Client brief: The client is from a marine background and they are into marine rescue operations and marine engineering. His main house is in Ahmedabad and workplace is in Porbandar and coastal areas. Thus, he chose a nice place close to the airport in Vanana, Porbandar. He approached us during covid times and there were various design discussions on the style and language of the house over 4-5 different concepts and plans.
Site brief: The piece of land measures 65,000 sq. feet approximately. The client had a very simple requirement of 3 bedrooms, large openings with as much of a green connect as possible. “I want a very soothing and functional house” is what he said infact! The house had to be parent friendly as it was to be used by his in- laws most of the times. Out of the 3-4 options, one with a ‘C’ shaped house with all requirements spreaded at one level was taken ahead.
Design: The moment you enter the plot, a long driveway amidst the green leads you to the porch. One large white wall mass which accommodates the entire house behind it catches one’s attention. The wall has dented plaster in and out, creating a unique texture. Sunlight on the wall renders it beautifully, lending it a different dimension. With the whole house hidden behind this wall, just one box done in wood and glass peeps out of this wall. The curious decor inside, builds further interest. This glass box holds a beautiful sculpture by Ashish Das which gives a good connect of art – inside – out!
The main entry to the house is through a long porch finished in wood, with a tall wooden door starkly contrasting against the white dented wall. This door opens in the foyer where you encounter a beautiful painting of Balaji. The moment you enter the house, the greens are visible on either sides. Right side of the entrance is a high ceiling living room holding nothingness except needful seating arrangement and an art of ‘Dashavtaar’ which was procured at the time of execution of the house. And that art is something that is governing the design but is also soul of the space.
Travelling further inside the house, we come across the dining and family living room. This space opens up into a small covered deck area with low seating arrangement, close to the kitchen. On the other side of this space is a deck with a long pool. All these spaces – kitchen, dining, family living, outdoor covered deck, pool – deck spaces are interwoven with each other and with nature as well. These areas are quite transparent in terms of a seamless visual connect.
Location of the swimming pool is again one of the USP’s of the house which is held between a tall living room to the left and a master bedroom to the right. Also it falls between the living – dining and garden space. Reflectivity of the sky in the pool amidst the white walls with its fluted plaster, creates a mesmerizing visual. A circular sunken seating space outside the formal living area offers a unique experience of outdoor seating. This area feels as if a moment frozen in time!
There are three bedrooms in the house, of which the master bedroom is placed next to the pool and front garden space. Opposite it across the passage are two more bedrooms placed next to each other. Each one has an alcove of its own – with a deck that opens up into a Zen garden at the back. The bathrooms for all the bedrooms are very soothing. The layout is very clean, simple and minimal with skylight and open shower giving a different kind of energy to the space. The toilet for master bedroom is a spa like space with the whites and blues further adding to the vibe of the space. Infact overall interiors of the house have a very subtle and elegant palette of whites, pops of blues and textures of wood and glass. All composed minimally, framed by the surrounding greens and rendered by sunlight at all times!
Landscape for the house again is an extension to this language of simplicity. A vast carpet of green lawn with indigenous species of plants dotted and clustered carefully compose the outdoors well. The plantation is a mix of a lot of wild grasses as well!