Festive breaks at Igreha Vaddo

If you are looking for charm, style and luxury all in one, look no further than Isprava Igreha Vaddo, where three beautiful homes await your arrival.

This season, if you are craving a break, a home away from home for a while—all roads lead you to Isprava Igreha Vaddo. This is Isprava’s first gated community, located in a quaint corner, around the rare green fields of Siolim in Bardez, North Goa. Borrowing inspiration from Portuguese villages and old Goan communities, this vaddo sits on a higher land, away from the main road and feature homes that bring to the fore Isprava’s signature style, comfort and luxury. If you choose Villa A to be your home away from home, it features 3 bedrooms, and is spread across 2 floors. The best part of this home is its beautiful entrance foyer with a unique sit out porch. It has a living and dining room with a featured balcony. Villa C is visually divided into three lavish sections. The double height foyer is stunning with fixed seats that transforms it into a meet and greet space. As soon as you enter, your sight will take you to the outdoor deck thanks to the abundant windows. The top most floor features a charming terrace garden as well. But if it is Villa D that you rent out this season, do not miss its unique inverted balcony on the first floor, from where you can enter and look down to admire the living and dining space. Each of the three villas have amazing outdoor spaces, cosy indoor enclaves and tons of luxe touches to make your stay memorable, as always.

An Art Escapade in Goa

While the beach and bustling bars are always on the to do list when you visit Goa, this time we give you insider tips on the cool, contemporary art scene buzzing here.

Away from the sea, sand and sun, Goa also boasts a fabulous cultural scene where local artists and creative minds come together to promote Indian and International art. From independent art galleries to state-funded museums, from Calangute to Panaji, explore Goa’s budding art scene to discover both contemporary and traditional works of art. Start at the Art Chamber, a space set up to put young Goan artists in the spotlight. Housed within is the Castelo Vermelho, one of the coolest exhibits that has been featured here; includes a selection of traditional Kurdish and Indian masks. Next, go to Kerkar Art Complex where you will discover an immersive cultural experience featuring art installations and sculptures of Dr. Subodh Kerkar. His perspective of nature is something that really makes him stand out amongst the rest. If you are here on a Tuesday, then you would get to enjoy the open air dance recitals by local artists. As for one of Goa’s best kept art secrets, the Monsoon Heritage Studio will truly enthral. You can reach this gem by walking through a tropical forest and arrive to experience Yahel Chirinian’s dramatic mosaic work. From mirrored sculptures of Hindu deities to handcrafted abstract forms—once you are done exploring, take a moment to sit peacefully in the studio’s garden.

Isprava in the news

Isprava is making headlines—from ET Luxury Second Homes Supplement to special features in leading magazines like Architectural Digest and Elle Décor—pick up the issues to take a closer look.

While Isprava has been in the spotlight for quite some time, today it is taking the media world by storm, with feature after feature in some of the most prestigious magazines and newspapers. For instance, ET Luxury Second Homes Supplement featured the company with a story on how there’s a new wave in the world of holiday homes. The article details how Isprava functions and how it is making a difference in the world of real estate. The company’s founder and CEO, Nibhrant Shah tells the readers of ET on how he believes the high-end holiday home market in India is growing massively. The next exciting feature was in Condé Nast India’s Architectural Digest. The editors of the magazine choose to put one of Isprava’s best in the spotlight. With its catchy headline, “Branco, you’re beautiful”, it tells the design story of Villa Branco in Goa, and beautifully exemplifies everything Isprava does and stands for. Elle Décor went on to do a brilliant brand profile of the company, featuring stunning images and informative content. All in all, we are thrilled to be spreading the word, and sharing the joy of Isprava. Stay tuned on where we show up next!

With a passion

From the world of finance to the epicurean landscape of food, Aditi Dugar, founder of the fine dining, ingredient-curious restaurant Masque, unveils how creativity can take you to places…

1) Tell us about your journey and how your passion came to fruition?

I grew up in Bombay, in and around my mum and grandmom’s kitchens, both of whom are excellent cooks. I started cooking when I was about 16 and only grew to fall in love with all the baking techniques. However, I ended up working in finance up until my first son was born, after which I wanted to take a bit of a breather. That turned out to be the best life decision! I began spending more time experimenting in the kitchen, which pushed me to try getting work experience in restaurants. I ended up working in the kitchens of Le Gavroche and La Petite Maison, Zuma and Bo Lan, and with a vegetarian street food vendor in Bangkok. I also did a stint with a décor company in London, and it was the kind of finesse and attention to detail I saw there that stuck with me. It was something I found seriously lacking in the Indian market at the time. My mom and I finally decided to launch our own catering company (Sage & Saffron) in 2012, hoping to fill that gap. Prateek and I were introduced in Udaipur while he was still working there; we reconnected a couple of years later in Bombay. We found that our thought processes and the kind of experiences we were hoping to deliver aligned really closely, and that’s basically how Masque came into being!

2) From a 10-course chef’s tasting menu to a space that can only be described as stunning, what does Masque mean to you?

Masque is very much a product of the kind of food and dining experience Prateek and I wanted to bring to consumers. I want to deliver an experience that connects the dots in the food chain: a chef’s story on a plate, but one that takes you all the way back to where those ingredients have come from. On a more personal level, trying to pull off this format and food would very often seem like a really daunting, anxiety-inducing task, to be honest - but it also turned out to be a lesson in stubbornness that got us this far.

3) Creativity has many shapes, sizes, and forms. How would you describe your creative prowess?

I think mine comes with a lot of excitement – I get very enthusiastic about how I eat and how I serve; it is reaching that level of finesse that really excites me. How I run a business and attention to detail is very important to me, because it is something I truly appreciate when I’m on the receiving end of it.

4) Luxury to you is?

Perfection. Brands with discipline are the ones that epitomize luxury to me – it immediately tells you the language of the company and what is behind the brand. And time! To have free time would be such a luxury, even though I am awful at sticking to it.

5) At Isprava, everyone loves great food and beautiful spaces. Tell us about how these two things merge at Masque.

The space Masque occupies was designed keeping in mind the experience we were trying to deliver to the diner. The décor is not flashy and over the top, but it feels luxurious without being stuffy and high-strung. It’s quite an interactive meal, starting with the first course in the kitchen to a chef coming out to explain every dish. The kitchen door is always open and it’s not so unusual to see our regulars popping in to say hello. The design process was driven by principles of Wabi Sabi – finding the perfection in imperfection, beauty in things modest and humble. That, I think, is an apt analogy for the kitchen as well: we are not after the perfect-looking produce or the unbruised apples. We are looking for flavour.

6) What is your favourite space at Masque, and why?

Our bar table – what we call the monolith! It feels like a community space where ideas grow, a central point between the back offices, kitchen and restaurant.

7) What kind of holiday home would you want? Any from Isprava? Tell us why?

I always prefer staying at boutique hotels and spaces, and I love being anywhere I can hear the ocean – so I guess my ideal holiday home would be on or near a beach, open and airy with understated, elegant décor. Isprava Villa Verde would be a dream!