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<h5-red>CLIENT<h5-red> SUNITA SHEKHAWAT I <h5-red>AREA<h5-red> 20,400 SQ FT I <h5-red>STATUS<h5-red> COMPLETED IN 2024 I <h5-red>TEAM<h5-red> AMBRISH ARORA, PANKURI GOEL, SHOAIB KAMILI, MUBASHIR MERAJ I <h5-red>PHOTOGRAPHER<h5-red> ISHITA SITWALA
The traditional art of Meenakari, or enamelling, is the foundation for the work of well-known Indian jewellery designer Sunita Shekhawat. Her brand lends a fresh spin to the age-old tradition, with timeless yet contemporary jewellery. The studio’s design for the flagship store and museum-gallery in Jaipur pays homage to this approach.
Despite being given carte blanche to pull down the recently cast existing structure, the studio <rt-red>in line with its design philosophy of minimizing the embodied carbon footprint, decided to work with it, thereby avoiding emissions equivalent to 0.58 million kg of CO2.<rt-red>
Jaipur’s architecture reflects a blend of diverse historical styles—Rajputana, Mughal, Victorian, and Art Deco—and <rt-red>the building harmoniously echoes that eclecticism in a contemporary idiom; the intricately layered patterns and details from these periods are woven together into one cohesive image.<rt-red> Clad in Jodhpur red sandstone hand-carved on site, the facade harks to Sunita Shekhawat’s roots in Jodhpur yet fits seamlessly into the pink palette synonymous with Jaipur’s urban fabric.
The studio proposed the introduction of a museum-gallery at the ground level as a storytelling space on the art of enamelling—a fitting way of giving back to the cultural heritage of Jaipur. <rt-red>This addition not only serves as the fulcrum of the experience but also elevates the brand from being a jewellery label to that of a custodian of the craft.<rt-red>
Programmatically, in addition to the ground floor museum-gallery, the retail store is located one floor below and the offices a floor above it. Th client’s three floors are unified on the inside through a striking sculptural staircase that winds through the centre of the space. The top floor, with its panoramic views of the nearby Rajmahal Palace, is designed for use as a restaurant.
The building's softened, filleted edges are continued into the restrained and minimal interior vocabulary, to serve as a canvas for the opulent narratives contained within. On the lower ground floor—the retail space—a library-cum-lounge space leads guests into one of four private pods, designed for one-on-one client interactions. Encircled by a circulation spine through which staff and jewellery movement takes place, it enables a private, discreet experience, with a sense of mystery to it.
Clad in an off-white ‘araish’ lime stucco, their semi-vaulted ceilings are embellished with frescoes by artists specialising in miniature painting. Developed over several months, in-situ, they depict vignettes of the region’s architecture and flora and fauna. The outcome — <rt-red>a jewel-like expression of hand-crafted luxury that celebrates the brand’s ethos — is a testament to the skills of the artisans<rt-red>, who have interpreted them on an unfamiliar scale and medium; a synergistic collaboration between the studio, the client, and Nisha Vikram of CraftCanvas.
The Sunita Shekhawat Museum-Gallery and Flagship Store is designed to foster an environment where purchasing jewellery is not the primary goal; instead, it becomes the natural conclusion of a transformative experience. The underlying emotion behind the museum—the first of its kind—becomes the client’s way of paying homage to the city that has given her so much while also establishing a novel paradigm in luxury retail design.
<rt-red>Supreme Award Winner 2025<rt-red>
<rt-red>Exterior Winner 2025<rt-red>
Commerical Building
<rt-red>Silver Winner 2024<rt-red>
Spatial Design - Commercial & Showroom Space
<rt-red>Winner 2024<rt-red>
Retail Category
