Creative Collaboration

Both connoisseurs, and creators — one of artful spaces and the other of food. When Ashiesh Shah and Hemant Oberoi got together to start work on the latter’s eponymous restaurant, we knew we’d get to learn a thing or two

- Tina Thakrar

 If you have a fondness for fine dining, Hemant Oberoi’s eponymous restaurant in Mumbai will be unlike anything you have ever experienced. We say this, not because the scrumptious food has all the flavours of Oberoi’s 40-year experience in the culinary industry, but because the unparalleled ambience brings with it a multitude of global influences. It’s what Oberoi refers to as ‘refined dining’.

The restaurant is the veteran chef’s first independent dining venture, bringing with it its own set of challenges and opportunities. To capture and capitalise on these, architect and art connoisseur Ashiesh Shah stepped in, primed with his knack for creating dramatic, contemporary, one-of-a-kind spaces. In most cases, only his concepts have been enough to make a lasting impact.

Oberoi and Shah are both artists in their own space. They understand what luxury truly stands for, in their respective fields, and are almost always on-the-go with ideas. When Oberoi expressed his desire to have Shah design his passion project, the two met, discussed their viewpoints and settled on a design that is formal, elegant and modern, with an old-world charm.