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Rohina Anand Khira’s new home is a shift in her décor tastes

Interior Designs for Home

By Rachana Nakra

Mar 08, 2024

Illango painting – Beautiful Homes

The founder of AA Living recently moved into a new home in Mumbai which has a modern feel with a bohemian charm, and speaks to the evolution of her life, family and choices

With an over 650k following on Instagram and the luxurious AA Living furnishings brand to her name, Rohina Anand Khira is a popular face in home décor. Her followers love her home hacks as much as her haircare tips and she continues to keep her content relatable and useful to her ever-growing community. The last time we toured her home, it was the first space she had moved into with her husband. She was in love with white then, and created a space that was a serene oasis in the middle of Mumbai’s chaos.

Now she has moved into a new home, and it was interesting for us to see how her needs and tastes have evolved along with their growing family. Besides her gorgeous hair a lot remains the same as 2012 when we first met her, and a lot has changed. “We were looking for a bigger space and found this apartment surrounded by so many trees, birds and we get to see some magical sunsets,” says Rohina. A minimalist at heart, she has brought in a mid-century style this time. “We wanted to move away from the all-white country cottage look, we had had our fill of that. I still believe less is more but I have used a lot of wood this time because my husband loves it. It was a nice shift of style from our earlier home because we have also grown as people,” she adds.

We spoke to her about the process of decorating a home at a completely different phase of life, using old things and new, her love for art and plants, and much more. Edited excerpts from the interview:

The founder of AA Living, Rohina Anand Khira, talks about her new Mumbai home that has a mesmerising sea view and a cosy balcony.

Beautiful Homes: Tell us about your decision to move from your old home.

Rohina Anand Khira: We stayed in our last apartment in Mumbai for almost 11 years. It was our first home right after Deep and I got married, right by the ocean and just so beautiful. We had both our daughters there and experienced so many firsts that moving on was actually a very difficult emotional decision. I still miss that home somedays. But truth be told, we were bursting out of that space, two became four and that house just couldn’t grow with us anymore so we started our hunt for a new place

BH: Take us through the process of planning and decorating your new home. Are all the design and décor decisions just yours?

RAK: So, the home came with a bit of its own voice, it had these beautiful wooden windows in the living room telling me I needed to incorporate a little bit of a mid-century vibe. Also, a balcony full of heritage style tiles that I fell in love with as well. But aside from that it was quite a plain canvas that gave me the freedom to incorporate my personal style which is more modern with lots of clean lines. We also had so much art that we brought in from our old house, collected over the decades. I also own a home décor brand called AA Living, so I went all out with the soft furnishings.

Wooden window design – Beautiful Homes

Wooden windows render a mid-century vibe in the living room.

I feel like we spend so much time obsessing about the shell of our homes, but when it comes to the last stages of styling the space, everyone just races through it to get it over and done with. That’s the biggest mistake you can make, because the beauty is in the textiles and the details.

BH: How did you decide to move away from your prior all white décor?

RAK: We had this all-white country cottage décor for a long time in our previous home, which was actually really unique and almost peaceful, because it’s hard to get sick of living with white. But I think as we grew there came a point where our aesthetics also moved on. We wanted some more warmth in the space, which meant more wood. Not to say I don’t love white, I just expanded my décor wings a bit and I think I wanted the new space to grow with me so it reflects our family in 2024, instead of being stuck living with décor that spoke to us in 2012.

Bohemian design ideas – Beautiful Homes

Plants, sheer and eclectic elements bestow a bohemian charm.

BH: How would you describe the aesthetic of your new home?

RAK: It’s a home me and my family can grow with, space wise, functionality wise and it just feels grounded, earthy and homely. Overall, it has this very modern feel, but then you have a little bit of everything—that easy breezy bohemian charm with the sheer drapes and plants everywhere, a few eclectic elements like the asymmetrical furniture. And then the vintage pieces that we have collected over the decades, some furniture pieces that came with us from one home to another just simply getting refurbished with a new coat of paint or polish—most of which held so many memories that we found it so tough to just sell them off.

BH: Take us through your collection of art and accessories. How do you choose your art pieces?

RAK: The Illango painting was my first real art investment; my husband was in an art gallery in Chennai and we were on a video call. This was the first painting I saw, and told him this was the one and I don’t even want to see others. It was just meant to be ours I think. These sculptural knots were also a bit of a fun find from a Hyderabad exhibit—they just had so much character and flow and were perfect for this large wall. But I think the horse murals are my absolute favourite, they are three generations old and used to sit on a large wall near my grandparents dining table, who are no more. They hold sentiment and bring so much warmth to my home now.

Rohina Anand Khira, owner of the home décor brand AA Living.

BH: Discuss the storage spaces in your home. Any tips and ideas on organising the kitchen and closet?

RAK: Living in Mumbai, storage is a constant concern. We struggled so much for space in our last home that now along with needing more storage units, we also needed to ensure our stuff was organised really well inside those units. Everything in the home is now labelled with a dedicated space for it. This way you don’t end up collecting random items over the months that clutter up your cupboard. I have a very easy philosophy to organise well—every three months make a KEEP, MAYBE AND DONATE pile. If you haven’t used it or thought about it in the last three months, put it into the maybe pile and if you don’t access the maybe box for the next three months after, it moves to the donate pile. This ensures that you live with less, and never have excess of anything. You’ll just operate from a different frequency I promise you.

Balcony design ideas – Beautiful Homes

Balcony with heritage style tiles is elevated with uniform liner planters.

BH: How have you incorporated greenery/the outdoors inside?

RAK: We have a small balcony for the first time in our lives and absolutely adore being amongst the green—inside and outside. We’ve just elevated the space with uniform liner planters to give it a more cohesive vibe, and lots of plants that vary in height and texture. Plants are actually the best kind of décor!

BH: What are your favourite spaces in the home to spend time as a family?

RAK: Our favourite space to spend time as a family is our living room because it’s roomy, airy and the balcony doors open up to give the best cross ventilation. We also just bought a portable projector for movie nights which is super fun!

BH: What does a beautiful home mean to you?

RAK: I read a quote that says "home is two arms wrapped around you when you are at your worst" and I feel like coming home to that emotion is truly beautiful.

All images by Himanshu Lakhwani

Wooden design ideas – Beautiful Homes

Wood imbues warmth to the whole space.

Illango painting – Beautiful Homes

The Illango painting was sourced from Chennai.

Knot sculpture design ideas – Beautiful Homes

The sculptural knots were sourced from a Hyderabad exhibit.

Lounge design ideas – Beautiful Homes

The space is designed to lounge while overlooking the skyline of Mumbai.

Master bedroom design ideas – Beautiful Homes

With windows on two sides, Rohina’s bedroom is naturally lit and ventilated.

Kid’s bedroom design ideas – Beautiful Homes

The kid’s bedroom is designed with charming furniture and wallpaper.

Bathroom design ideas – Beautiful Homes

The bathroom also continues the palette of brown and cream.

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