A home interior design for work from home

Our home in Kochi is also the studio and office for my production company, Curiouser Films, and the former garage of the two-block compound on which our home sits is now the retail space for Sreejith’s clothing brand, Rouka. This compound and its buildings were once home to Sreejith’s late grandparents, and much of the structure and foliage that we have is a result of their planning and foresight. About three and a half years ago, when our son was born, we decided to combine the spaces into both home and office, so that we could be around for him throughout the day. Our home is based on Ravipuram road, which is a busy street off Kochi’s main thoroughfare, MG Road. Living and working in one space has shaved off a considerable amount of travel for us, and in the current circumstance, feels like a blessing we hadn’t noticed before. 

This is Our Typical Day…

My husband and I wake up between six and 7:30 a.m., spend some time doing yoga on the terrace or meditate. The place is really quiet in the mornings before the area starts to bustle with activity once shops on the street open and traffic picks up.

The Positive Side of Working from Home…

For us, the chief positive is constant childcare. The fact that one of us is always in the building, even if the other person has to be out on work. Or, even better, both of us are around even if we have help for Spandan. Our work is sometimes difficult to contain to a day. As entrepreneurs in design and filmmaking, we have to use both sides of the brain. So, on days when most of the work time go in figuring out logistics, accounts, and other mundane details, we use evenings, nights, and weekends for the creative thinking part of our work. And during such times, it is a huge advantage to be able to just go down a flight of stairs and access the studio. 

What are the Things You Should Keep in Mind When it Comes to Working from Home?

• A physical division or demarcation of the workspace, if possible, even if it is a corner of your dining table.
• A routine or timetable that will help you make sense of the time you have. To best harness the day, set aside separate time for work tasks and domestic tasks. This is also an intangible way to send a message to colleagues and relatives that you must not be interrupted during the work period. 
• Be sure about the routine or space divisions but not too rigid for it to ruin your day if there are any interferences. Keep some space for bargaining.  
• Also, be flexible about the use of spaces. For instance, your living room could end up being the shifting conference hall in case of staff meetings or long concept discussions.
  
• Use multitasking furniture: In our case, the large office table also works as a dining table or display surface when we host get-togethers or events. We like making changes over time, so we ensure that every piece of furniture we choose can multitask. So, having a unified sensibility in both home and office definitely helps make this easier.
• The lighting in our workspaces is functional even though it's decorative. However, in the office, a black vintage cupboard with files and folders does not look out of place or ‘un-office’ like.
• We’ve repurposed several objects. For instance, some of the items we used in our wedding décor like a selection of Bharani, or ceramic jars, double up as both stationery holders, pickle jars, and even planters. As long as you have a unified taste, everything will always be useful.

All images by Rakesh Anand