Everyone thought medicine would be the obvious career choice for Meera Pyarelal, the daughter of a Padma Shri award-winning surgeon; however, destiny had other plans for her. Armed with a Masters in English literature, she discovered her love for interiors while doing up her own apartment way back in 1999. She decided to give it a try and set up a small unit in her husband’s garage 20 years ago, giving wings to her creative side. After two decades of earning a name for herself in the interiors industry, she conceived her own brand — Temple Town — with the aim of designing and manufacturing sophisticated pieces of colonial furniture. “The objective of the store is to preserve and promote traditional Indian designs and craftsmanship, which is slowly getting lost in the sands of time,” Meera begins, explaining that her furniture range is based on antiques, re-imagined and created for modern Indian living, all the while holding on to Kerala’s rich and colourful tradition of luxurious craftsmanship.“Colonial furniture are the best creative collaboration between the east and the west and hence the only way to enjoy the best of both worlds. It is all about creating an heirloom which you can pass on to the next generations,” she says.
