DONNA DELI; THE STORYBOARD AND DÉCOR

By Tejal Mathur

A quaint spot with promise of greening the outdoors in a home garden sort of way was my  first instinct as it was swathed in the perfect shaded cool quality of sunlight run by the folks  behind BLAH who planted a charming day florist by Bloom Barn and added attention to  detail right down to charming crockery and glassware.

Once we got a clear direction of the vibe and food from Ayush Kapur and Aditya Wanwari,  the brains behind the concept, we got down to building a storyboard around their brief of  whitening the space to make it feel plush in the day.The first step was to begin with the  direction of a European styled white vintage space with enough greens to the outdoors. The  entire storyboard was drawn up through a series of conversations between us and their  clarity on wanting it be a pleasing daytime spot as well magically lit with antiqued glass  lanterns and soft chandeliers by night to give that mystical evening glow.

DONNA, as the name suggests to me conjures a story of a woman with a past who  vicariously lives her desires through being surrounded by quirks that pour out of her  imagination. A White Goth daydream, pretty as a rose yet lined with the rebellion of black  chipped black nails and deep kohl eyes. An artist, a storyteller or a whimsical creature.To  bring alive that narrative,we created a scape of soft whites all over with a hint of shaky black  pinstripe lines as a subtle hint of her dark side. Aditya hinted at a soft glow of chandeliers  and china mosaic while Ayush was on board with our edgier choice of monochrome fabrics  from Nomad to sharpen the décor. The bar gives the feeling of a drawing room styled area  in the inner sanctum for privacy and is replete with a mantle and lush antiqued mirrors for  that decaying French opulence. 

A white vintage outdoors with lush greens in classic European patio urns and white metal  planters give a sense of an overgrown conservatory with a charming addition of a day florist  to ply you with bunched up fresh flowers . Adding subtle touches to the walls with antiqued  engraved mirrors, a faux mantle with books lit subtly with distressed chandeliers and cloth  shaded wall sconces add to the dreamy charm of a romantic spot, feminine in parts yet  sharp with pinstriped walls in shaky black lines. An edgy portrait of zebras take center stage over the mantle which is lined with hardbound classics . The showstopper….literally…..is a  dress form that the team intends have quirky designers put forth their creativity with a  freehand to bring into context the dialogue between a contemporary thought with a  hangover of black n white movies or a white wedding that never took place.