functional as decorative.” Vases, baskets, tabletop-accessories, silverware, paintings and a large screen—a plethora of objects from the Far East, fill the rest of the drawing-room space.
Outside, the main door is being replaced by an enormous and elaborately carved Burma teakwood one—an antique brought down from an old Chettinad home. Of course, like most old wooden pieces which undergo relocation, it is being cleaned and treated for durability. However, Reddy with his love for the old-world look has also had the paint removed so the natural grain of the wood shows through and then given it a clear polish.
On the dining table is spread out Benjorong tableware—exquisitely hand-painted porcelain—the work of a Thai artist who also paints tableware for the Thai royal family. The wall behind this table is overrun by copper vessels from Paris—a reflection of Reddy’s love for things associated with cookery. Two large rosewood cupboards, one here and the other beside the front door, hold a large collection of silverware and crystalware sourced from different parts of India and the world.
As with most duplex homes, the formal living spaces are accommodated on the ground floor while the upper level has the private quarters.
Along the staircase wall, a beautiful Tanjore painting in pure-gold leaf and semi-precious stones catches your attention. Especially because it is fitted with doors with richly painted motifs of traditional religious symbols on the inside and outside so the piece is eye-catcher whether kept open or in a closed-door state. There are more traditional paintings all over the home but these are Mysore paintings, and all custom-made.
Ascending the stairs, we look up to see clusters of large woven-cane baskets which, on closer look, are evidently very skillfully woven. Most visitors tend to think these are regular shopping baskets or gift-hamper kind of containers and only give them a cursory glance. Actually, these baskets are antiques dating from the Ayuthya era in Thailand’s history and moreover each piece has added value because there are only few such pieces surviving intact even in Thailand. “My domestic helpers used to think I was crazy to be so intent on preserving mere cane baskets. I had to tell them these pieces are nearly worth their weight in gold to make them understand my obsession with their careful maintenance,” says Reddy with a laugh.
Old is gold
In the first of the two upstairs bedrooms, an antique small four-poster bed is also accessorised with traditional paintings while a profusion of fine silver and crystal art dot the bedside table and walls around. The adjoining bedroom has a floor-level bed with throw cushions—the only casual-looking corner in the otherwise very formal-looking home. The bed also doubles up as a yoga-practice space. Elegant silverware in unusual designs is also found in this room.
The apartment is admittedly small and every possible nook and corner taken up by art objects. So, we are surprised to hear Reddy is still on a buying spree. Actually, he reveals, has already has a huge cache of décor items tucked away elsewhere — like antique Chettinad pillars with double-layered capitals and old-world-style furniture. There are more Mysore paintings being commissioned and plenty of rare crockery and designer artifacts waiting to be unveiled.
Reddy anticipates our question and says, “I am planning my dream house which will be large and hence accommodate these and future purchases too. Unlike most people who buy a house and then set about accessorising it, I am buying all the décor objects, antique furniture and fittings and will accordingly design my dream home around them.” Evidently, much like his art-collection, his approach to home-building is also quite unusual!
