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58 Indian heritage is paid with decorative elements throughout the house, such as large floor pillows made from silk wedding saris woven with pure gold thread, which they purchased on a family trip to India. Others, such as intricate bone- inlay side tables, were inherited. An antique typewriter and a vintage law book that belonged to Preeta's great- grandfathers on both sides is displayed in the living room. The spacious meditation room located at the end of a long gallery, Preeta says, is "the true center of our home and connects us back to our culture." The entrance features a pair of 300-year-old carved temple doors from India, procured from Art of Old India in Dallas. Furnished sparingly with floor pillows, an altar, and a love seat, the room is a sacred space for listening to music, dancing, and playing traditional Indian instruments such as the tanpura and the sitar, which their daughter is learning. "Music is a spiritual connection, so we put it all into one room," says Ashish, who describes himself as an audiophile. Five-foot-tall vintage horn speakers and tubes broadcast melodies from all cultures. "The kids come in, and we listen to everything from Nina Simone to Radiohead and classic Bollywood favorites. They sometimes fall asleep listening to music." Interior designer Joshua Rice, who was recommended by Nimmo, strove to create comfortable rooms that harmonized with their heritage and love of modernism. "It needed to be livable," Rice says. "They didn't want a bunch of Mies van der Rohe chairs and an uncomfortable sofa — like the lobby of a bank." Choices were made with family in mind, but always with the expectation that each piece must be special, beautiful, and have intrinsic value. Rice also gave a nod to Danish design, which he says blends well with the clean architecture and the family's Indian furniture. An 11- THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE WAS HOW TO CREATE A BEAUTIFUL HOME FILLED WITH PALE ANTIQUES WITH FOUR CHILDREN IN RESIDENCE. A slice of the master bedroom is seen from the center courtyard. Exterior wood is mahogany. Photo Costa Christ.