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Because the weekend approaches, 4 pals make their means from Chennai to the coastal village of Kuvathur, 80 km from town. Right here, a farmhouse awaits them and their households.
The home in query is hidden from the remainder of the world, strategically sandwiched amongst a dense development of bushes. Birdsong and whiffs of the ocean are welcome visitors, whereas the hustle of town has no place on this a part of city.
Ask the buddies the explanation for this unconventional alternative of a weekend getaway, and so they say they’d decide it any day over a metropolis resort.
One in every of them, Shaji Ravi, has an affinity for aesthetic designs. His house ‘Mathilummoottil’ constructed and conceptualised by RAIN Studio of Design in 2018 is a testomony to this. The house boasts an interaction of rustic textures with wooden, brass and lime plaster as the principle components. So taken up was Ravi with the result that he reached out to the architectural agency for yet one more dream challenge quickly after.
In June 2021, he alongside together with his pals — all IT professionals from Chennai — hatched a dream to have a sustainable getaway inbuilt Kuvathur.
And principal architects of RAIN Studio of Design, Vamsi Krishna M, Sriram Adhitya, and Balashanmugam, had been greater than ecstatic to check out their sustainable concepts on this massive canvas.
Following commencement from the College of Structure & Planning, Anna College, Chennai, the trio has undertaken a slew of housing initiatives. Every prides itself on a singular design philosophy — wooden and travertine marble buildings, geometrical play of supplies, and so on.
Nevertheless, sustainability was not the preliminary thought for the ‘Karai’ weekend house, as Ravi shares. “Coming from an IT background with a busy life within the city jungle, all we wished was a standard calm weekend house with which means that connects with nature. We didn’t have any sustainable concepts in thoughts.”
Nevertheless, Vamsi and his crew took one have a look at the 21,600 sq ft property and knew it was a piece of nature. They had been eager that this interprets into the ultimate design. Thus started the year-long journey of setting up the sustainable dream within the coronary heart of Kuvathur.
Revisiting one’s roots
Vamsi’s digital tour of the place provides a glimpse into how pure supplies make for glorious decisions in structure. As he says, the house speaks the language of nature. And he isn’t incorrect.
The 4 pals, Shaji Ravi, Sanjeev Britto, Prabhakar Munuswamy, and Madhavan GG, made the transient clear on the onset. “They wished a easy construction that would accommodate all 4 households,” notes Vamsi.
The buddies had been impressed by conventional South Indian properties and had been searching for a standard nalukettu home (a standard sort of structure present in Kerala, characterised by an oblong form composed of 4 sections joined by an open courtyard and a sloped roof).
“The plan was very easy.”
However, as with every challenge, the design is closely depending on the essence of the location the place it’s constructed. And, as Vamsi factors out, this was no completely different.
“Common visits to the situation, accompanied by casual conversations with the shopper performed a pivotal function in shaping our inventive journey. On our preliminary visits, we obtained a way of the local weather of the area. The climate is harsh and humid for a lot of the yr. And so, choosing breathable supplies in development is the only option. We needed to decide supplies that age effectively,” he provides.
All through the development course of, the architects tied of their concepts with the shoppers’ needs of conventional architectural kinds. Vamsi shares, “We delved into cultural references that resonated with each the heritage of the area and the aspirations of the current.”
Just a few cases the place that is evident is the interspersion of conventional South Indian motifs and designs unfold throughout the house — the long-lasting kuthuvelaku (a decorative brass lamp fabricated from a sequence of diyas), the intricate ikat patterns, and the timeless vizhaku madam (a standard wall mount).
Unconventional sources of magnificence
At first look, the house’s spatial aesthetic is a head-turner. However look once more and you will notice, the wonder is lent by buildings which can be fabricated from reclaimed materials. Whereas that is the pleasure of the challenge, it was additionally probably the most difficult half, factors out Vamsi.
“We saved upcycling as our core ideology, however there was intense analysis concerned on this. We got here up with loads of iterations and managed to make use of the reclaimed supplies to their highest potential.” He refers back to the Mangalore tiles that make up 75 % of the house.
Along with this, Vamsi says they discovered loads of recycled, reclaimed home windows, and doorways, ripped off from previous conventional homes on the freeway. They determined to channel these into the challenge. “In actual fact, by repurposing the doorways and home windows, the wastage in supplies and the carbon footprint of constructing new supplies has been minimize down.”
As we transfer alongside the rooms, there’s modernity combined with custom. “The ensuing design gives a contemporary perspective on the cultural legacy embedded in our architectural endeavours,” Vamsi says.
As the buddies crave for weekends to jet off to the property, the crew of architects is inexplicably happy with their creation.
“This was all barren,” Vamsi shares. However although met with this visible after they first undertook the challenge, the trio determined to show it round by bringing in fertile soil from a neighbouring village and laying it on the land. They then proceeded to develop tropical and native bushes right here overlaying virtually 60 % of the realm.
Evidently, in the present day they’ve managed to create a thriving ecosystem.
Vamsi provides, “The excavated soil was reused for plasters and in making the Compressed Stabilised Earth Blocks (CSEB).”
In actual fact, the mini forest serves extra functions than one. It acts as a cushion for the sprawling 4 bedrooms with an hooked up bathtub and kitchenette setup.
As Vamsi explains, “We wished the home to be hidden inside a dense lush inexperienced panorama, so we positioned it within the southwest nook of the property and landscaped your entire north aspect. The rooms and different dwelling areas such because the eating and kitchen are organised across the linear brick-laid courtroom. The lounge acts like a stage that overlooks the ocean and the horizon past. In the meantime, the ‘mutram’ or the courtroom acts as a multifunctional area to relaxation.”
This strategic positioning additionally signifies that 70 % of the home is open – to daylight and sea breeze. Other than these sustainable spatial options, there are additionally measures for rainwater harvesting on the property. “The sloping roof collects the vast majority of the rainwater and harvests it in a tank of 30,000 litres,” Vamsi notes.
Conscientiousness in the direction of nature’s assets radiates all through the property. In each nook and cranny, there’s area to breathe and keep nonetheless. As night units over the property, the buddies may be seen enjoyable, lazing and having fun with the silence. Shaji Ravi, in the meantime, has a spot he favours above all the remaining.
The swing. “It’s nearer to the courtyard and barely shaded by the tree, with a phenomenal breeze flowing by. It’s the most alive area of Karai.”
Edited by Padmashree Pande.
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