In Ballard Estate, a Pilates studio with a dachshund as a mascot—and really good coffee

Anyone familiar with Mumbai’s Ballard Estate will know it’s one of those charming and coveted districts that hasn’t yet been ruined by corporates. The area owned by the Port Trust was developed on reclaimed land by Scottish architect George Witten between 1914 and 1918 in a style known as European or Neo Renaissance and named after the then head of the Port Trust, General JH Ballard. Its wide, tree-lined streets and stunning Edwardian and Georgian architecture (the area even boasts of an Art Deco petrol pump!) are a nod to an erstwhile Bombay in a time when monolithic glass and chrome skyscrapers have altered the city’s skyline.

For 14 years, I worked in one of the area’s most prominent buildings, and in that decade the area, unlike the rest of the city, pretty much remained the same—a leafy commercial and business district with surprisingly limited options for food, coffee or shopping.

But in the past couple of years, Ballard Estate has built a reputation beyond Britannia’s berry pulao, becoming a magnet for retail, art, and hospitality with the opening of Galerie Isa and Galerie Mirchandani + Steinruecke, two premier art galleries, Pooja Dhingra’s Parisian-style cafe Pardon Your French, and sprawling fashion stores by Tarun Tahiliani and Rose.

On the first floor of Hamilton House, above the iconic Pundoles, lies the newest entrant to the area. Unlock Everyday, a chic coffee bar, Pilates studio and co-working space, is a space that my former colleagues and I would have killed for.

Spread over 2,000 sq ft, it’s the dream of 26-year-old Akanksha Ashish Goel, a Politics and Religious Studios major from SOAS in London, who moved back to India and launched a fragrance and sustainable clothing brand, Unlocked Studio, in November 2021. Goel, who also splits her time overseeing an arm of her family’s shipping business, was looking to create an aesthetically pleasing space in south Mumbai that was mindful, homely, and allowed for people to come together.

The staff, Goel emphasises, comprises of mostly women, from the baristas who run the coffee bar, to the vendors, and even in the artworks that line the wall. “Quite frankly, I wanted a place for myself, where I could spend the entire day,” she laughs over a latte at the week-old space. The brief she gave architects Devaunshi Bosamia and Dhwani Turakhia of Studdio Birch was simple: “Quiet luxury. It had to look like a living room, it had to be open, flowing from one space to the next with greenery and statement art.” Alongside a soft, neutral palette, pieces from Goel’s own home accent the space. These include an expansive Maison Assouline collection and a work from D Dhasan at the entryway that used to hang in her childhood bedroom.

“The three key zones of the studio have their own design language, with a cohesive palette and fluid layout. The idea was for every space to work on its own while still feeling connected as one,” says Bosamia. “We’ve kept the shell of the space minimal, easy on the eyes, and then layered on character through details—fun, bright artwork, sculptural statement lights, the pink bar of the cafe. The highlight for us is the large sliding partition at the heart of the studio, with arch mirrors on the inside and textured panels on the outside. It can be tucked away so the studio and the cafe can flow into one space as needed.”

The coffee bar, curated by Mushin Coffee House, includes decaf, matcha as well as small-batch micro-blends, and spans a wide menu that includes a nolen gur cortado, Himalayan salt mocha, and oat fig lattes. The coffees come accompanied by sesame omega-3 bliss balls created by Two Roots, which will create a weekly special item every Saturday. “We do a great banana bread that is free from all nasties, and we’re planning brownies, cookies and other specials that will change weekly,” says Goel.

The Pilates studio, with five state-of-the-art Stott machines, a tower, and a room for private sessions, has been designed in conjunction with Soleus. The Pilates sessions are currently being taught by Maree Rice, who will be in residence for a year, focusing on classical reformer Pilates. Originally from New Zealand, with stints in Bristol and Costa Rica, Rice comes with three decades of experience.

“I wanted to change the narrative of Pilates, making it a safe and welcoming space for any and every body type,” Goel says. Goel has been practicing herself for several years and credits Pilates with helping her recover from an injury. She met Rice while in London and convinced her to move to India to create an experience that is unique, personalised, and impactful.

On the mezzanine, Goel has created a co-working space with two rooms that can fit six to eight people each, and that, like the rest of the space, includes sliding doors to partition or expand. A week after its opening, on the Friday I visit, there is a Pilates session in progress, a group of friends catching up over coffee, and a couple of women on their laptops upstairs at work.

There are cute graphics throughout, and a dachshund is the space’s mascot. When Goel tells me dedicated merch is on the agenda, I’m not surprised.

“I was very particular about the identity we were creating. I worked with The Creators Project and we used my dog, Mumbles, as the inspiration for our mascot. I didn’t want just some logo; I wanted something to echo the space and build the messaging. Think about it—dogs are so friendly, they are so loving. When you leave, they wait for you to return. This city is so crazy that I wanted to design a space that you can actually breathe in. So yes, cute vibes only.”

Address: First floor, Hamilton House, Ballard Estate, Fort, Mumbai - 400001

Price: ₹22,000 onwards for Pilates packages; ₹800 per day for the co-working space