- 4/28/2025
Category
🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:00Hi everyone, welcome back to the Dubai Dream Home series. We are at Jumeirah Park at Reshma
00:08Praveen's house. It's a palatial mansion, almost resembles a Zen sanctuary. There's even a statue
00:15of the Buddha there. Let's go. Hi Manju, how are you? Good, how are you? Good. Thank you. It's a big
00:24home and this is Reshma. This is not so humble but yes, go for it. Thank you Reshma for having you.
00:47Thank you Manju for coming over. I love your home. I've been here for several, full disclosure, I've been
00:52here for her Diwali party. It's pretty brilliant. I've always been outdoors but I never knew it was
00:57such a massive home. Thank you. Tell me all about it. Is this like how long did you take to get this
01:03home, you know, your dream home made? So we really took one year and that's what everybody asks us
01:11this question. How long did you take? And when we say one year, it's like, you know, it surprises them.
01:16Yes, it's very quick, right? Yes, it's very quick. Usually such palatial homes are made over several
01:20years. Yes. And how did you go about it? Walk me through it. Okay, so you know, like my husband
01:26is into construction industry and yeah, we built towers and homes and malls. So yeah, of course,
01:33his expertise did the thing for us by cutting time and like, you know, the suppliers and most of our
01:42things like, you know, what we have done is like in house made. Oh, that's amazing. In our own factories.
01:47So you guys had, so this plot seems much larger than the villas that I see at Jumeirah Park.
01:53Yeah. Was there a process to it? Did you? Yeah. So we bought two plots here and then we merged it
02:00together. And that's how we got a bigger plot size than 16,400 square feet. Okay. Yeah, the land
02:07and then the built up area of the house is around 14,000. Oh, that's amazing. That's massive. So when did
02:13you buy this home? So this was just after COVID, we were just like, you know, we wanted to have our
02:19dream home and we wanted to build it from the scratch. So then, you know, and we live in this
02:24community only we live. So then we were like, we wanted to stay here because of the connectivity of
02:30roads and like, you know, placed centrally closer to everything. And yeah, we said, yeah, this is it.
02:37We will buy this plot and build our own house. I love it. And the fact that you bought it during
02:43COVID. Yeah. I think made a lot of difference, right? Yes. I think at that time prices had plummeted.
02:49Yes. Yeah. So we really got a good deal. So we bought it like for around 4 million, which is
02:56currently like 18 million. Just the plot? Minus. Yes. Just the plot. My God. See, that's a tip for all of
03:02us. Bought it for 4 million and now it's selling for 18 million. That's brilliant. What about the home?
03:07I mean, if you were to look at it, if you were to take stock of the current prices. So currently this
03:13home would like cost around 60 million. Nice. Nice. But when you told me you're from the construction
03:19industry, so is your husband, Praveen. So that's amazing. Did that really help? Is that,
03:26is that what I think set you apart? You were able to complete this house in a year? Yes, it did.
03:31Yeah. Because you know, he knew the industry. We personally, we went selected the like,
03:36even if it is a small marble or a window frame or everything like, you know, we have personally
03:43selected each and everything of this house. And yeah, he knew the suppliers. So it didn't take us like
03:50long to do that process. Yeah. Really? Yeah. It was a nice one year that we spent like, you know,
03:57executing and six months of like, you know, plannings and approvals. Right. Before that.
04:03I love it. You know what I love about this home? I know you have two boys. Yeah. It doesn't,
04:07there's a lot of space. Yes. Was that deliberate? Do they come home with basketballs? Yes,
04:13absolutely. And you know, when we were planning our house, only thing like, you know, my husband said
04:18was like, you know, our home should be a kids friendly. And you know, I don't want to put any
04:23restrictions on the boys. Like, don't dribble the ball here or like, or to my dogs, like, you know,
04:30no, no, the dogs are not allowed here. So they are allowed in every place of my house. And yeah,
04:34that's what we kept in mind when looking for our like, you know, minute little things. Right,
04:40right. No, I love the fact that, you know, there's less of white, if you look at it, large ceilings,
04:45I mean, really high ceilings. How tall are these ceilings? So yeah, this is like a nine meters tall,
04:52double height, floor to ceiling height, which is like, you know, we wanted it. Right. And if you
04:58see the ceiling heights in the entire house, it's like four meters minimum everywhere. And that's
05:05like a huge, where compared to a normal ceiling, it's like two meters. Oh, really? Yeah. So we have
05:11kept the four meters throughout the house. And also we have played with heights in many of the places
05:18in different areas of the house. Right. Was this your way of like, you know,
05:24dabbling in things like how far can you push it? Like, which is the most, let's say,
05:29ostentatious part or boldest part of the home? Do you have any home that you, you know, a corner that
05:34you feel, you know, you experimented, you tried a lot. So that's like, we kept it bold and bright.
