Above It All: Philip Pond Reimagines AER’s Measured Escape from The City

Mumbai is fast, crowded, and unapologetically hurried. High above its dense urban fabric, AER—the rooftop bar at Four Seasons Hotel Mumbai—offers a rare counterpoint: a moment of calibrated calm that mirrors the hotel’s broader philosophy of restraint. More than a nightlife destination, AER functions as the property’s architectural and emotional apex, distilling its design ethos into a single elevated experience. Having worked on FS Mumbai for over a decade, architect Philip Pond returns to revisit AER’s design during the 2023 renovations. 

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AER: Duality at the Rooftop

At the 34th floor, AER marks a dramatic shift in scale and sensibility. Designed by Atelier Pond, the rooftop features a retractable Wimbledon-style roof and nautically inspired interiors, divided into two distinct zones that reflect different rhythms of the city. “So with the old AER, there were essentially two parts to the venue: the main space which faces the ocean, that has marinated many aspects of the original design, even though it looks totally different,” shares Pond. “There is a whole piece of the architecture which is the retractable roof which completely changed the game,” he muses. The sea-facing Yacht Club embraces energy and openness, with arches and structured forms evoking maritime imagery and framing panoramic views of the Arabian Sea. It is social, expansive, and outward-looking; a space that celebrates Mumbai’s extroverted spirit. 

“With the Gimlet Garden, we wanted to bring this aspect of the garden to space. So the scale works really nicely to be conversational and convivial and at the same time private and exclusive,” explains Pond. “When I think about the Gimlet Garden in terms of Mumbai, I love that it has this combination of being up in the air. You see it with the furniture, everything is low and conversational, you know we’ve custom–designed all of these to sit among the plants and really feel like you’re in a garden.”

In contrast to the more outward-facing spaces, the Gimlet Garden is designed for introspection. Envisioned as a greenhouse-like retreat, it layers lush greenery, textured surfaces, and earthy tones to create a grounded, botanical escape. Elevated high above the city, it offers an unexpected quiet, inviting guests to pause without fully retreating from Mumbai’s energy.

Together, AER and the Gimlet Garden articulate the Four Seasons Mumbai’s core design philosophy: spectacle balanced with intimacy, elevation tempered by restraint. From the tower’s disciplined modernism to its layered rooftop experiences, the hotel is like a carefully choreographed ascent. At its highest point, AER becomes both destination and distillation: a spatial pause suspended above a city that never stops moving.

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Vertical Modernism in the Commercial Capital

Making its India debut in 2008, the Four Seasons Mumbai announced a contemporary vision of luxury through its 35-storey tower in Worli. Designed by John Arzarian of Hong Kong–based Lohan Associates, the building reflects a streamlined modernism increasingly associated with South Asian cities that symbolise economic progress. Its verticality is both practical and symbolic—elevating guests above the city’s relentless momentum while reinforcing exclusivity through altitude.

Originally conceived by Bilkey Llinas, the interiors balance global luxury standards with understated local sensitivity. Responding to Mumbai’s coastal climate, the design prioritised light, ventilation, and comfort. Heavy ornamentation was deliberately avoided in favour of refined materials—stone, wood veneers, and a neutral palette of beige and brown—punctuated by onyx architraves and light bridges that add moments of drama within largely vertical spaces.

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Acutely aware of its unique location, Pond uses the ocean and the seamlessly blended sea and heights – a curious and uniquely Mumbai blend as inspiration for AER. “There is no better design feature than the horizon and the clean and just the pre-existing condition of the location of this building and the way that it works,” he admits. Movement through the hotel is intentionally legible. “The feeling of cruising across the ocean, of being in this nautical environment at sunset with the breeze and the atmosphere,” he explains, is at the core of the redesign. “The movement of the roof is the perfect way to top off this experience.