Bollywood's first lady Gauri Khan talks about toppling 'star wife' with 'design connoisseur' in her bio, building a hard shell and pinning down globetrotting son AbRam
Aastha Atray Banan (MID-DAY; February 21, 2016)

Gauri Khan agrees to this interview. When she realises it's a one-on-one, she requests for an e-chat. We prefer it in person, we say.

We lose a week.

Her spokesperson gets in touch to say Gauri has agreed to meet. But she has a request: Can she see your questions?

We say, that won't be possible. And come to a compromise.

For someone fastidious, Gauri appears with her guard down when we meet her at Mannat, the mansion she has built and lives in with actor husband Shah Rukh Khan, and children, Aryan (19), Suhana (15) and AbRam (2).

She is dressed in all black, her hair is pulled back and she is wearing no make-up. She smiles and apologises for being late.

"I have been travelling. The kids are here, and they leave for London tomorrow. But AbRam is with Shah Rukh in Goa. That child is a globetrotter. He is never here. People just pick him up and run — my mum, Shah Rukh — nobody wants to leave him."

She is keen to steer the conversation to design. "When headlines are only about Shah Rukh, I get upset," she admits. "There is no value then to what I do. His achievements are his, and I have no part in them. I do what I do."

What Gauri does is design — furniture, interiors and sarees. In 2014, she launched Gauri Khan Designs, a label that curates furniture and collectibles from across the world. Her recent big strike was showcasing her collection, Turned Wood on Brass, at the Maison & Objet, one of the world's most celebrated avenues for designer showcase, in Paris. "Just being there was inspiring. At our stall, we wanted to showcase the best of India. So we had the wheel of Konark represented on stools, and a gorgeous peacock wallpaper. Our stall was named the most beautiful. Watching others at work inspires you," she says.

Like it did with Jean François Lesage, the scion of one of France's legendary embroidery families. The man known for luxurious hand-embroidery on cushions, pillows and throws collaborated with Gauri on the stall. In 2013, Lesage began working with Indian craftsmen, which is why Gauri says, it made sense to team up. "I'd like to think that my aim is to take Indian art wherever I can. My travels and experiences just add a modern touch to it."

She knew design piqued her interest as far back as the '80s when she was a student of history at Lady Sriram College in Delhi. "When we studied the architecture of Indian temples, I was fascinated," she remembers. Gauri followed it up with a stint at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, and an interior design course. "I'd go for evening classes, but it was always design [that I pursued], in whatever form."

But her formal initiation into interiors kicked off when she was working on her sea-facing Bandra Bandstand heritage home. "I had already started collecting. So when the house was being made, I ended up designing rooms around pieces of furniture," she laughs.

The luxurious living room we sit in is littered with art, but she won't pick a favourite. "I like it all, and I don't want to upset anyone by mentioning another. But I like Subodh Gupta and have a few pieces by him," she says. What she's particular about is to showcase Indian talent. "We have so much talent here. Why would I buy an international artist?"

Often discussed for her chic sense of style, turning to fashion design was an organic move. She has designed three collections for contemporary saree label, Satya Paul; the latest is called Cocktails and Dreams. "It was fun for me to do this. I make sure though, that all the colours of the rainbow don't end up on the same saree. I like to stick to a colour palate."

Inspiration, she finds on travels, in "seeing things and meeting people". And in her kids. "We just redid Aryan's room; a new grown-up room. But I can't tell you anything about it. He will kill me! It was inspiring because I had to get in touch with younger designers."

That she has had a child after a long hail means that she must ensure she has time for AbRam. "Everything I do can be done right here from a computer. So I am always next to AbRam, provided he is at home!"

She agrees that Shah Rukh and she are more indulgent parents this time around. "I think he is pampered much more [than Aryan and Suhana]. He is more on sets with Shah Rukh too. My other kids didn't do that. I am now wondering, why?"