05:40Like you see the entire house. It's like subtle and like simple and not too loud. But this one
05:47place we wanted it to be like, just loud. Like we use the dark flooring, dark walls and like,
05:52you know, you wanted it dramatic. Yes. Yeah. A little bit dramatic. I love that gold panther.
05:57Is that a panther that I see? Yeah, yeah. Is that a panther? It's so Dubai. I mean, come on,
06:02a gold panther. That's what we want in life. No, no. Tell me all about that gold panther. Does it have a name?
06:09No, nothing. It's just that we wanted to make it a little bling and bright.
06:13Dubai bling would be very happy with that living room for sure. See, even the Indian touches,
06:19I see like the peacock, for instance, or the artwork, the horses, etc. The art installation,
06:24did that take a long time? Because they're massive, right? I see. Yeah, you know, see everything,
06:28it's like, you know, we wanted everything to go with the house interiors and like every piece to match
06:35and like, you know, be subtle at the same time. So, yeah, I think everything fell in place. Like,
06:40you know, when every, when the construction was going on and yeah, we visited Milan to shop our
06:46furnitures. Really?
06:47Yeah, we picked like, you know, we picked individual pieces from different bands. Yeah,
06:52but we did travel and it was fun, like, you know. Yeah, Milan is where, in fact, I was talking
06:58to somebody else who told me that in Milan, yeah, they go there to see the artwork especially. I think
07:03it was Dalia. Absolutely, everything related to house, yeah. So, how long did you spend there and
07:09what did you learn from that? We were there for like eight days, but our visit was like planned that
07:15we are visiting and we're going to go to some factories, we're going to sit with some of the
07:19suppliers and because, you see, they have pieces but it should match your home. So, it's like,
07:24everything is custom made for us, based on our colour combinations. Right. You have two boys,
07:31one of them, you told me, is now in the US, the other child. So, for three people, it's a five
07:36bedroom. Do you use all your rooms? Yeah, we use all part of the house and like, you know,
07:43so that's the reason we have created each room or each zone differently. So, we have a different
07:50feeling when we sit like here, it's like, you know, calm, quiet and like, you know, facing the water
07:55feature and at the same time, when we go to the formal living, it's a bit formal and like,
08:00you know, loud. And then we go in the roof, we have again, the beautiful skyline view of Dubai.
08:06Yes. And on a clear day, we can also see Burj Khalifa from here.
08:10Nice, nice. So, you don't have to go anywhere to see the fireworks.
08:13Yeah, absolutely. New Year's, we have a beautiful view of all the fireworks around the palm and
08:20Burj Khalifa, of course. That's excellent. No, no, I love that. You know, I've always been to your
08:25parties in the Diwali during, it was always outdoor. Outdoor. Because it's November, great weather.
08:30Yeah. Do you use the outdoor a lot? Because I see that you have, you use it quite a bit. Yes,
08:34we use and my kids love the pool. So, somehow, they are in the pool. They're like, my younger
08:41one is a water baby. So, he just loves spending time in the pool. And yeah, of course, even I do
08:46sometimes. Really? And your parties are legendary. You have a DJ and all that. Who else does that? I'm
08:52like, it's such a Dubai thing to have a DJ, to have a live act, a comedian, everything that you can think
08:58of that you would find in a concert arena is in your backyard. Is that what you do the most? Like,
09:03you throw good parties? Not good, but I want like my friends also to enjoy. And like, you know,
09:09we love having family, friends, home. And I have friends who come, they stay with us. And they're
09:15like, they get so, they're so happy about Dubai. And then they also want to come and live here.
09:21Really? Yeah. This is your showcase. How long have you been in Dubai? And were you always at Jumeirah Park?
09:27No, we initially, when we moved to Dubai, we were in Greens. And then that, you know,
09:31that's where my kids were young. And you know, they had their friends there. And then we moved
09:37to Jumeirah Park. And we like this place. So then we wanted to build our own house somewhere around,
09:43close by, because my friends are around. And yeah, we love the place. Right. I love the part where you
09:48have an elevator in your home, which I think is pretty cool. How often do you use it? Is it a must?
09:54Like, is it for the kids rooms or? No, it's not a must. And the main reason we have,
10:00we wanted to have an elevator was for my parents, because you know, with the age,
10:04they can't climb the stairs. So that's the reason. But, you know, we avoid using it because,
10:09you know, steps, when we take the steps, we burn calories. That's it. It's some cardio.
10:16Yeah. Yeah. But this is, do your parents visit you often or his parents as well?
10:20Yeah. Both mine and Praveen's parents, like my mother and Praveen's mother, they do visit us.
10:25Oh, they do. Okay. So it's more for them. Yeah. It's more for them. Yeah.
10:29Right. And do the kids' friends come home? Do they have parties?
10:32Yeah. My kids' friends come home and they use the pool, they use the cinema.
10:38They use every corner of the house. Really? Yeah. In Dubai, they say bigger is better.
