CLIENT: WITHHELD I AREA: 11,400 SQ FTI STATUS: COMPLETED IN 2023 I TEAM: AMBRISH ARORA, ANUSHA PULAPAKA, CHRISTOPHER GERHARDT, HARSH VARDHAN KUMAWAT, ADHIRAJ MIGLANI I PHOTOGRAPHER: ISHITA SITAWALA | THE FISHY PROJECT
The home is located on a quiet trapezoidal corner plot, abutting a park brimming with Gulmohar and Neem trees. The form of the building is a nod to the enduring legacy of the Bauhaus movement—smooth, curvilinear surfaces forming an integral element of its design vocabulary. The white sweeping profile of the front façade with its bevelled, rounded terraces borrows from the facade of the older buildings of the neighbourhood.
The layout responds to the limitation of the narrow front facade by scooping out trapezoidal voids in the residence’s front and rear. These negative volumes admit light and create openings for cross-ventilation through the deep plan while also absorbing the skew of the plot into the shape of the courtyard. The light wells permeate through the centre of the residence to let daylight deep into the lower floors.
The residence is divided into three separate apartments over four floors in an open, interactive format that draws on the typical Delhi garden bungalow typology. The lower two floors each comprise a single apartment, with the third unit spread over the top two levels. Each floor plate accommodates a generous drawing room, deep verandah and a dining area that flanks one side of the courtyard. The family room and master bedroom flank the other two faces of the court and further connect to two bedrooms around the east-facing courtyard. All bedrooms have private balconies.
The interiors comprise a clean, neutral material palette. Deep, black, leather-finished Hyderabad granite flooring contrasts with the lighter colours of the exposed concrete ceiling and white plastered walls forming a monochromatic canvas for the bespoke millwork and furniture populating the residence. Inspired by the Bauhaus and mid-century strains of the architecture, these have been designed by the owners and painstakingly hand-crafted by Mangrove Collective in oil-finished timber, metal, stone, concrete and natural fabrics.
The bespoke millwork and furniture are an assortment of family heirlooms from the owner’s previous home and some new pieces. The artwork is a collection of memories from the owners’ travels, and gifts from artist friends and family from across the globe. This mélange of texture and nostalgic form evokes a sense of warm comfort in the home; of lived memories and emotion that goes far beyond the visual.
