I AM

“I wish I knew, I wish I knew
What makes me, me, and what makes you,
It’s just another point of view,
A state of mind I’m going through,
So what I see is never true”

Cat Stevens, 1970

Cat Stevens wrote this in 1970 – much before most readers of this blog would have been born. The song highlights a key question that humanity has been asking for eons. An aspect of this is what we will discuss here on this post today.

So, WHAT REALLY MAKES YOU “YOU” – is it your job, your designation, your relationships, your parents, family, relationships, hobbies … what?

The idea for this post came when, during a design discussion, the lady of the house said “I AM a Home Baker”, so I asked her to send me pictures of her present Kitchen just to get some pointers on how the new kitchen should be. To my surprise I saw very little baking equipment in there. During the course of our discussions, I learnt that while she liked baking, BEING a Baker was however an “aspirational” goal and she wanted the design of her new home to assist with that.

Isn’t that true for all of us – buying that golf kit – hoping it will make you fitter, a morning person, a “networker”. Or designing that reading nook in the corner of the home – so that it makes you read all the books that you bought but never read. Or that breakfast island – where you both will prepare, cook, dine and feel loved.

I believe we humans have been given this gift by which we DESIGN an environment around ourselves and if all goes well, the environment ultimately makes us US – it’s kind of a vicious circle that just goes on and on

In the same line of thought, and I’ve said this earlier – The homes we design, ultimately design our lives and make us the people / family we become – thank you Ms. BAKER for re-emphasizing that.

Cheers

Nandita – & I AM an Interior Designer 🙂

Nandita Manwani is a practicing Interior Designer in Bangalore and the founder of The Studio by Nandita Manwani