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by Sean Hill on Apr 2, 2025
Poblenou is changing. Again.
The old factories, print houses and workshops of Barcelona’s industrial heart are now home to coffee roasters, ceramicists, studios, and spaces built on intention. But behind a dusty storefront on C/Maria Aguiló, something new - and yet deeply rooted - is quietly taking shape.
Mallika, founder of Indoi, peeling back the layers: uncovering the original wall textures during the renovation of INDOI ghar, revealing the quiet history of the space.
Welcome to INDOI ghar (घर).
A space being crafted, not just constructed.
Not Just a Store
When Mallika Chaudhuri, founder of INDOI, first walked through the space, she didn’t see a typical shop. She saw a home. A place where craft, culture, and community could live together, not as branding, but as truth. A place to pause, connect, and honour where things come from.
Bringing the floor back to life: gently polishing the original terrazzo tiles to reveal their soft sheen and natural warmth - a quiet centrepiece of INDOI ghar.
So instead of designing a conventional retail interior, we at RISE Design Studio have been helping her unearth something more elemental.
Our Design Philosophy: Reveal, Don’t Replace
The construction process hasn’t been fast. Nor should it be.
Building together: painting, prepping, and transforming the space as a team — the renovation of INDOI ghar was as much about community as it was about design
We’ve taken our time stripping back layers of the building’s past. Old vinyl tiles have been lifted to reveal terrazzo flooring that hasn't seen daylight in decades. Timber doors - choked with paint and varnish - are being patiently brought back to life, their original grain now beginning to breathe again.
Stripping back layers of paint and varnish to reveal the original timber doors - a careful process of restoration at the heart of INDOI ghar’s design approach
Where many fit-outs would plaster, polish, and overwrite, we’ve chosen to listen to the space. To let it speak. Every crack in the wall, every uneven patch of floor, every handmade repair - they’re all part of the story we’re choosing to keep.
Colour in context: selecting natural limewash tones in response to the textures and traces revealed on the original walls of INDOI ghar.
Building a Space That Holds Meaning
This isn’t about minimalism for its own sake. It’s about choosing materials with history. It’s about using what we have - or what we can reclaim - instead of ordering new. From reclaimed pine shelving to limewashed walls and secondhand lighting, every decision is guided by values, not trends.
Two doors, two stories: one in the midst of being stripped, the other nearly restored — revealing the layered beauty hidden beneath decades of paint at INDOI ghar
We’ve worked hand-in-hand (literally) with Mallika and her family - sanding, lifting, painting, rewiring. There’s no contractor curtain here. Everyone is part of the process. There have been early mornings, sore arms, and plenty of tea. But also laughter, learning, and a lot of heart.
Painting with purpose - and a few laughs along the way. Every part of INDOI ghar, even the stairwell, was shaped by collaboration and care
What’s Coming
The front of the space will house INDOI’s full collection - garments made from natural fabrics and steeped in tradition - alongside curated objects: homeware, incense, textiles, and storytelling.
Crafting the details: sanding a handmade table destined for the heart of INDOI ghar - where every piece has a purpose and every finish tells a story
But there’s more.
Beneath the mezzanine, a workshop space is taking shape - a room for hosting visible mending circles, natural dyeing classes, pattern-cutting sessions, and conversations about slow fashion. Upstairs, we’re setting up a design studio and a quiet tea room. A place to reflect. To share ideas. To rest.
Tools of intention: Bauwerk limewash paint and natural pigments ready for application — chosen for their breathability, beauty, and alignment with INDOI ghar’s sustainable ethos
What We’re Building Is a Feeling
You won’t find glowing signage or glossy displays here. INDOI ghar isn’t designed to sell at speed. It’s a space for slowness. For remembering that behind every object, whether stitched, carved, poured, or printed, is a person. A place. A story.
Stirred by hand: mixing Bauwerk’s natural limewash paint - a sustainable choice that brings depth, softness, and breathability to the walls of INDOI ghar
And while we’re still sanding doors and fine-tuning light fittings, something is already alive in the space. A presence. A purpose.
Opening Soon
Getting close to completion.
Family roots: with helping hands from the in-laws, the courtyard garden at INDOI ghar began to take shape - a space nurtured with as much care as the interior
So if you’re wandering Poblenou in the coming weeks and notice a quiet flurry of activity behind number 83, know that something meaningful is on its way. And once we open our doors, we hope you’ll step inside.
The magic ingredient: Bauwerk’s vibrant blue pigment - once mixed into the limewash, it must be applied within 24 hours, capturing colour at its most alive
Have some tea. Touch the fabrics. Ask about the story behind that table or those earings. Stay awhile.
INDOI ghar
C/ Maria Aguiló, 83 Bajos 1
08005. Poblenou, Barcelona
Coming soon.
Craft. Culture. Community.
Made by hand. Made with heart.
Clearing the view: restoring the original timber windows at INDOI ghar - a final touch that lets the light back in while preserving the soul of the space.
If you would like to talk through your project with the team, please do get in touch at architects@risedesignstudio.co.uk or give us a call on 020 3947 5886
RISE Design Studio Architects company reg no: 08129708 VAT no: GB158316403 © RISE Design Studio. Trading since 2011.
