An uber-luxe bungalow property set on the unspoilt beach of Mandrem, North Goa, Oberoi Villa is a first of its kind offering by the Oberoi Hotels & Resorts. This hospitality project was driven by Oberoi’s impeccable service, styling and attention to detail. The design sets an indulgent mood, liberating the spirit with high-ceilinged volumes, green spaces woven into the programme, and tactile furnishings that balance earthiness and sophistication. The spacious, ground + one storey, pitched-roof building nestles amongst beautifully landscaped grounds, with the gardens mingling with the soft white sands of Mandrem beach.

The approach to the property is via a short, bamboo-lined driveway which takes guests to a drop-off point. The actual entry to the grounds is through a portal set within the compound walls of the villa — a strategy affords privacy to the guests. A small walkway, flanked by shallow reflective pools and shaded by frangipani (which are dramatically lit up at night), takes you to a double-height entrance lounge. This place is like a spatial cross-road, where the corridors and stairs to all the bedrooms converge. Beyond this lies the formal living space and dining room, attended by a courtyard which provides scope for alfresco meals and gatherings. The bedrooms on the upper floors have sloping ceilings synergistic with the pitched roof of the building. The aesthetic direction is inspired by Tulum style: not the typical Goan flavour but one that exudes a beachy, tropical vibe, occupying a comfortable place between overtly rural-rustic and overtly city-slick.

The design and location encourages the idea of barefoot living, where guests can stroll from the villa, to its lawns, then the soft sands and onto the clean waters of the beach. This littoral paradise also features a pool, a shade coconut grove, pavilions for sundown get-togethers, a deck for partying, and wellness therapies as well as a beach-facing conversation pit.

All the interiors elements — furniture, wall treatments, textures, artwork, rugs, crockery, cutlery — have been painstakingly vetted to fit the desired stylistic slot. And, given BMA’s firm belief in giving importance to both form and function, a lot of elements have been weather-proofed to combat Goa’s high humidity conditions.