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Interior

04-06-2026

Photographer : Hrudhay Prathik Reddy

There is a particular challenge that comes with translating a culture into a space. Do it too literally, and the result tips into pastiche — a collection of borrowed symbols that feel costumed rather than considered. Do it too sparingly, and the essence evaporates entirely, leaving behind something that could belong anywhere and therefore belongs nowhere. When Shaik Sohail, Snehitha Reddy, and Anish Noone — co-founders of Smash Studios — were approached to design a 2,900-square-foot Arabic restaurant for the Mandi chain in Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh, this was precisely the tightrope they chose to walk.

"We didn't want to use Arabic design elements literally," says the team. "We wanted to give it its essence." That translation — from a rich, ancient visual vocabulary into something contemporary and timeless — became both the central challenge and the animating spirit of the project.

The canvas itself was inherited rather than blank. A 20-year-old terrace was converted into a floor-level restaurant shell, its structural constraints shaping every decision. Without columns, walls aligned only with beams, which kept the layout deliberately open — a limitation that became, in retrospect, a gift. Puffed corrugated roof sheets on the ceiling resolved the weight problem while lending a lightness overhead that feels almost unexpected for a space so anchored in warmth below.

The palette is elemental: terracotta and beige — an earthy duality that conjures desert light. Against this restrained ground, a bright blue drinks counter arrives as a deliberate provocation, drawing the gaze and anchoring the room's central axis. The reception counter, clad in terracotta tiles and a granite top, sets the material register from the very first moment. Above, ceiling fabric bearing Arabic-patterned elements is embedded with cove lighting, while wooden rafters painted blue replicate the cadence of traditional beams.

Kadapa,Andhra Pradesh,India

Architects	:	Smash Studios
Area	:	2,900 sq. ft.
Year of Completion	:	2025
Website	:	https://www.instagram.com/_smashstudios_/

Reception of Mandi King by Smash Studios

Indoor Dining of Mandi King by Smash Studios

Zoning does quiet but important work here. Public, semi-private, and private areas are thoughtfully separated — families and students each finding corners that feel calibrated to their needs. The majlis area practices the floor-level seating Arabic culture perfected centuries before Western furniture standardized posture. Turquoise blue cushions, glass block indirect lighting, upholstered backrests — comfort calibrated to extended dwelling, not quick dining turnover. Seating accommodates every variety of visitor: those who want the floor, those who want a chair, those who want to be seen, and those who simply want to disappear into the warmth of a meal. Landscaping introduces life without domestication: terracotta planters, areca palms dotting the milieu, creating what they describe as "a lively atmosphere."

Fine dining tables employ granite tops paired with wooden cane chairs, illuminated by indirect suspended lights. Custom decorative lighting and Arabic-inspired wall patterns enhance without overwhelming. The patterns operate as texture rather than iconography, geometry creating visual rhythm without demanding cultural literacy to appreciate. Soft, moody ambience is achieved almost entirely through indirect and artificial lighting — there is no harsh overhead glare, only pools of warmth that encourage the eye to linger.

Indoor Dining of Mandi King by Smash Studios

A versatile counter—serving drinks, mocktails, and desserts — functions as more than a service point. It's spatial hinge, central focal element that screens the back-of-house operations while remaining visually accessible. Terracotta tiles and glass blocks create what might be called calibrated transparency: visual privacy maintained while natural light penetrates. In private dining zones, this strategy repeats — separation achieved through material intelligence rather than solid partition.

Throughout, the design employs built-in partitions and structural elements. "We used more structural elements so it looks more architectural than an interior project," they explain. This distinction matters: architecture implies permanence, timelessness, the kind of spatial decision that outlasts trend cycles. Indirect and artificial lighting creates a soft, moody ambience.

Indoor Dining of Mandi King by Smash Studios

Majilis of Mandi King by Smash Studios

Timelessness, the team insisted, was non-negotiable. And in this translation of Arabia into Andhra, what Smash Studios achieved isn't fusion — that overused term implying equal parts blending—but something more precise: cultural translation. This project understands that essence isn't borrowed through literal reproduction but earned through comprehending underlying logic and rebuilding it, element by element, in a new context. The result doesn't feel Arabic. It feels like hospitality — that older, deeper thing that Arabic architecture understood long before it became an aesthetic category.