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Architects: Chromed Design Studio
- Area: 5000 ft²
- Year: 2016
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Photographs:Suryan // Dang
Text description provided by the architects. True to its design philosophy of minimal intervention and maximum up-cycling, the anti-design theme runs right through the new Cyber Hub Social’s decor. With an area of 5000 square feet, it makes an unexcelled impact, adapting a low cost housing model in a fun urban café.
Conceptually, this new Social uses the mindset of a localite with behavioural references from chawls of Mumbai, creating and producing an everyday comforting and interactive space. Chawls were first created to house as many mill workers in one building – a space that was efficient and functional. In the same way, Social has evolved into a space that symbolises community living – a place that stands for unity, togetherness, security, camaraderie, cultural essence and ethos – minus all of the pretences of modern day life.
Seceding from the rigid design theory in metropolitans, it creates spaces with varying scales ranging from a 2 tier local train seating to a courtyard setting and private chawl rooms with beds. It is a celebration of the unity and togetherness of people in a settlement, making nonpareil use of space in a home bound milieu.
The bunting design overhead created with elaborate decorations, enhances the festivity full flegedly.
The space unveils through a revealing narrow gali flanked by rooms on both sides, leading to a large central courtyard housing the bar and the dance floor. The experience is complete when one turns the corner to get to this area. The courtyard has seating with carom board table tops for a casual chawl evening. Immense detail is given to user experience and surprise, as all the rooms reveal distinct characters flowing to the bar and dance floor. Taking the essence of urban settlements, the outdoor furniture is also formatted inside concrete hume-pipes, which are artistically vandalised with graffiti inside. Ar. Abhigyan Neogi and his team incorporated colour, theme and majestic emulative forms of Mumbai chawls, making it very close to actuality, while still ticking all the boxes of creativity, minutely detailing each piece of furniture and design.
The rustic open balconies, alfresco tables, the clothes hanging outside and the very grungy pan shop at the entrance gives one the very feel of a realistic environment. There are corrugated sheets chajjas on the exterior and interiors, wooden railings on the sides, black and white photographs giving a 60s effect on the wall, chairs in the shade of orange-black in tune with Social’s logo, vitrified tiles on the bar counter enhance the ruggedness of a low cost housing model. Lighting pattern is innovative with the use of lit planters, bulbs topped with mini table clothes, antique lamps and even bare distressed bulbs. Flooring pattern varies from pandamo and terrazzo in corridors and pattern tiles in chawls and kotastone in the lobby. The walls are adorned with painted exposed brick and wallpapers or kept bare minimal white. The meeting room serves as a co-working space with cladded wooden panels on the walls and a false ceiling shouting ‘play & work’.
Cyber Hub Social also brings alive a realistic Bollywood set, set in Mumbai’s tone; right in front of one’s eyes. It is a space that fosters creativity, culture and change.
