Outside, Delhi hums with restless energy; inside, Refuge unfolds in soft, sensuous curves. Rooted in the brief for this 3,200 sq. ft. resto-bar was a singular intent: to craft an escape where the city’s momentum dims just enough for visitors to let go of the day they arrived with. For Studiio Dangg, this vision meant creating a sculptural interior, one where planes soften, edges dissolve, and volumes drift into one another, cultivating a sense of weightlessness and calm that pervades the space.
Project Name: Refuge
Studio Name: Studiio Dangg
The material palette echoes this softened rhythm, with plaster, metal, wood and fabric settling into neutral hues that deepen the space’s sensorial drift. “There is no beginning or end here. It is a continuum of surfaces and sensations that fold into one another,” shares Manav Dang, founder and principal architect of Studiio Dangg. “Everything comes together so naturally here that space and sculpture really feel inseparable.”
Spread across two levels, the lower floor opens to a coffee space, where intimate seating clusters invite conversation and quiet pauses. Plaster walls and ceilings bend and curve with an almost liquid grace, their sculptural rhythm dissolving the sense of structure. Around them, deep walnut panelling adds warmth, while rounded furniture gently cradles its occupants. Reflective brass accents on the coffee counter, along with subtle metallic details throughout, catch the light, punctuating the muted palette with fleeting glimmers.
A wooden-clad staircase leads to the upper level, where the bar area anchors the space with a bespoke 42-foot bar table in soothing umber hues. Behind it, custom Ramé sculptures by Nitush-Aroosh adorn the bar display. Made of stainless steel, their shapes twist and ripple like molten metal, reflecting the project’s overall sense of movement and dynamism. The lounge area sits quietly, part of an unbroken composition. Plush fabrics follow suit: smooth red leather meets cow-print fur, their contrasting textures adding depth and sensory intrigue.
Light, like texture, has a rhythm in Refuge. Custom Molecule Pendant lights hover above seating areas, while brass sconces scatter soft light across walls and ceilings. Amber pools creep into corners, fill crevices, and drape edges in shadow, revealing textures and forms in fleeting, unexpected ways so that visitors move not just through a space, but through an atmosphere that feels alive and ever-changing.
To enter Refuge is to soften, almost unconsciously, into its quiet choreography of form, texture, and light. The space unfolds around you with quiet deliberation, each surface and gesture carefully composed to guide the senses. Here, design becomes experience, felt in the body as much as in the eye. And in that stillness, Refuge does exactly what its name promises: it offers a moment apart from the city’s rush.
