New temporalities of sociability and entrepreneurship
Thesis Dissertation and Design
Mumbai, India
Academic
Individual work
May 2019 - October 2020
I come from Vasai, which is a place with a unique character. It holds on to its rich historical importance as a strategic Portuguese port, its spiritual vibrancy, and its breathtaking natural beauty. Urbanization in Vasai has been a long ever-growing process that has been carried on for almost 30 years. This slow process is usually seen as an outside force to transition due to the influence of the builder economy. One would think with this emerging economy one would only see the builders take up lands for free-standing tall apartment buildings. But if looked closely, the residents of Vasai have themselves been a part of this transition. In cities along the periphery, one sees a certain type of development either that of a holiday home of a sustainable housing typology, or large-scale building apartments.
My research ended with the question ‘What is the new form of temporalities of sociability and entrepreneurship of households in an urban transition?’
RESEARCH
While conducting fieldwork in Sandor, a mainly catholic village on the edge of the green zone of Vasai, I undertook a series of interviews of households to collect local histories and learn about transformations of spacial and social relationships in the town while also recording their aspirations for the future. My research ended with the question, as a practicing architect what are the different approaches that would be needed to collaborate with these households by creating new temporalities of sociability and entrepreneurship in an urban transition? In the existing language of transitioning, the farmers are selling their land for mass housing, informal housing or experiments for weekend homes. My research ended with the question, as a practicing architect what are the different approaches that would be needed to collaborate with these households by creating new temporalities of sociability and entrepreneurship in an urban transition?
Initial drawing of the site in Vasai from 1998 to 2009
CONCEPT
My true inspiration came from the historically important Portuguese fort in Vasai. This fort used arcades as community gathering spaces and at times also become markets for trade. This led me to think of the various other elements that can be seen around Vasai that show similar tendencies. Upon pondering over the different house forms in the current Vasai town one can notice a lot of similar elements. For example, the verandahs or puvels in front of or surrounding homes.
One of the sites I studied was the one with the GROTO house. This plot belongs to the Gonsalveses and aspired to multiple programs based on the stories of the individuals. I documented these as comics depicting every invidiual story through graphics. The name grotto house was derived from the element of a GROTO which is a small religious figurine that’s situated in the front courtyard. This had developed into a space for religious gatherings and prayer groups. The other story is that of another family member who wished to expand her household shop where she sold baked goods. I analyzed these households through certain typological strategies like built form, livelihood, property, infrastructure, social relationships, and commons. The analysis displayed a narrative of households generating entrepreneurial opportunities strategically deployed in their everyday life as well as creating spaces for social networking.
Comic strip illustrating several stories of the induviduals and their aspirations living in the GROTO house.
GROTO HOUSE DESIGN
Here I used the elements of an arcade and the tower as an exaggerated form to not only develop attraction but also distinguish the house from the rest of the house forms in the neighborhood. Similar to the fort, here the arcade offers users the promise of an enclosed space away from the chaos that characterized the noisy, dirty streets; a warm, dry space away from the harsh elements, and a haven where people could socialize and spend their leisure time. The tower as an element comes from the use of the cross in churches at higher altitudes as a symbol of religious buildings. Along with the tower, the symbol of the cross is embedded in the arcade as a subtle religious drape over the entire structure.
In each site, one notices an abundance of water bodies. Bawkhals is a term used is Vasai as small manmade water bodies that can be seen in large numbers. Each site involves at least one such bawkhal which in current times seems to be abandoned and hence it became important for me to involve these bawkhals and its proximity to my sites in my design.
The diagram of this house is a redevelopment of the existing footprint to allow for public gatherings in the courtyard, a new enterprise of a bakery with the arcade as the café seating spaces. Thus allowing gatherings for micro commons. The development of the interior spaces of the house come from the stories of the different owners
Another site is the farmhouse that lies on the main road that connects the railway station to the plantation zone of Vasai. The plot belonged to the Misquittas. The larger aspiration of this site was to develop an existing bar into a restaurant and a lounge or homestay with possibilities of blended public spaces.
The use of the trellis in orchards became my main element for the diagram in this site. It not only holds the site together but allows to treat different spaces with different functions. I call this site farmhouse not only because one of its existing programs is farming but because of what experience it gives to the people staying in it. The existing bar now becomes the kitchen and the lobby for the restaurant. The trellis takes the main structure of the kitchen and divides it into a smaller-sized grid. Like in an orchard this trellis can be used to plant fruits and vegetables in a controlled manner and allows closed spaces at different levels along with restaurant seating. On higher levels, it became rooms with balconies overlooking the farms.
