Let the birds fly in and out

The three-acre land has a compound wall built with the local stone “chappadi.” There is one gate, which is guarded. There are no compound walls between the houses. The common area has been landscaped, while each house has a small garden to be maintained by the respective household. Children can play happily without any obstructions and traffic. None of the houses are plastered from outside. The brick houses have an aesthetic look and they seem to instantly connect you to the natural environs of which huge trees and chirping birds are a part. A peep into the house of the Iype’s enhances one’s understanding of the philosophy of the couple. As you enter the house, you get a sense of openness as the drawing room leads to the open kitchen, a bedroom for guests and a large verandah, which leads to the courtyard. A wooden staircase connects the spaces below and the rooms above. It has a simple, basic plan where the space is kept uncluttered. The front of the house is open while the backyard offers privacy. The house has two courtyards — one in the ground floor and the other on the first floor. One of them has natural slates used for the floor along with yellow oxide with transparent polycarbonate sheets as roof cover to let light in. One can sit on the local `chappadi kallu” converted into a bench and be one with nature. The backyard has small traditional Kerala-style windows to let birds into the house. The chappadi stone is used with single layer dressing to retain its originality for the sills and lintels. The sills have recycled wood from old doors. All the sills have enough space to sit, something that we usually get to see in villages.