The site for this residence is part of a plotted enclave of very expensive land parcels in western Ahmedabad. It is located between the old NH 8 leading to Gandhinagar and the new circular ring road defining the new outer residential zone of the city.
Bore water here is scarce and fairly saline. There is no municipal water connection to these plots and individual borewells dot the landscape. Storm water drains are stretched each year with roads and new development being added to this sector of the city. The backdrop of our intervention is defined by the above considerations.
Set within a plot area of 1200 sq.m, the program called for a four-bedroom house for a family of four, and to accommodate visiting grandparents and guests. The mandate from the clients was to carefully structure the public and private functions and strongly define the central core of the house as a family space, reminiscent of the old courtyard houses of Ahmedabad but covered at the top, breathable and open at the lower level to the garden space.
This is set in a belief that if water is to be used for greening. It must help produce clean organic vegetables for the family as well. Bottle gourd, bitter gourd, pumpkin, ridge gourd and cucumber are harvested on this structure.