The topography of the land, the material memory of the surrounding forts, the light of the forest, and the deep-water discharging ravines have created a dominant palimpsest of contextual parameters onto which the house has been woven.

Client: Kamal Malik
Location: Lonavala
Site Area: 5.2 Acres
Built-Up Area: 18,000 sq.ft. (1670 sqm)
Status: Completion 2017
Design Team: Kamal Malik, Arjun Malik, Ketan Chaudhary, Sundeep Sarangi, Suzzana Machado
Photography: Bharath Ramamrutham, Sergio Ghetti

Consultants
Structure: CEN (Germany) / Strudcom / GES
Plumbing: Kodiyar / Shree Padmavati Engineering
Electrical: Vora Electricals pvt ltd
HVAC: Daikin-Cool air system
Landscape: Malik Architecture
Glazing: Epopsi Struma
Roofing: VM Zinc, Epopsi Strumat
Lighting: Light Alive, Hoefemeister/ Bega/Artlite/ Wibre

Contractors
Structure And Civil: Unique Concrete Technology (UCT)
Cladding: VM Zinc
HVAC: Daikin-Cool air system
Plumbing And Firefighting: Kodiyar / Shree Padmavati Engineering
Electrical: Vora Electricals pvt ltd
Pools / Water Bodies: Astral Pools
Interiors & Carpentry: Rajesh Parmar Siddhi Contracts

About Studio

Malik Architecture is an award-winning Mumbai-based multidisciplinary design practice with over 47 years of experience. Their practice has from its inception attempted to develop a contemporary design syntax for the Indian subcontinent, by approaching architecture as a synthesis of “ecology” and “spirit”.

Ecology implies a seamless, cohesive and holistic approach to design. This is achieved through the assembly of a group of highly motivated and evolved specialists in different disciplines.It is about creating lasting relationships that become so deeply intertwined, that the whole ceases to be a sum of its parts, and instead becomes a living, breathing organism in itself.

Luis Barragan said that “Architecture is the spatial execution of spiritual decisions.” For us, Spirit implies balance, understanding and tranquility.

Their work draws inspiration from nature, not through only its physical forms, but through its principles and processes. They have also tried to resurrect the Indian artisan, as well as cultivate the use of local materials as a corollary to encourage sustainability. This is exemplified by our works that incorporate load-bearing brick masonry, stone masonry, exposed concrete, and most recently, the innovative use of structural steel.

Their diverse, dynamic, and radical portfolio of works includes Residential, Commercial, R&D, Healthcare, Hospitality, Educational, Cultural, and Institutional as well as master planning projects.

The enormous mansion has a long, rectangular pool that is surrounded by forest.
The enormous mansion has a long, rectangular pool that is surrounded by forest.
The house's entrance is creatively constructed and designed with bricks and steel beams.
The house’s entrance is creatively constructed and designed with bricks and steel beams.
An angle of the side of the house with a big stone and trees on grass, overlooking the mountain.
An angle of the side of the house with a big stone and trees on grass, overlooking the mountain.
This stone stairway leads to the spacious verandah that is situated on the main ridge's edge.
This stone stairway leads to the spacious verandah that is situated on the main ridge’s edge.
View the mountain in the distance from this tranquil setting.
View the mountain in the distance from this tranquil setting.
The house is completely naturally ventilated part to the strengthened roof, which accentuates the cooling effect of the prevailing breezes of the natural surrounding.
The house is completely naturally ventilated part to the strengthened roof, which accentuates the cooling effect of the prevailing breezes of the natural surrounding.
Another part of the house viewing the landscape beside the glass walls.
Another part of the house views the landscape beside the glass walls.
The staircase entrance to the covered verandah.
The staircase entrance to the covered verandah.
This incredible house never fails to rely on nature's protection through plants and trees because it helps to prevent excessive heat.
This incredible house never fails to rely on nature’s protection through plants and trees because it helps to prevent excessive heat.
The porous verandahs with deep roof overhangs provide protection from direct sun and rain but allow a continuous movement of the breeze and landscape/ trees.
The porous verandahs with deep roof overhangs provide protection from direct sun and rain but allow a continuous movement of the breeze and landscape/ trees.
Clearer angle of the veranda protected with deep roof.
Clearer angle of the veranda protected with deep roof.
The bedroom's interior was created by resonating the sliding glass door's designs and materials, as well as the walls' brick, stone, and wood construction.
The bedroom’s interior was created by resonating the sliding glass door’s designs and materials, as well as the walls’ brick, stone, and wood construction.
This shower space is uniquely designed which amplifies the cooling effect of the prevailing breezes, ensuring this to be 100% naturally ventilated.
This shower space is uniquely designed which amplifies the cooling effect of the prevailing breezes, ensuring this to be 100% naturally ventilated.
The second bedroom is designed to be ventilated as well.
The second bedroom is designed to be ventilated as well.
The sun rays pass through the ventilated windows across the round mirror and the sink.
The sun rays pass through the ventilated windows across the round mirror and the sink.
The pool is wisely oriented along the axis of the spine allowing the breeze to be cooled before traveling through the house.
The pool is wisely oriented along the axis of the spine allowing the breeze to be cooled before traveling through the house.

