Sarosh Zaiwalla
Renowned lawyer Sarosh Zaiwalla lives in a modest apartment in London’s fashionable Pont Street. An eminent member of London’s legal fraternity and the Baltic Exchange, Sarosh Zaiwalla’s firm (Zaiwalla and Co.) specialises in shipping and mercantile law. He is well known as the lawyer who won the libel suit for the Bachchans against Dagens Nyheter after they were accused by the Swedish newspaper in the Bofors case. Very recently, he was in the news again when he accompanied Britain’s Deputy Prime Minister Michael Heseltine on a trade mission to China.
Zaiwalla’s apartment is a simple but elegant one, devoid of any razzmatazz. Still, the building in which he lives is significant. It housed the famous poet Sir Alfred Lord Tennyson once upon a time. Zaiwalla moved into this Edwardian apartment situated on the third floor just a few months ago, following his divorce, and very wisely he has left it in its pristine condition.
The apartment has a living-cum-dining-room, and a hallway flanked by the kitchen and the children’s room, leading towards the master bedroom. There is nothing sophisticated in this house. It is, however, bright and airy due to the high ceiling and huge windows. The light blue upholstery with floral patterns in white suits the relaxed atmosphere. Even the walls are white, with inbuilt shelves half-filled with artefacts and a couple of paintings. On the left side of the living-room is the exquisite dining table with eight chairs made of rosewood.
The apartment does, however, provide an ideal ambience for both formal and informal entertaining and, with an international circle of friends, he certainly does a lot of it. “I prefer a relaxed occasion, though,” he confesses. Inevitably, the parties spill into the lengthy hallway filled with various paintings. The spacious master bedroom again stands out in subtle elegance. Three paintings of Roman emperors hang above the bed.
“This house suits my lifestyle,” says Sarosh Zaiwalla, who loves to spend his weekends at his Sussex home with his family.
Text: Kevin Rego (London)
Photographs: Angus Thompson