The project embraces ground realities and the urban context of New Delhi and reinvents the typology of stilt + 4 plotted row house by un-massing a mass product. The building uses a combination of volumes and strong, positive colors to create a unique composition and to avoid banality. Natural light, a precious resource in dense urban environments was optimized in all rooms with continuous glazing and a skylight. The sense of the external was brought into in key rooms through the use of material and colours in various spaces.

The client brief was to maximize natural light in all spaces. The private residence of three floors was to sit above two rentable floor units.

The residence was designed to feel light and open while the public spaces connect seamlessly. Stained wood was used strategically to create a sense of warmth and texture in the otherwise minimal spaces. Double height glazing and a skylight define and unite the upper floors.

The private stair was placed on top of the common stair to optimize space. Key rooms were designed with continuous glazing on three sizes – normally an impossible challenge in confined urban sites. Public spaces were designed to flow into each other, allowing private rooms to spacious and comfortable. 

The external surface of the building is a combination of terracotta tiles and painted surfaces. The building massing was optimized to reduce heat gain despite the quantity of glazing taking into account orientation and proximity to surrounding buildings. Heat intake on the sky light on the top floor was drastically reduced by strategically increasing the heights of surrounding walls to reduce direct sunlight.

A geometric pattern was derived from the building elevation and repeated as a motif in the external railing, gate and a five storey tall building mural, visible from all floors. Stair floors, handrails and window rail guards were intensely detailed in wood for haptic pleasure and beauty.