My Den 8212; Rahul singh

The hall, which could easily pass off for a modern-day ballroom, shows impeccable taste in music, books and painting. There8217;s everything from Los Del Rio and modern disco, encyclopedias, history and fiction, to Fatima Ahmed and Ryba. Paintings and crystal balls, it would appear, are the great loves of Singh8217;s life. There are balls in hues and dyes, made of varied materials, that are casually scattered all over the armoires and walnut-finished shelves.

quot;I pick them up from everywhere,quot; says Singh, pointing to a collection of crystal balls in a wooden-painted bowl, and moving on to demonstrate how two Chinese Magic bell balls work at relieving stress. At least four paintings adorn the wall of every room, with mini-sketches in the passages. What? No Husain? quot;No,quot; he smiles. quot;But some of these painters are close friends and are really famous now. So you see, when I bought them, their works came for a song.quot; There are some really spectacular inks by Vrindavan Solanki, and Suhas Bahalkar also finds fame on these walls. Not to mention a beautiful impression of Fatima Ahmed8217;s, which you can8217;t miss as you enter the house. And on his worktable is Singh8217;s latest acquisition 8212; a Pentium. quot;Why they8217;ve given me Aishwarya Rai in the background of the computer, I don8217;t know,quot; he says, a trifle mystified. Look around, and bits and pieces of the whole world come together in this room. A bell from Orissa, the flooring 8212; so typically British, almirahs 8212; typically East Indian probably from Chor Bazaar again, Kerala cane beds, and a sturdy, old rocking chair that tells you life might be passing by outside, but this place is frozen in a quaint time frame.