Shintre

‘घर असावे घरासारखे नकोत नुसत्या भिंती’

When roughly translated to English, it means ‘a Home should be like a home and not just walls made from bricks.’ The client, an ex-employee from LIC Bank always believed and lived a life of simplicity and meaningfulness. Always having found peace and happiness in the small moments of life, his requirement for a house was not different. And the way Ar. Dhananjay Mahale and his team at InterArch Associates bought his vision to life, is exactly what Mr. Shintre had dreamt of.

The residence has been designed with utmost care and an eye for detail while keeping it visually minimal. The approach for designing the spaces was more inward-out so as to enjoy the surroundings and be a small part of Nature while also enjoying it. When passing by the house, you can see a unique splash of exposed materials creating curiosity for any passerby. With an aura that’s welcoming and which becomes one with the surroundings, it’s a structure that is hard to miss.

The layout of the residence is designed in a very interesting way. As soon as you enter, you are welcomed into a spacious living room with an elegant staircase having an extraordinary feature – the skylight. What is so unique about this skylight is the fact that, it has been placed so that all the natural light coming in is from the North and the residence does not require any artificial light till 7pm thus becoming a well for natural light while also making the structure more energy efficient. To enhance this stair-well it has been clad with exposed Godhra brick laid with perfection. This welcoming ambience is like a breath of fresh air for anyone entering the house. As you move into the more intimate areas, you are welcomed with a splash of bright colors of the fabric against the subtle tones of exposed materials. The bedrooms too are planned and designed with the thought of making them unique along with giving them a cozy feeling. The balconies opening out to the front of the house are given an exposed concrete finish and the canopies covering it are given a natural wood finish to maintain the natural design throughout the structure. These balconies open out to the nature and the green areas in the surroundings thus creating a picturesque image to view while sitting in the coziness of the rooms.

Another thing unique to the residence is a wind tunnel placed in a manner where all fenestrations open into it thus creating a stack effect and naturally cooling the entire house by taking out the warm air and bringing in the cold air thus maintaining a balanced ventilation system. This wind tunnel has been designed so as to get in as much natural light in to the residence and adding up to the efficiency of the structure.

The design and the effort with which this project is designed does full justice to the saying ‘Home is not just a place but a feeling’ A minimalistic design while keeping in mind all the responsibilities of sustainability and energy efficiency while also not forgetting the clients’ needs is what makes the perfect home, because at the end of the day a satisfied client is a happy client.