Picture: Allindiansummer.in

The West Bengal region of the country’s rich cultural fabric is a haven for art lovers. With a rich history of preserving art, culture and tradition, Bengali interior design presents a plethora of opportunities to modern designers to carve out the perfect ambience for people having a knack for aesthetically pleasing and calm design. If you are someone who believes in the potential of art and antiquities of Bengal, give your interiors a splash of Bengali dazzle by bringing in these six decor elements.

1. Bengali Interior Design Wooden furniture

bengali interior design

Picture: bengalinterior.co.in

The Bengali admiration of wood, typically dark-polished, is often quite evident in Satyajit Ray films. The ample use of woodworks in sofa sets, divans, chairs, tables, cabinets, beds, doors and colonnades in the interiors comes with a vast spectrum of functionality and convenience. Typically, these wooden elements in Bengali households appear in semi-open areas like the courtyard or verandah. 

Although most of the Bengali homes feature teak and rosewood woodwork, you can take the liberty to work with the wood that is native to your area and will suit you the best.  

2. Art is an inherent part of Bengali Culture.

bengali interior design

Picture: bengalinteriors.co.in

Right from the times of colonised India, The Bengal School of Art, an Avante Garde art movement that flourished in the early 1900s inspired artists all over the country to be more vocal with their brushes. Since then, Bengali artists in every art form are capturing the stage. 

Bengali art decor, much like the Madhubani painting style from Bihar, is considered a torchbearer for traditional interior design. Kalighat paintings, originated in the 19th century, in the Kalighat area of Bengal, portray mythological characters and scenes and can be perfect for the wall you’ve left blank for a while now.  

Folk paintings always have the upper hand in creating a traditional appeal to the interiors, something that gives the owners a sense of belonging and identity. 

3. Antiques and collectables that leave your guests drooling!

Bengali interior design

Most Bengali households have antique pieces from the grandparents’ abode, souvenirs from their tours and one-of-a-kind showpieces that express their love for the soil. 

Elements like antique clocks, archaic devices like gramophones, old radio sets, vintage photo frames and souvenirs from trips can create a soulful appeal even in the most mundane and tasteless corners of your house! 

4. Bookshelf 

bengali interior design

Whether it is the bedroom or a more formal place like the living room, most of the traditional Bengali households carry a badge of being avid readers. The sweet smell of old books wrapped in dark wooden cabinets in the room is often holding a lot of design value and can add to your aesthetics! 

5. Kantha-stitched textiles in the Bengali Interior Design

Bengali interior design

Kantha is one of the oldest forms of Indian embroidery. Bengali women would layer saris and stitch them in Kantha fashion to make quilts and bedsheets. 

Soft furnishings with vibrant colours, Kantha-stitched duvets, cushions and runners can do wonders to your interior design. 

6. Terracotta products

bengali interior design

Last but not least, the Indian interior design regardless of state and region is incomplete without the use of terracotta. Terracotta finds applications in most of the traditional interior design schemes known for a characteristically earthy appeal. These decorative sculptures are part and parcel of classical Bengali interior design.  

Therefore, terracotta pots, vases, candelabras, showpieces, wall-hangings and other accessories can transform your home into a cosy Bengali household with a touch of soulful solitude and earthy joy!