Roopa Hariprasad’s Parijata

Namaskara Bandhu Bhagini gale,

Namma Bengaluruge nimma yelaragu swagata suswagata…..

Here is the last of my series on Instagram stories. Let us head straight to Parijata in HSR layout, a stunningly beautiful and luxurious home of my dear Insta friend Roopa Hariprasad.

Unlike other Instagrammers I follow, I have known Roopa from her very first post. Still getting to know the ways of Insta world and quite wary of interacting with total strangers made me just enjoy her posts as and when they popped up without following her. And, I finally started to follow her from last Yugadi of April 2019. I precisely know the date as I started my own blog on that auspicious day. I must have been in a happy mood to go follow, like, and comment. Hehe 

Somewhere in July, I introduced my blog to a few Instagram friends I followed.  Roopa was among the very few who responded positively giving encouraging feedback and started to follow my ‘okay okay’  musings on the blog. Having understood the dynamics of Insta Follower-Followed, it came as a pleasant surprise.  Much before this, I was already in awe of Roopa’s gorgeous home and was attracted to the soothing green spaces and stunning traditional Indian interiors.

I had to share this little story of our Insta friendship before I usher you all into this warm and inviting home of Roopa.

Roopa and Hari build this dream home inspired by the Spanish style homes seen in southern states of America. Having plenty of prior hands-on experience in building houses, Roopa had been planning for this home for almost three years, by collecting information and looking at various websites.

Spanish style homes are characterized by unique architectural features, like the curved arches over windows, doors, and porch entries, a feature that is so stunningly done here. Dark red terracotta tiles covering the roof were specially imported from Europe give a rustic feel.  Courtyard entrances and lush green natural gardens seen in Spanish style homes can be seen here, soothing our senses. The yellow handpainted floor tiles, again a distinctive feature of Spanish households, were specially handpicked by Roopa. Ornamental grills, common in both Spanish and Indian homes, have been given a fresh, vibrant look by innovative addition of handpainted tiles.

All these stunning features on the outside exhibit an alluring Mediterranean charm that is hard to miss, but once you step inside, you are enthralled by impeccable Indian traditional Interiors.  You can see a beautiful ethnic ambiance perfectly coordinated by the use of colorful tiles and extensive use of rich teak wood furniture all throughout their lovely home. I simply love the way Roopa has put together the living room by bringing in the right accent from different cultures to create a cheerful, elegant space. 👇

The beautiful, welcoming foyer leads you to the dining area flanked by two antique intricately carved Chettinadu pillars sourced from Puducherry. 

From time to time, Roopa dishes out drool-worthy, yummy dishes from her ergonomically appointed, all teak wood kitchen. I noteworthy point I have to mention is the absence of microwave in her kitchen filled with all kinds of essential kitchen paraphernalia.

Apart from all the gorgeous aesthetic beauty of Roopa’s home, I am impressed and inspired by her home’s eco-friendly features.  The entire house is powered by a 3.5 KW solar panel unit, which occupies one part of the terrace. This considerably reduces the power consumption of their household. They also have taken care of rainwater harvesting.

I am a big fan of humans who grow their own food, and I also follow a Facebook page by the same name. It is but natural that I love to see all the bountiful produce from Roopa’s garden. Especially the terrace garden is just wow! 

But ‘my_simple_home_retreat’ is much more than just stunning pictures of a home, which embodies a perfect blend of Spanish revival architecture and vibrant ethnic interiors that is passionately planned and meticulously executed.  It is one of the most candid profiles I have come across in recent times. Roopa has an exceptional knack of tying her personal life experiences with an apt picture to talk about a particular social issue. Like this one picture that she shared. One look at it and I thought ..’WOW!! What a view!’. But the caption I read gave a different story, where she spoke about depression.👇

Similarly, her posts on infertility, motherhood, and so many other social issues are so frank, straightforward, and relatable.  

I also love Roopa’s frequent travel posts and little stories attached to it. Of all the travel posts Roopa has shared, her visit to R. K. Narayan’s home will remain my all-time favorite.

Being married to a Bengalurian and having lived in Bengaluru for some seven odd years, I am eternally in love with Namma Bengaluru. And, Roopa’s beautiful captures of verdant vistas of Lal Bagh, or even her simple mentions of sutha-mutha (in and around) Bengaluru parisara bring back mixed memories.

All in all, my_simple_home_retreat has something for everyone. Be it the décor enthusiasts, the environmentalist, the armchair traveler, or someone deeply concerned about social issues. Now it is also a pet lover\’s paradise with Roopa sharing all the mischiefs of Sheeba and Shadow. 😍

I am thoroughly enjoying all the pictures and amusing anecdotes from Roopa’s profile. My dear friends, I hope you enjoyed this little peek into Roopa’s beautiful world. You can see more of this awesomeness here.

But wait…I haven’t yet shared with you all, my personal favorite of Roopa and Hari’s home. So here I go…. I am signing off, from Roopa’s Divine Pooja Mandir, with a prayer in my heart…May Roopa find bliss in her love for her beloved Krishna, may the sacred Tulasi from her beautiful Vrindavan bless their household peace and prosperity, and the auspicious Parijata shower them with the heavenly fragrance of love and harmony!

Have a happy weekend everyone 💞

Kalyani Sreedhar Kakade

All images published in this blog belong to Roopa Hariprasad and may not be replicated or reproduced without prior permission.

Text Copyright: This Adbhut  Life!

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