The Making of Villa Vani
Mysore has extraordinary architectural heritage, but few places to stay that bring together the city's old homes with a more contemporary, design-led sensibility.
We found a neglected 1970s house tucked away in the back streets of Mysore and decided to test an idea: could we preserve the character of one of these homes, reimagine it for today, and create the kind of small, design-led hotel we felt the city was missing?
Villa Vani was our first experiment and our proof of concept.
As Featured in AD India
In August 2026, Architectural Digest India told the story of Villa Vani's transformation, from its original 1970s architecture to the colours, craftsmanship and collected pieces that shape the house. We couldn't have imagined a more thoughtful telling of the Villa Vani story.
From Villa Vani to Vanivilasa Studio
As Villa Vani took shape, other people began to notice what we were doing and to see the potential in applying the same thinking to other spaces.
That led to Jeeva Nilaya, a second Mysore property where we transformed an existing home into a collection of design-led residential suites. And from there, Vanivilasa Studio evolved into a fully fledged interior design and build practice.
Today, we work on a small number of residential and boutique hospitality projects across India, creating spaces that feel rooted in place and time.