The rightmost double-height space becomes a public corridor with seating spaces. Closing some parts of the trellis also creates diversity, it created unexpected connections and the curiosity to discover the unforeseen. Hence creating a new form of social space and occupation.
2.
MULTIPLICITIES OF A HOME
Adaptive reuse and renovation
Mumbai, India Professional Individual Work
October 2022 - Ongoing
Today architectural designs for social spaces is expected and driven to attract people to spaces through visualization. In particular cafes or kiosks-type programs often borrow other languages of architecture that is globally attractive to customers. But as an architect, my goal was to look beyond instagrammable spaces and provide my client with contemporary designs concentrating on their needs while maintaining a low budget. This project is a redevelopment of an existing home.
The main program is ranked first by the living space for the client, with a kitchen, bedroom, living room, and utility space. In addition, there is also the insertion of a Hidden Programs like the multipurpose room and kiosk where people in various groups will become “Space users” and are not the only “customers”. The multipurpose room is open to be used as space for cafe seating, tuition classes, or storage.
The mentality of renovating for me is using the language of the original house combined with a simple plane for separating the space and bringing light into the structure. The kiosk design is not borrowed from anything other than the essence of the original structure like sloping roofs and steel reinforcements and sits along the compound wall. As a result, the new intervention fits naturally into the context of the home and the neighborhood.
These activities are separated by fruit and flowering plants in the space between the kiosk and house that draws conversations throughout the design of urban development, and welcomes both the public and students to come and talk.
3.
HOUSE WITH ONE WALL
Located in the green zone of Vasai, this is an old house built before 1960 and renovated 3 times since. The swapping of spaces for different functions were key when it came to developing this functional home that avoids a conventional refurbishment. The original state of the house was none other than what one might expect from an old home: a dimly-lit corridor and many partitions that separated each function like dining, living and kitchen. This space posed a challenge because although a rectangular floor plan is practical, when it comes to distribution, an extra room had to be housed, while avoiding new partitions and thus making the most of all the light that came in.
The owners wanted a house with plenty of open space, and also nodes of privacy for intimate interactions. Hence, the common areas where most of the living space was, had to be an undivided open space, while the bedroom would get tucked away under the staircase.
The materials were chosen taking into account the open space we had in the central area. large beige tiles maintained continuity and . Similarly, we made the most of the light coming in by choosing a reflective white for the ceilings and walls of the living room, and the tiles of the kitchen wall. As a counterpoint to the cold appearance of the white floor and walls, the furniture is made of pine wood to provide a touch of warmth worthy of a home. The choice of fixed furniture is also part of the particularity of this project.
The colour palette is none other than a continuation of the functional and atypical discourse we are looking for. We played with colour shots that worked well with each other, avoiding turning the house into an amalgam of colours.
Hence the dark brown granite stone of the bathroom, halfway between the earthy textiles of the living room and the green spotlight of the kitchen.
Housing circulation is intuitive and practical, but far from a typical renovation. We achieved this thanks to a carefully studied floor plan that allowed all the areas to fit together and to the choice of elements that help them to do so. A good example of this is the central wooden piece of furniture, which separates both common and private spaces and allows pockets of intimacy to the home. It is a multifunctional piece of furniture as in the same element we have a separator, wardrobe, coat rack, shelf and passageway; as well as housing a concealed book shelf. It was one of the first ideas when designing this project; it was necessary to provide permeability to the entrance hall of the house, avoiding finding a wall as soon as you open the door of the house.
4. the SUBURBAN VILLA
Design development
This house I designed for a family of 3, the husband has been travelling the world for work for a few decades and wish to settle in his home town. He always cherished his old house in his childhood that he lived with his parents, where small houses laid under the green trees. So when he searched for land to build his own house, he wanted it to have lots of trees. On this land, he wished to have a small, simple and modern house. We embarked on the design of the house with an understanding of his wishes, understanding the importance of keeping the trees that have existed for a long time.
Although there are now institutional boundaries of ownership, until recently, people crossed the boundaries of the land and came and went as needed, and in reality, the boundaries were loose. In terms of the length of time spent here, the house is ephemeral and the land is permanent, so when you live here, you will feel like living in the land as well as in the house.
