House 1

House 1 is a modern Indian home with a contemporary interior completed recently by our firm. Located in South Delhi, this house brings an elegant simplicity to the design of the façade and interiors.

The homeowners’ specific requirement of reducing the bedrooms from four to three  extended the leeway to experiment with the area, but the load bearing walls of the 1960 home meant there were constraints in making modifications to the structure. 

The house was north-facing and there was minimal light percolating in to the interiors. The whole house was jacked up, exterior walls were broken and additional steel beams and columns were added to strengthen the building from the core. This made way for larger windows and a new floor plan. A family lounge was created in the centre of the house & was connected with the external facade by an angled roof over a part of an existing courtyard.

A design feature that presented itself by accident has been incorporated in the living room - Stacked glass and stone create a brilliant light pattern, so instead of using only glass blocks, glass slabs were used these with cut up waste pieces of stone. Eight-inch gaps were built into the walls and fitted with these stacks that now stream in light, yet lend privacy to the room.

The new floor plan relocated the bedrooms to areas where these could get more natural light. The kitchen was moved to the centre, bringing light to the courtyard. Custom-designed furniture has been placed in the living and lounging spaces. Local materials form the basic fabric of the house - Natural Kota stone was used for the flooring while laminated jute sheets were applied on the wardrobe fronts.

In collaboration with Ms. Preeti Harit

Location
New Friends Colony, New Delhi
Client
Undisclosed
Typology
Residential
Climate
Composite
Built-Up Area
4500 Sq.Ft.
Completion
2006

© AKDA | Amit Khanna Design Associates
Photography by Amit Khanna & Andre Fanthome