As the name suggests, the design concept of Illuminati is shrouded in mystery which is exemplified in its predominately black and white theme, which is reminiscent of royalty and power normally associated with these two colors. The whole technical set-up for sound and lighting was carefully sourced accordingly.

The narrative of the illuminati society has been steeped in mystery and intrigue and this is translated to the design by the symbolic triangular of the logo.
The major challenge in designing the lighting and sound system at Illuminati was that the client wanted a space that could work as a restaurant during the day and a bar during the night and turn to a lounge with a clubby vibe during the week ends.

These initial requirements from the client (Mr. Gaurav Bakaya and Mr. Akhilesh Rao of AGA hospitality) threw up enormous Interior design and technical challenges. SLA & Amate Audio were bought to India by White Eagle Entertainment, New Delhi.
They also designed and executed the lighting and sound system along with Mumbai interior design firm DesignWorx, providing an innovative solution to meet the challenges required for the space. The whole project was managed and executed by Transform Projects Pvt Ltd.

Triangle inspiration

Just like the interiors, lighting too draws its inspiration from the Triangle which is star spangled along the two prominent dome structures. These triangular lighting system has been painstakingly and intricately custom designed to illuminate on both side in order to create an illusion of infinity and space. Most of the lighting fixtures have been customized to the unique requirements of the space and had to meet the design intend.

A vertical moving Light truss and rotating truss have been juxtaposed to creating multiply effects when the place needs transcends into the lounge zone. This movement also helped in camouflaging the technical lights when the place needed to switch back into the restaurant mode.

The sound system had been challenged due to large reflective surfaces of mirrors and glass across the space. These were addressed by using facets and some innovative sound dispersion techniques.

Lighting is programmed by a prefssional software controlling pixel-like each of the 500 odd triangle in color and intensity. This provides a wide range of lighting schemes and patterns combinations, as seen in the best international night clubs.

The passage to the toilet block is spewed by laser beams to give an effect of entering a Star Wars movie set. The end result of Architectural design, lights and sound have created a mystical yet magical experience and the guest feel transported to a world of realm often seen in sci- fi movies.
“This is Matrix meets Tron meets Inception kind of vibe and becomes a close encounter of a different kind!” quotes Akhilesh Rao Aga hospitality.

While this is the first venture of this kind that Akhilesh there’s a lot of room for growth and expansion. The team is already looking at a potential venue in other cities in India and look forward to working with White Eagle Entertainment. “This is our Launchpad.” Arun Kalra from White Eagle Entertainment quoted.

1,000 LED fitted

This installation has been a changing and time consuming but was very successful at the end. As the triangular made for the custom made domes where specially made in acrylic and fitted with a LED which would be able to be seen from both sides of the dome and they were 1,000 of them! Each had to be fitted with the LED and place correctly to insure it could be seen from both sides after which we had to glue them.

DesignWorx remarks “We also had a challenge as the venue had a very low celling height and the client wanted a truss which could be recessed in to the ceiling during the dining hours and once the venue turned in to a club the lights could move in to action and the main sound will be turned on with the surround sound.”
The interiors, draws its inspiration from the Triangle which has manifested itself in many ways in the flooring pattern, in black and white marble resonates with the faceted three dimensional faceted mirrored ceiling which creates the illusion of height and space as well as the reflective Jalli work along the façade.

The highlight of the design is the two dome structure with houses the VIP seating. This intricately designed metal Jalli structure is star spangled with custom designed triangular prism shaped lighting fixture which has be painstakingly and intricately shaped to illuminate on both side in order to create an illusion of infinite possibilities.

The other challenge to overcome the changing need of the space during the day and night was achieved by using a vertical moving light truss holding the technical lights which would hide behind a vortex shape in the ceiling.
A rotating truss have been juxtaposed with the vertical moving truss to creating multiply lighting effects when the place transcends into the lounge zone.

The end result of interior design, lights and sound have created a mystical yet magical experience and the guest feel transported to a world of realm often seen in sci- fi movies.

More information on Amate Audio and SLA lighting products.