Rasshied Din says that when he was picked to design a museum devoted to Diana Princess of Wales at Althorp, her family home, he wasn't prepared for the response. "I never dreamed the interest in this would be so overwhelming," says the veteran interior designer. "In terms of scale it is not a big project -- but I'm learning every day how important it really is."

Indeed, Din, 41, has worked on far more demanding endeavors than this: converting a 12,000-square-foot stable on the Spencer estate, about 75 miles northwest of London, into a public tribute to the life of a princess. Yet the moment tickets to the museum -- which, during its first year, will be open from July 1 until Aug. 30 -- went on sale Jan. 5, it became obvious that the world's obsession with the late princess continues. At one point, 10,000 calls were received in a single minute; two-thirds of the entire batch of 152,000 available tickets sold out in a week.

The museum plan also sparked a controversy, with many Brits questioning the appropriateness of charging admission as well as the cost of the tickets -- about $15.20. For that, visitors will get to view the burial site, which is on an island, from the edge of the lake that surrounds it. They will also be able to tour the museum, dine at its restaurant and buy a select range of goods "inspired by Diana but not cheapening her in any way," according to the official Althorp Web site. Lou McGrath, director of the Mines Advisory Group, one of Di's favorite causes, opposes the ticket sales. "If people want to pay their respects," he says, "they should be able to do that without incurring a cost." Despite the naysayers, the Spencers, led by Diana's brother Charles, 33, are standing firm, saying a charge is necessary to cover setup costs and that any profits will go to the charitable fund established in Diana's memory.

Din, who is doing his best to keep away from the controversy, says the result will impress even the most jaded critics. "I feel privileged doing this project, and I would love to have met [Princess Diana]," he says. Though most of the exhibits have yet to be chosen, the Spencer family confirms that they will include home movies that her late father shot and mementoes like the tiara Di wore on her wedding day -- but perhaps not her wedding dress, which royal experts think may find a home in London. There will, however, be other dresses, Din says, "that people will recognize from glamorous functions, and her everyday wear." The project "is going to show a positive side of everything she did."

Although at ease with such a rarefied commission, Din, who lives in South London, was not to the manor born. The seventh of 10 children of Matab, an owner of two fish-and-chips shops, and Hilda, a homemaker, Din shocked his parents when he was 15 by painting the walls, ceiling and floors of his bedroom a stark white. "We all used to laugh at him," says his brother Ayub, 36. "But we are laughing on the other side of our cheeks now." After graduating with a degree in interior design from Birmingham University in 1980, Din made his mark doing retail design in London. (His U.S. work includes Joop's Miami store and various Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger shops.) Din "has a theatrical approach to his work," says theater set designer Tim Hatley, a longtime pal. "He is fantastically good with light and space. The clean, simple lines mark him out."

Last year a former client close to the Spencer family asked Din if he would be interested in working on the Althorp project. This month, after a few interviews with representatives of Earl Spencer, his South London design company, Din Associates, won the commission. Din has since met the earl, who he says "is setting the tone and providing direction." He has also talked with Di's sisters Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Lady Jane Fellowes and with Di's former butler Paul Burrell. "The overriding impression I get of [Diana] is of a warm and kind person," says Din. "She was a modern woman, and we want to show her life and lifestyle in a contemporary way." To that end, he says, the museum's content will change constantly "so that what is happening to the charity money and what projects have been initiated can be explained each year."

He hopes that the museum will not become a shrine to Diana's death but rather a celebration of her life. Still, he realizes that may simply be beyond his control. "I don't think you set out to design a shrine," he says. "It is created by people."