Slow glamour in Dubai with Masoom Minawala

Between textures, grounded colours and Dubai's skyline, Aashni Kumar designs a soulful home

27 Mar 2025

In a country often known for its superlative demeanour, to find a home that chooses to settle in quietude, away from the excess and frills is a rare discovery. Pieced together as a puzzle of modern-Scandinavian influences, entrepreneur and creator Masoom Minawala’s idyllic home in Dubai is truly a tactile cornucopia of textures and materials that gently rise to attention. This is a home located in Jumeirah Lake Towers, one of the sought-after real estate vicinities in the city. A warm, unruffled retreat, it is designed by India-based Aashni Kumar of her eponymous design firm, who also crafted Masoom’s Mumbai residence in the past.

As insinuous shapes of furniture and dainty decor accessories cast imprints against an all-white backdrop, the daylight-laden frame of Dubai’s towers and skyline declares its permanent presence, gradually saturating into the sparkling night scape. Though not currently dwelled by Masoom and her family, the 1,500 sq ft home in Dubai was created to reflect that less is more. “The aim was to build a home that is timeless and completely devoid of trends, and serves as an authentic expression of the entrepreneur’s inherent style,” declares Aashni.

“How can one encapsulate the ever-evolving, pulsating energy that this city enjoys, and bring it into a home? The answer was to create a home that lent a background to the cityscape and allowed the outside to come inside." — Aashni Kumar

Details created to last, Aashni borrowed influences from the city itself, laying out a restful canvas of visual paraphernalia that invites you to slow down. “How can one encapsulate the ever-evolving, pulsating energy that this city enjoys, and bring it into a home? The answer was to create a home that lent a background to the cityscape and allowed the outside to come inside,” explains Aashni.

Textured artworks stamped on the walls and a sleek metal and fluted glass cabinet invites one into the entrance foyer. On the right, the passage navigates to the living and dining areas with an attached balcony, stretching further into a connected kitchen and a marble-clad powder room. Away from the communal corners, private corridors dressed with an arch mirror lead to the master suite that opens up to a bedroom, a walk-in wardrobe and a bathroom.

Conjuring a sense of open-ended curiosity and repose, the space is bundled up in strokes of soft greige, beige, eggshell and stark whites, dull creams, earthy browns, silver grey and black. A play of linen, velvet, cotton, silk and leather collides with ground stone floor, warm cork, open grain wood, polished cane, marble and metal finishes, to establish a grounded, tactile experience.

“As a designer, working in a new city is deeply inspiring. I end up borrowing ideas from its people, energy and culture. Dubai has a dynamic energy, and it was immensely exciting to weave that spirit into this project. Each element was thoughtfully handpicked, curating a collection of items that was eclectic, high-quality and well finished,” observes Aashni.