khosla associates

The house designed for the Architects brother Manoviraj, his wife Vedika and daughter Ahaana, derives its form from a generous L shaped configuration that spills out to a large garden and swimming pool. Its attitude was intended to be vibrant, bright and sunny reflecting the exuberant personality of the homeowner who is a prominent Indian fashion designer.

Architects Sandeep Khosla and Amaresh Anand of Khosla Associates chose the built form of the house to orient itself towards a northeastern lung space with the pool and garden being given prominence. The pool was an important aspect of the program with the family of 3 all being avid swimmers. Deep verandahs on the north and eastern sides transition between the living and dining areas to the outdoors.

The house is climate and context sensitive. The Mangalore tiled terracotta sloping roof forms are reinterpretations if the vernacular houses in the region. The tiles and slopes combat the monsoon rains and protect the house from overheating in the summer. The east and northern faces of the house are transparent and permeable: they open to the soft morning light. Contrastingly, the western and southern facades of the house are intentionally more opaque in order to protect against the fierce west and southern sun.

The material usage is also context driven. Along with the extensive use of clay terracotta roofing tiles, the flooring takes expanses of yellow jaiselmer sandstone, rough Kota stone and wood. The under layer of the tiled roof verandahs are clad in a hand woven banana fiber matting.

The spatial layout of the house makes a point to segregate the public and private spaces. While the ground floor accommodates the living and entertainment areas as well as two guest rooms, the massing on the upper level eases with just two private bedrooms and a family room.

The northwest entry via a lofty orange door leads to the living room. The living area is physically separated from the dining, kitchen and guest bedrooms by an intimate bar area which spills out into a lush courtyard with an old frangipani tree in its center.

This sheltered link serves as a lung space between living and dining areas. It also visually connects the east -west axis along the entire breadth of the site - from the court on the plots western face all the way to the steps that lead gently into the organically shaped pool to the east.

The two sloped roof forms on the upper level bedrooms have large cantilevers and are skewed in two opposing directions - one towards south and the other north.