When MARIE-ANNE OUDEJANS and MARIE-HÉLÈNE DE TAILLAC reconnect after many years in India, they not only reignite a life-long friendship, they also unearth a shared love for a country that throws thrilling adventures at their feet.
They are enlightened travellers, having traversed the world in pursuit of passions off the beaten track. Both fell in love with a city famous for its pink latticed windows, where everyday sunsets bestow upon the landscape the rosy glow of a blushing bride. The palace city of Jaipur has become home to Marie-Anne Oudejans and Marie-Hélène de Taillac respectively; enchanted by the artisanal culture of Rajasthan, both decided to change direction in their European careers. In Jaipur they found a worthy muse, and their now-signature aesthetic was born, steeped in the romantic marriage of Indian craftsmanship and their inimitable European savoir-faire.
Today, Marie-Anne Oudejans, the Dutch virtuoso behind the award-winning mid-’90s fashion line Tocca, is a prolific interior designer who designed her one-bedroom flat in the dreamy Hotel Narain Niwas Palace (built in 1928), the hotel’s quirky (and incredibly Insta-friendly) Bar Palladio Jaipur, and the Gem Palace store in Mumbai. Her indelible style—marzipan colours, shimmering mirrored salons with exotic decorations of flora, fauna and fowl from the Indian countryside, with her signature tented ceilings—spells magic.
On the allure of Jaipur
“It is the wonderful challenges Jaipur offers. Also, I love the place where I live—Narain Niwas Palace built by the Thakur of Kanota, a local nobleman. The garden is enchanting. When I go swimming, the birds and peacocks around me create magic. I also love the pink walls of the city.”
On her design DNA
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