Tied To Nature

Respecting the existing tree cover, Design Work Group create a second home for an entrepreneur on the outskirts of Surat using an earthy material palette augmented by the sun, fresh air and greenery.

- Rupali Sebastian

It’s fascinating how a single element used cleverly — leave alone innovatively — can uplift a space, enhance its experiential quality, induce words of admiration from the users and viewers alike and serve the pragmatic aspects of the programme. So it is with Urveel, a bungalow on the outskirts of Surat, and the humble fire brick.

But we are getting ahead of ourselves.

It all started when a Surat-based entrepreneur felt what all of us feel at one point or the other: to get away from the stress and chaos of the city, and escape to more salubrious surroundings. And while most of us may book into a resort or a hotel to satisfy this urge, he decided on a more permanent solution — building a second home. Being in the real estate business made the identification and purchase of a good piece of land easy: a 4,000-square-metre plot with a dense clump of eight sapodilla (chickoo) and about as many mango trees, at the edge of the quiet village of Sania Hemad. The location of the property was propitious for its owner: not too far from the main city, barely 1.5 kms off the main road, and in close proximity to several business interests.

The brief given to DWG, architects based in the same city, spoke of everything that living in the city lacked: seamlessness, both within the enclosed environment and with the surroundings; plenty of sunlight and air; added amenities of a pool and a gym… but, with well-defined and well-segregated public and private zones.