But the busy professional and full-time mother roles don't take away from her most in-your-face tour of duty. She knows she is the focus of the media, and she cannot run away from it. "I don't have time to care. My life is too busy. I don't read everything written about me," she says, before figuring we are one of them. "You guys write anything. And those headlines! But then who isn't being written about? Who is spared? When people inquire about what the papers have said about me, I want to ask them, what about what's written about you?' Everyone is being shredded. Everyone has issues, and I am no different."

DNA (September 6, 2014)


Five bedrooms
The 1920s-era Grade III heritage structure unfurls in every direction — skywards, backwards and sideways. Gauri and Shah Rukh’s home has within it five bedrooms, multiple living areas, a gymnasium, library, and almost anything else a celebrity family needs to be content.

6,000 sq ft of luxury!
The architects of Mannat are Mumbai-based firm, Faquih and Associates, headed by architect Kaif Faquih. The team began with the 6,000 sq ft bungalow. They then built an annexe attached via a light-filled box that Faquih refers to as the ‘intervention space’, on which rest the family’s private apartments. “When we got it, the interiors were classical, like any large bungalow. We reconceived the layout so that you go through four spaces in sequence, but we kept some of the original embellishments,” he says. A classical bungalow, Gauri’s vision takes over the moment you open the door. The setting is dramatically backlit and moody—the aesthetics part-contemporary Gothic, part ironic. The palette is dark, with seemingly unfinished surfaces.

Four years in the making
Gauri, who styled the interiors, says the effort was intensive and eye-opening. “It took years of sourcing, travelling and editing to get to the point where everything looked just right,” she says. In fact, the four years she spent devising Mannat’s interiors turned the once stay-at-home celebrity mother-of-three into interior designer.

Home is where the heart is!
Perhaps as a counterbalance to the styled living spaces, Gauri has maintained the private areas quite simply, outfitting them with practical furniture that sits among masses of books, board games and pictures of extended family. The bedrooms are quite small and surprisingly manageable—much more than those imagined by the actor’s fans.

Says Gauri, “When you live in a house, big or small, you don’t think of it in terms of being famous or anything like that. You just think of it as home. I want my children to make their lives here and I don’t intend to change it for a long time.”

Gauri Khan, wife of actor Shah Rukh Khan, film producer and now owner of a lifestyle outlet, talks about her newly-launched store, films, parties and life as a mother and wife
Shubha Shetty-Saha (MID-DAY; March 9, 2014)

Gauri Khan can easily be called the First Lady of the Hindi film industry as the wife and better half of Shah Rukh Khan. Khan is also a director in SRK’s film production company, Red Chillies Entertainment. She is most visible as a glamorous “superstar wife”, at filmi parties and social events. But in real life, she says, she is much more of an all-rounder. As we chat about what must rank as a magical life so far, Gauri tells us about all that she is — an entrepreneur, a fashion diva and at the same time, a mother and a wife. We are at her latest venture, the lifestyle store The Design Cell.

The products at the store are a mix of functional, quirky and glamorous. A bit like how she herself is, we ask.
No, says Khan. In direct contrast to her husband, who admittedly likes everything ‘larger than life’, she prefers blending into the background, focusing instead on the work at hand, in projects she is passionate about. “This may come as a surprise to you, but I don’t really like being in the spotlight. I run away from limelight. I would rather blend into the background and watch others. If it is to promote my business, I would do it, but if it is to just talk about myself, I don’t know what to say,” she says, flashing a smile.

Like most middle-class Indian girls, Khan says she didn’t know what she wanted to be as she entered college. “Every month, I would dream of different professions — a designer, a dancer or even a painter … there were million dreams. This is what came out of all those dreams,” she says, looking around her store proudly.

“It is a passion, almost an addiction, for me to travel the world and to collect the best things from everywhere. I didn’t plan anything. I just started storing things at my friend Sussanne Roshan’s store. And then I had a eureka moment: why not start a store myself? And within three months, this was done,” she adds.

Having spent most of the past decade and a half bringing up kids and playing a supporting role to her superstar husband, she feels the time is ‘perfect’ to become a fulltime entrepreneur. “Aryan ( her elder son) is in London studying. Suhana (her daughter) comes home at 5pm and gets busy with her studies. AbRam (the youngest son) is so young that I take him along wherever I go. I bring him to the store every day. He is around all the time so there is no hassle,” she reasons.

