MAARS

Located on the end of a quiet, residential street in Chennai, overlooking the ocean - the project site called out for a house that opened and offered itself to the surroundings but also swaddled in its layers of privacy and barriers shielding itself from the open environment it is placed in. The 39’x93’ linear plot had its larger side facing the ocean front with a beautiful view of the Bay of Bengal.

Design Planning: The entire house was elevated by 1.5meters with a meandering pedestrian approach through an entry garden that led the user into the house. The services and utilities like the car parking, helper’s accommodation and battery backup room were placed in a part basement. The entry garden takes the user into a small foyer that leads one into a large great room.  It is through this great room that the project derives its name – “The Gully Home”. The great room takes its inspiration from a simple vibrant street (gully) of the older parts of the city. The triple height space has an open living-dining-kitchen layout that opens itself into a linear garden with a view of the sea beyond.  A conventional residence would involve floor planes stacked across three levels. But to further enhance vertical cross connectivity, the floor plates are staggered by 5 feet on either side of the triple height space, creating views into the great room from the other spaces. The floor plates are connected by an open metal dog legged staircase with each flight leading the user into a bedroom. A set of internal bay windows from every bedroom look down into the great room thus making the entire space, visually and physically interconnected.

Bio Climatic Design Approach and Materials: While the east facing building works well in creating direct views towards the ocean, it also faces the wrath of the hot morning sun causing immense heat gain. The entire façade is double skinned with a layer of porotherm blocks forming the inner core and half cut bricks on either side. The use of natural clay materials for the exterior skin of the building results in cooling the interior spaces and also retains the heat within the walls instead of transmitting it. The internal walls too are a combination of sliced bricks and lime plaster walls continuing the materiality from outside to inside. The flooring is natural polished kota, that reflects heat and remains cool throughout. The bedrooms are finished with terrazzo flooring of different patterns. The roof of a building usually contributes to majority of the heat gain. Hence, to minimize this, the slabs are doubly insulated by inserting terracotta pots as fillers that minimize the volume of concrete used in the slabs as well. The roof of the terrace is covered by solar panels hence the entire house can be operated using only solar energy.

Interior Design: To blend the exteriors and interiors, there is no difference between the exterior and interior materials. Sliced brick cladding and lime plastered walls along with exposed concrete structural elements form the major interior materials. No false ceiling is used and the furniture is a combination of wood with fabric and cane to continue the rustic theme within the house.

Lead Architects: Ammaar Chowdry, Mridula S Chowdry

Project Team : Sathish, Hari Sudan, Naveen, Gokulakrishna Solai

Execution : Ramaniyam Real Estates, Chennai

Photo Credits:  Sreenag BRS

Photographer’s Website: https://www.sreenagpictures.com

Project location: Minambur, Tamil Nadu, Inia.

Completion Year: 2018

Gross Built Area: 250 sq.m

Lead Architects: Ammaar A Aziz Chowdry, Sanjeevi BG

Other participants

Client : Mr. Atif, Mr. Kashif

Contractor : Sakthivel

Carpenter : John and Raja

Electrical Consultant : Mujeer

Photo credits: Sneha Vivek

In Collaboration with Shreya Nagarajan Singh & Team