10:44How difficult is to maintain a home such as this? That's a task. Like, you know,
10:49it gets dusty and yeah, it needs cleaning and maintaining. So I would not say it's difficult,
10:55but yeah, you need staff to do that. Right. On an average, how, like, do you need a staff of,
11:00let's say four or five, like including cleaners or anything? Or do you have a number?
11:04Yeah. And I have a staff of four. Yeah. Okay. Who maintains the home? What happens when you go
11:11for summer, etc.? Do you like, how do you handle it then? Is somebody there? Is there a house?
11:16Yeah. We need somebody because I have my pets as well. Yeah. So my staff is their home. Right.
11:22What's the best part about living in a mansion like this, Rishwa? It's a space. You have a huge space
11:29for you. And we wanted, the main reason for us to have a double ceiling is, you know,
11:35you feel open. And yeah, that's the, I think the openness and the space. Yeah. And the light as
11:42well. I think that is one thing. So the floor to ceiling windows, these are massive windows. Yes.
11:47These are like, you know, special large format glasses. Yeah. And then like, you know,
11:52each glass frame weighs around one ton. So, you know, as Praveen has his experience in the industry,
11:59so he, he wanted like, you know, minimum joints on the, yeah, and very thin frames.
12:06You can see the sky actually. It's really cool. Yeah. So, and also we wanted,
12:10during the daytime, we hardly switch on the lights. It's like, you know, there's plenty of natural light
12:16that comes in. And we have also made like, you know, we have used solars for our water. Okay.
12:23And, and the natural light. So, you know, it's, and that's, that is a good part, like, you know,
12:29I love that. About sustainability. No, no, good. I mean, you made it sustainable as well.
12:33What about, you know, if you were to look at the, all the rooms, is there one room that was
12:38particularly challenging for you to do? Like any particular, other than the living room,
12:43we have already spoken about it. Any other room that you thought was like, was a bit difficult?
12:48You guys couldn't make up your mind. How do we play this? Yeah. So it was the roof, you know,
12:52in, in the roof, we have done, it's like a living area again. So it is like, you know,
12:57I wanted it something different, like a Greek look. Yes. But, you know, we, I mean, of course,
13:02when we were getting our house done, like, I have my own ideas. Praveen has his own. So then,
13:07you know, sometimes he didn't agree with mine and I didn't agree with his. So then we had to change it
13:12totally. Really? So then I wanted the Greek kind of living on the roof and then, you know,
13:18matching things and like, you know, finding all the, you know, wall finishes, floor finishes,
13:25was a bit of a challenge. And then we wanted at the same time to it to be openable in the good
13:29weather. Ah, okay. So you wanted everything to like, even if you look at it, there are sun loungers,
13:34there are a lot of like outdoor furniture as well. Yeah. So you guys use the outdoors a lot,
13:39like in good weather. Yes, we do even summer, like, you know, late in the evenings, we do
13:43use outdoor and also we have done like water features everywhere. Tell me all about that,
13:48because I found it quite fascinating. As you enter, there's a water feature. Yeah. Then behind,
13:53is there a story behind it? Yeah. You know, it's blue is always pleasing, you know, and then we,
13:58we made sure that, you know, every area in the first floor or from the ground floor has a view,
14:04water view. So even from the gym, you're working out or you're running on the treadmill, you can
14:09still see the, like, you know, the blue water and the grass green. So you have that, you know,
14:14pleasant feeling to your eyes. Right. Of course, of course, I'm sure you've seen a lot of homes in
14:20Dubai or maybe reality shows. Did you watch a lot of reality shows before designing the home just to
14:26see what do people do or anything or you guys just went with your vision? No, we went with our choice
14:32because it's our home and we want it the way we want it. And we want it to be simple and elegant
14:38at the same time and cozy, but again, like, you know, huge space with like, you know, a good light
14:46and we wanted to feel that, you know, peace and calm when we enter our home. Oh, that's great.
14:52That's the vibe you want to exude, is it? You want people to feel at home? Is that the vibe? Yes,
14:57and comfortable. That's it. Oh, brilliant. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Such a beautiful home
15:03and it looks very lived in as well, barring that golden panther who's staring at us. Hello there.
15:09But otherwise, I think it's one of the most lived in homes and love the ceilings or the artwork,
15:14everything. What a gorgeous home. And in one year, what's the one tip that you would give to everybody
15:20who's building a home from ground up? Yeah. So do your homework on like whom you want to hire for
15:27building it. Don't budge on the budget and like, and the cost like don't go for like, you know,
15:35a cheaper price and then take longer and then you land up spending more and spending more of money and
15:42more of time. So like choose the right person or the agencies to help you with build your own dream home.
15:51That's perfect. Thank you. On that note, thank you so much. I'm so happy that you have built yours.
15:56Is this, are there more homes to come? Just out of curiosity. Inshallah.
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