The topography of the land, the material memory of the surrounding forts, the light of the forest, and the deep-water discharging ravines have created a dominant palimpsest of contextual parameters onto which the house has been woven.

As a home for 4 generations, it behaves like a condensed village, allowing for private and communal life. The flow of the large load-bearing wall that traces the ridge between two ravines anchors the proposal and establishes itself as a “found” element, resonating the contours and material of the walls of the Tungi and Lohgad forts to the east and north of the site. As the site flows to Pawna lake, so too does the house, picking clearings within the trees to capture the views of the lake.

Formal planning strategies are incapable of absorbing the radical flow of the land and water and everything from the spatial quality to the material language echoes the spirit of the site. The wall ruptures at points where the Verandah bridges over the ravine and continues on into the forest to the second ravine beyond the ridge. Sleeping spaces are embedded in the forest while public spaces assume the mannerism of suspended flight to the north and east.
The roof follows the topography of the perch points, tracing the path laid down by the hill; its language of fletched rafters and weathering zinc a natural foil to the robustness of the locally quarried basalt. Its contours reference the horizon and the hill. The deconstructed language of the tree-like structures that support the roof liberate the edges where shaded spaces and the forest merge.

Approach to Design – Dispersion/Float/Embed

Dispersion: The house occupies vacant spaces between areas of dense vegetation to prevent the cutting of existing trees. This allows the natural flow to thrive and enhances the experiential contact between built space and nature, improves the micro-climate and amplifies the cooling effect of the prevailing breezes, ensuring that the entire house is 100% naturally ventilated.

Float: Existing mountain streams have been mapped and preserved to retain the pattern of water discharge during the monsoon. Parts of the house are built on a ridge between 2 such streams to maximise their cooling potential and one of the major Verandah floats over the stream like a bridge. This also amplifies the flow of wind through the house. The public areas towards the north and east (desirable orientations in this region) are porous verandahs with deep roof overhangs providing protection from direct sun and rain, but allowing continuous movement of the breeze and landscape/ trees

Embed: Effective thermal banking:
The private spaces are banked into the southern edge of the main ridge, overlooking the large ravine/monsoon stream. A large stone wall running from south to north along the ridge binds these spaces but breaks open to allow east-west breezes and landscape to flow horizontally. The dense forest on the west, shades these spaces and the south west corner rises above the land to shield the house from the afternoon sun. The placement of two bedrooms below the pool ensures natural cooling, while the orientation of the pool along the axis of the spine allows the breeze to be cooled before travelling through the house. The elevation of the pool also minimises the likelihood of rats/ frogs/ snakes in the warm/ dry summer months.

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