But hasn’t she been the boss for years anyway, not just at home but also of Red Chillies Entertainment? Khan catches us unawares with her answer: “Even though I am the producer of most films that come out of Red Chillies Entertainment, films are my last priority. Being a wife and mother is the most important thing for me. And then this store of mine,” she says. And before we can recover, she delivers another knockout punch. The lady, who is known as a fashionista, tells us she “hates getting dolled up” and going to parties.
“I just do it when I have to,” she says.

As we leave, we ask her what kind of support her superstar husband has provided for her latest venture.
“Financial support,” she says before adding: “And emotional support too”.

The reclusive Gauri Khan lets her guard down and talks about her new store and passion for the arts
Manish Mishra (DNA; February 16, 2014)

It’s easy to call her Bollywood’s first lady or Shah Rukh Khan’s better half but the dynamic Gauri Khan has carved her own distinctive persona over the years. The talented interior designer is ready with her unique concept store aptly called The Design Cell located in Raghuvanshi Mills, which opens this Tuesday.

Morphing passion into profession
Gauri studied art in school and worked as a graphic artist for years. Later, she joined hands with friend Sussanne Roshan and worked on a few projects. “I was always into graphic art. I started with Sussanne’s store. She thought I was creative and asked me to work with her and that’s how I started. In fact, I’m still working with her on two-to-three projects. Eventually I thought of showcasing all my pieces at a studio. The store also showcases some of Sussanne’s pieces. Since December 1, 2013, I have been collecting beautiful pieces from different parts of the world. Within two months time I was ready with my collection so it was a quick process. My target audience ranges from middle to upper class. The range is affordable starting from `2,000 and going up to `20 lakh. Some of the pieces are inspired by different art forms and cultures. There are wall furnishings, paintings, floorings, sculptures and fabrics — all under one roof. It’s more of a showcase for an apartment than a retail store,” says she.

The Idea
“What I have imagined here and created, is a showcase of design and objects which have influenced me from all across the globe. The idea for this space was to create a play of multiple elements which don’t necessarily synergise with each other, rather these elements play with each other, we have used and created a rough exposed brick wall, taken the roughness and the texture of it and juxtapose that with furniture and fabrics and curtains of the highest weave and quality that one can find,” she shares adding that , “Design is evolving in every facet, similarly I have envisioned and created this space to evolve and grow continuously. This space is a gamut of various design elements and multiple finishes that have been carefully and artistically put together to provide you with a distinct and unique appeal at every turn and nook you glance at.”

Personal style
“I am not at all into fashion right now. Today for me it’s all about being basic and comfortable. I’m most comfortable in a t-shirt and a pair of denims. When I was younger I used to dress up but now I don’t,” she says.

Secret to throwing a great party
“On special occasions I like to call people but I don’t entertain every weekend. Once in a while a party is a good thing but I’ve realised that I’m more of a home person than a party one,” says the shy hostess.

Shah Rukh’s response
“He is also very much into interiors. He encourages me to work. He wanted me to start something which was my passion and take it forward. On Valentine’s eve I was working and I forgot that it was V Day. And then I saw flowers, gifts and a fancy new Merc outside my store. I think it was very sweet of Shah Rukh to do it,” says she.

Other passions
Her envy-inducing art collection is like a cultural cornucopia. From contemporary artists to the Masters to 3D artworks — Gauri has collected pieces from every decade. Subodh Gupta is one of her fave artists. Besides arts and interiors, Gauri enjoys listening to music. “From ghazals to house music — I listen to everything.”

A fun mother
One’s keen to ask how she is as a mother. “I have three kids, what do you think? (laughs). I’m not strict at all. I let them do what they want to do. They are extremely talented and creative. I’m a very lenient mother. I think times have changed and this is a new age. We grew up in a very conservative environment. You need to let the kids be themselves. There are no rules and you need to follow your heart,” she signs off.