India House

cultural continuity:
india house draws on the historical prototype of the maharashtrian urban “wada” employing a central courtyard and austere exterior walls with, restrained apertures. it uses a sequence of forecourts to attain climate control, security and privacy within a chaotic booming city context. contemporary elements such as louvers allude to traditional screens, or “jaalis,” that welcome breezes and control glare. it employs cultural continuity in an unobtrusive manner to achieve a solution to a complex building program.

environmental sustainability and micro climate:
india house uses non-toxic, natural materials to achieve its ives. recycled teak wood from a century old mill is used within the structure. natural north light reduces dependency on artificial illumination and allows each inhabitant external views. insulation in the roof and layered walls reduce heat loads. rain water is recycled and on-site wormy-culture recycles biomass. large palm trees were saved from a road widening and transplanted to the site. adjustable louvers allow the control of light, breeze and privacy within habitable spaces. they temper the sunlight conditions in the seasons. water bodies at either end of the courtyard chill breezes as they are pulled through the funnel.

historical identity:
iconography in sandstone recalls india’s complex and multi-cultural history, as do antique artifacts integrated within the built fabric.

human dignity:
all communities are honored in the personally designed and chiseled iconography of india house. all belief systems are welcomed through their “place” in the motifs that adorn the structure. indian craftspeople were intensely employed to create the stone walls, floors and art work.

leading toward the future:
the project demonstrates that a variety of solutions to new urban functions can be found within age-old prototypes. the composition marks a departure form the alien bungalow prototype; a negation of the “gated community;” and a rejection of the glass curtain walls and imported acp aluminum sheet facades. india house implies a form of critical regionalism without resort to crass ethnicity or vulgar nationalism.