Garuda's Abode

Homing In with
                             ________________ NEELAM RAAJ

A thing of beauty is a joy forever, wrote Keats. And a visit to artist Amit Ambalal and his wife Raksha’s residence in Ahmedabad only reinforces this point. As majestic as the mountain whose shape it resembles (two wings rise from the ground and meet at a central point), yet as warm as the couple who inhabit it, the Ambalal home invites you to slow down and enjoy the call of the koel that greets you at the door and the beauty inside.

The house, designed by architect Bernard Cohen from Paris, has as many objets ’d art as a museum but it is no sterile place where artefacts are shut in glass cases and left to be admired from afar. From the imposing Garuda that occupies pride of place near the door (in fact, their home takes its name from the Garuda since ‘Sumeru’ means the abode of Garuda), the huge Mughal chest in the drawing room to the Gupta period sculptures that dot the house, every piece has been carefully chosen to ‘‘suit the Ambalal temperament’’. The antiques were collected by Amit from junk shops over the years and the only designer touch is a few chairs in the sitting room that are the handiwork of an American designer.

It’s an eclectic collection and no one period or theme is showcased in the house; rather, the emphasis is on comfort and good taste. The natural light that makes its way into the drawing and dining rooms only adds to the impression of warmth, as do the fresh flowers placed in every nook and cranny.

If there’s one thread that binds the decor together, it is the images of Shrinathji — the artist is fascinated with this form of Krishna — interspersed throughout the house.

Another peculiar characteristic of the house is that it keeps ‘‘growing and changing’’. Says Amit, ‘‘Whenever people come to the house after a gap of some time, they find that things have been moved or something new has been added. Once, when someone commented on the Garuda’s change of seat, I said he’d just flown around a bit. I like moving things around till they find the corner that’s just right for them.’’

Interestingly, not a single Amit Ambalal painting is displayed in the house, though every other contemporary Indian painter (‘‘all gifts from friends’’) finds a place in his ‘‘gallery’’ (a wall that adjoins the stairs leading up to the first floor).

Though the house is very special, the piece de resistance is Amit’s studio where he spends most of his mornings. The structure is built from an old house in the pol (settlements in the walled city which have a distinctive style of architecture), modified and modernised with unique additions like a wooden jali from a mosque and Shekhawati doors and windows. Built around a central portico where peacocks and monkeys are regular visitors, the studio is equipped with its own kitchen and bedroom so that artists who come from abroad can stay there.

Though the Ambalals travel quite a bit, Amit says he’s never thought of moving out of Ahmedabad. After all, home is where the heart and art is.

Next - Nature Calls