Print exclusive: Objects of obsession

Behold Art collector Jaiveer Johal’s Chennai apartment brought to life by Samir Wadekar

01 Jul 2025

When he isn’t busy styling or decorating spaces, Samir Wadekar likes to disappear into antiques stores — on the lookout for curious objects, not conversation. “I go for the things, not the people,” he jokes. But once every six years, fate throws in a bonus. “We first met by chance at an antiques store in Mumbai nearly six years ago, and instantly bonded over our mutual love for the past,” says Samir of his encounter with the Chennai-based entrepreneur and art collector Jaiveer Johal. As it turned out, the pair had a lot in common, sharing a penchant for vintage, Wedgwood, Indian art, and the 1979 British series Antiques Roadshow, preferably on repeat. That first meeting led to a close friendship and later, a creative partnership. “Over the years, I had the joy of helping Jaiveer curate and decorate his apartments,” says Samir.

So when it came time to redesign this one, a spare three-bedroom apartment in the same building as Jaiveer’s primary residence, he jumped at the chance. “The process was fluid, full of spontaneous shifts and sparks of inspiration,” he says. With no fixed brief or deadline, creativity had room to breathe, and so did the home, which was thoughtfully reimagined into a mignon one-bedroom jewel box with a home gym, reading room, two bathrooms and a powder room, tailored for evening soirées and intimate weekend brunches.

“Each piece catches the natural sunlight differently — some glinting softly, others absorbing the light” — Samir Wadekar

Smoky burgundy walls envelop the living room with a bench and sofa from Phantom Hands. An untitled oil on canvas by Laxman Shreshtha hangs over the sofa, while a Wood’n Design table takes centre stage; Photography by Talib Chitalwala

If there is such a thing as rules for decorating, Samir put them away. “I’ve often derided the idea that modern spaces must mean white walls, bouclé furniture, and a fear of colour,” says the self-described eclectic. Here, he embraced chromatic drama with signature abandon, painting the living room a smoky burgundy, swathing the bedroom in deep blue, and darkening the doors to a near-black. Wide wooden planks were trucked in to lend a warm, earthy foundation, grounding the saturated palette and moody furnishings. The apartment’s contents form a pastiche of cultures and eras, gathered from flea markets, antiques stores, auctions, and travels. Nothing is showroom-perfect — and that’s exactly the point. “Some combinations felt instinctive, with a touch of epiphany,” Samir reflects. “Like a blank canvas scattered with puzzle pieces.”

Among them: colonial-era campaign furniture, an aged window seat from Goa, original Chandigarh chairs by Pierre Jeanneret from Jaiveer’s collection, and a pair of colonial chairs Samir found at Mumbai’s Chor Bazaar — intended for himself, until he decided they belonged here instead. “This way, I can still visit them often,” he quips.

A handpainted mural by a local artist is punctuated by lightbox artworks by Manisha Gera Baswani. The seating area comprises a table from House of Yali and inherited Jeanneret Chandigarh chairs; Photography by Talib Chitalwala

In the corridor is a bronze sculpture by Himmat Shah, a goddess statuette and an ink on cotton paper artwork by Karan Shrestha on the wall. The bench is from Saudades, Goa; Photography by Talib Chitalwala

Every room, he adds, has its own crown jewel, from the scarlet hand-painted mural in the dining room to the resplendent Raas Lila pichwai above the bed. Because they weren’t bound by timelines, the duo curated the space in phases. “It became a journey of discoveries,” Samir says, “with each object finding its place when the moment felt right.”

Anyone who knows Jaiveer knows he has an eye for the unusual — both in sourcing art and in displaying it. “Some of the art was brought out of storage and hung up for the very first time,” says Samir, who played with scale and placement to give the pieces new life. A Qissah-e-Panj Dar aur Abr artwork by Arshi Irshad Ahmadzai was laid flat against a wall; a vintage table became a stage for an early 20th-century peacock-patterned phulkari and a trio of 18th-century Shiite alams (metal finials) from Bengal.

An Art Deco chandelier from Hatim Taherally’s crowns the foyer with a portrait of Guru Nanak by Arpana Caur, underpinned by a colonial-era campaign chest bearing 18th-century dvarapalakas (traditional door guardians); Photography by Talib Chitalwala

A contemporary mustard triptych by Lakshmi Madhavan was paired with vintage mukhalingams (lingams with a face) in silver and bronze, placed directly beneath it “in a grounding gesture of reverence,” as they might have been in a temple 200 years ago. “Each piece catches the natural sunlight differently — some glinting softly, others absorbing the light,” says Samir.

In line with Jaiveer’s vision, textiles became the thread tying the redesign together. Old bags were repurposed into cushions, while contemporary artworks and vintage rugs brought in layered warmth. Where there was no view to frame, the pair created their own. “Jaiveer came up with that ingenious idea,” Samir says of the sheer living room curtains, emblazoned with vintage textiles to obscure a dull view. “I love that I was present when some of these pieces were acquired, even before this apartment was dreamed up,” he adds. From his base in Mumbai, much of the planning unfolded through quick site visits and blurry video calls.

The central artwork is a rare 18th-century Kalamkari piece that Jaiveer believes was once part of an umbrella; Photography by Talib Chitalwala

Jaiveer puts it more playfully: “After years of Samir wrongly accusing me of being a hoarder, he enjoyed sifting through all the pieces. Like true crotchety oldies, our setup days included mid-day gin and tonic breaks which made the entire editing process even more streamlined.” All’s well that ends with moonshine.

Sourcing list
Furniture: Phantom Hands, Wood’n
Design, House of Yali, Pierre Jeanneret, Saffronart, Souk
Art & decor: Laxman Shreshtha, Lakshmi
Madhavan, Himmat Shah, Karan Shrestha, Arpana Caur, Manisha Gera Baswani, Rathin Barman, Bhupen Khakhar, Jithinlal N R, Jogen Chowdhury,
Lighting: Hatim Taherally