This Modern Courtyard Home in Mohali Connects Indoors with Nature (House Tour)

[00:00:02][Music] [AR. VARCHASA]: The clients gave the name 'Kalrav' to this house.

[00:00:13]The meaning of this name is chirping of birds.

[00:00:16]It's a very sweet name which symbolizes how this house will have chirping of all humans eventually but also its association with nature.

[00:00:28][AR. KARAN ARORA]: Initially memory was the first idea behind the concept.

[00:00:33]The clients initially used to live in a government bungalow -[AR. VARCHASA]: which was surrounded by -[AR. KARAN]: a lot of green area.

[00:00:39]We wanted to recreate that feeling.

[00:00:41]We wanted to make them feel that they have the same openness  and connection to nature, even though this is a compact urban plot.

[00:00:50]- Hi I'm Karan Arora. - Hi I'm Varchasa from Studio Vasaka.

[00:00:55]For more detailed chapters and PDF eBooks, visit buildofy.com.

[00:00:59]The link is in the description below.

[00:01:03][AR. KARAN]: The project is located in Aerocity, Mohali.

[00:01:06]It's a one kanal plot.

[00:01:09]It's basically a row housing.

[00:01:12]The plot area is 500 square yards.

[00:01:14]The built-up area for the project is around 5,000 sq. ft.

[00:01:20]- Actually, we wanted to live close to nature.

[00:01:25]We wanted a house where natural light and ventilation become the primary aspects.

[00:01:32]-[HOMEOWNER]: We wanted some specific spots in our home where we can enjoy our time together.

[00:01:39]Whether its a day or night, summer or rains, we wanted to sit around a natural environment and enjoy our daily moments such as having a cup of tea or reading a book, while being as close to nature as we can.

[00:01:53][AR. KARAN]: We basically planned our entrance from this corner of the plot.

[00:01:58]This is the parking area.

[00:01:59]This is the front lawn.

[00:02:00]We've kept approximately 24 feet set back in the front.

[00:02:04]There are nice steps that basically take you inside the house.

[00:02:07]And, this is the main door.

[00:02:10]So the idea here was once you're entering from an open space, you should not feel like transitioning to a completely indoor area.

[00:02:19]So, we basically introduced a cutout right here.

[00:02:25]As you enter, this is the  first thing that you notice.

[00:02:28]The idea was that the transition from the outdoor to the indoor space feels very natural.

[00:02:35]You're again welcomed by this open space which is placed to get a lot of natural light inside the house.

[00:02:43]It is directly connected  to the living area, the dining.

[00:02:46]It is directly connected to the vertical circulation, that is the staircase.

[00:02:50]And, it has a beautiful semi-covered verandah.

[00:02:55][AR. VARCHASA]: These are tiles, 6' x 4' large tiles that look like marble.

[00:03:02]These act as guiding lines and abstractly take you to different directions.

[00:03:10]For example, when you enter the house, they subtly guide you to the mandir, the kitchen, the master bedroom.

[00:03:18]And, it seems like everything is being held together just by this pattern.

[00:03:22]It brings everything together.

[00:03:29]- The courtyard is open to sky but we've covered it with sliding doors and windows on all three sides, so one could easily access the courtyard.

[00:03:39]We planned the house in such a way that the formal areas are in the front portion of the property.

[00:03:48]This is the formal drawing room.

[00:03:51]The drawing room gets the view of the front lawn.

[00:03:54]This part is where the staircase sits.

[00:03:59][AR. VARCHASA]: The staircase of this house has been designed in metal and wood predominantly.

[00:04:05]It's a metal-fabricated staircase, powder coated in black with steel gray granite steps.

[00:04:11]The second step has been  extended into a platform.

[00:04:15]We wanted the staircase to be more than just a functional element.

[00:04:19]We wanted it to merge with the living room.

[00:04:24]This step provides a horizontal datum to this vertical circulation stack.

[00:04:31][AR. KARAN]: After you enter here, the idea was to place all the common facilities together.

[00:04:37]So, the flow of the space is basically maintained.

[00:04:39]This is the open kitchen.

[00:04:41]This is the dining area and this is the double height living area.

[00:04:46]This double height living area also has a double height window.

[00:04:50]And, it gives a beautiful north light inside the house.

[00:04:55]It's a very glare-free volume.

[00:04:57]This is the place where we have placed the master bedroom.

[00:04:59]The master bedroom is very generous in size and it also has the front view.

[00:05:04]There is a deck that we have planned so that one could sit here and enjoy the view of the front lawn.

[00:05:11]We enter the first floor from the staircase.

[00:05:13]Again, the courtyard is the first thing that you see.

[00:05:16]We've placed two bedrooms on the first floor.

[00:05:19]Both of them face the front view.

[00:05:21]We've tried to cut the west light by placing a lot of vertical louvers and recessions that is seen in the elevation as well.

[00:05:28]Both of them get very nice balcony spaces as well.

[00:05:31]Once you move here through the wardrobe, you enter to this balcony which is a very interesting space because it not only gets the front view, it also has a very beautiful connection with the courtyard.

[00:05:44]So, one could actually have a good interaction with somebody in the courtyard from here.

[00:05:49]This is the way to the second bedroom.

[00:05:52]This bedroom is again, a very similar size bedroom as the one on the ground floor.

[00:05:57]It has a balcony. So the window is basically recessed.

[00:06:00]So that there's not a lot of heat gain and the west sun doesn't  get too much inside the house.

[00:06:07]This becomes a very interactive space because once you're here,  you could actually see what's happening on the ground floor in the courtyard.

[00:06:16]We've restricted the covered area.

[00:06:17]We basically made a guest bedroom on the second floor.

[00:06:20]There is a bay window here that we've designed that actually gives a nice view of the courtyard.

[00:06:31][AR. VARCHASA]: We wanted the home to feel like your own sanctuary, your safe space, rather than something that gives you too much.

[00:06:40]As it is, we feel that homes do end up gaining clutter over a period of time.

[00:06:45]We wanted a relatively cleaner board to start with.

[00:06:50]I think this is one of the projects that's closest to our hearts.

[00:06:55]We've been involved in each and every detail of this house.

[00:06:58]It's a lot of fine-tuning, a lot of tiny aspects that have also been catered to.

[00:07:07]Each and every plant or rock that has to be placed was specially thought of.

[00:07:13]I think we're just too close to this house, and we feel like we've grown with it as people, as architects, just with the house.