Eva's Eye: Eva Shivdasani

The Jungle Reserve, Soneva Fushi.
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Eva Shivdasani of Six Senses Resorts & Spas talks to Selina Denman about understated, intelligent design

She’s the Eva in Soneva – one half of one of hospitality’s most dynamic duos. Wife of Sonu Shivdasani and co-creator of the Six Senses Resorts & Spas brand, Eva Shivdasani is part of a fairytale couple best known for transforming a simple dream into one of the most luxurious and highly-regarded hospitality brands in the world.

While Sonu brought the resources and management expertise, Eva had ‘the eye’, the style and the design concepts. Together they developed a unique philosophy of simple sophistication; a blending of luxury and nature that is entirely respectful of its environment.

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FEATURED COMMENT WAy to go; Sonu & Eva I especially like your sustainable practices and hope to use your facilities sometime in the near   1 Comments Read more comments »

Six Senses, which operates the Soneva, Hideaway, Latitudes and Evason brands, was essentially created to take luxury back to its most basic forms. And, exacting and inspired, Eva has been responsible for making Six Senses resorts some of the most sensitively designed in the world. Here, she talks exclusively to CID about the Six Senses ethos, her inborn eye for design and how simple female intuition can make a world of difference.

What was the inspiration behind the Six Senses brand?
Ever since I visited the Maldives for the first time, I always loved the untouched beauty and the simple way of life, the white sands, clear water and warm climate.

After I met Sonu, we conceived an intelligent luxury philosophy combining simple sophistication and a different kind of luxury. Together, we wanted to develop a resort that would satisfy our desires to create the dream destination for those that wanted to totally relax. We also had an overwhelming desire to protect the environment.

With this in mind, Soneva Fushi was born in 1995. Sonu and I took responsibility for the design and style concepts. When it comes to a Soneva, Sonu and I are intimately involved with every aspect of the property. We ensure that every resort reflects the style of Six Senses.

We then spent the next decade expanding our concept into the global resort company it is today.  We never compromise on our core beliefs of providing the ultimate experiences in luxury travel accommodation and service, whilst balancing this with a love and respect for the environment.

How do you define luxury? How does this manifest itself in the design of a Six Senses resort?
Intelligent luxury – luxury that is not, of course, so obvious. It does not have to be silver, marble or gold. Intelligent luxury is not what you normally get.

There are many examples. It can be simple things like having sand under your feet in a restaurant. Privacy is also extremely important. It could be picking and eating fresh salad from the resort’s own vegetable gardens. It may be an open-air space, especially in temperate climates, as this is more comfortable than an air-conditioned, marble-floored dining room.

In the Maldives, you don’t even have to pack shoes. On your arrival, your shoes go into a little bag that says ‘no news, no shoes’, and you can walk barefoot for the rest of the stay. All of these examples are part of our intelligent luxury philosophy. You don’t have to worry about anything, as it is private and relaxed.