The house’s distribution seeks to establish a program composition which was subdivided into several different programmatic blocks. This spatial organization optimize the plot use, creating spaces that merge the residence and the garden. The program is divided into three main blocks. The first one is the most private, with bedrooms for each family member. The second one is the common block, that includes a kitchen, a living room, and living spaces. And, finally, the last block has the support areas, such as a guest bathroom, laundry and storage. The interior is utterly simple while equally rich, partially sunken to emphasize the presence of the surrounding greenery. In terms of the environment, while ensuring minimal boundaries such as the natural environment and property, I have created an area that is broadly perceptible and comfortable to live in.
5. SHA
Architecture and Interior Project
Alibaug, India Professional Collaboration 2023
Principal Architect: Pranav Naik| pranav@spom.in
The owners of this house wanted a beautiful, modern, minimal, and unique house with openness and privacy. The form of the dwellings was generated by the idea of ‘The house as a pavilion to live in,’ a concept inspired by its surroundings and desire for openness to nature. The planning of the house has been kept compact. The ground floor accommodates formal living, dining, an informal open seating area, a bed, a common toilet, and a kitchen. The staircase at the center position connects the floors. The first floor has four bedrooms with attached toilets each, with cross ventilation and verandas. The highlight of this project are the abundance of trees and the carving of spaces around these trees as a negociation with nature. The interior is soft with subtle spashes of coloured lime plater and wood to highlight certain spaces.
Bar Interior Design
Banglore, India Professional Collaboration 2023
Principal Architect: Pranav Naik| pranav@spom.in
Spirt Forward Bar is an idiosyncratic and atmospheric sequence of spaces inspired by old indian alcohol shops. Located within a gourmet supermarkets in Banglore, Spirt Forward operates as part of the speakeasy within the premises. The sequence of spaces begins at the large outdoor seating, leading into a long narrow bar seating and further opening up to become a more formal seating. We wanted to create the experience of going into a good high street bottle shop where the customer is surrounded by a vast selection of wines and spirits. The palette is kept quite restrained with light wood grains and monochrome mosaic tiled floors. The bottles are the main focus, highlighted with lighting built into the shelves.
CELLUBUILD:
Harnessing BC for Adaptive Design
MArch. Thesis Dissertation
UCL, London + HBBE, Newcastle + CITA Copenhagen
Academic Research and Design Group Work 2023-Ongoing
Our concepts draw inspiration from William Katavolos’ “Organics,” envisioning cities that grow from “seeds of knowledge” and deeply integrate ecological principles for sustainable, adaptive architecture. We also embrace Friedensreich Hundertwasser’s manifesto, which rejects sterile architecture in favor of a “moul ing process” that values imperfection and natural growth. These ideas emphasize growing buildings as part of a natural ecological process, rather than constructing fixed, static structures. While we may not yet be able to grow entire buildings, we can grow materials to be a part of them. But, WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO USE BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS IN BUILDINGS
Imagine using biologically active materials and natural processes to create building components. This emerging field of bio-architecture opens up possibilities for sustainable, responsive, and adaptive structures. It’s an exciting time to explore how these biological materials can be integrated into our existing construction practices to revolutionise the way we build and live. When building with traditional materials like wood concrete steel the building layers like the skin and stru ture have a very high service time. however the right diagram shows how biobased materials might alter these layers and make them more dynamic. This shift can potentially reduce the environmental impact of construction and lead to more innovative building designs that evolve over time.
CONCEPT
The research explores the development of novel ‘engineered living materials’ for architecture that exhibit animate material properties of self-healing, and environmental responsivness. Challenging engrained architectural preferences for permenant and inert materials, the research integrates bacterial cellulose into biocompatible pulps which are then biologically activated in response to environmental expsoures once on the building.
The research explores a ‘Dirty ELM’ approach where biomaterials are produced at large scale, using robotic workflows, in ways that are not dependant on sterile laboratory methodologies which are costly and limiting towards efforts for significant material change in architecture.
MATERIAL EXPLORATION
Bacterial cellulose mixed with other natural organic materials to make a printable bio print. Utilizing robots in the design process enables the creation of irregular blocks, which significantly enhances our design strategy.
We printed 18 samples three different geometric shapes, each with unique temporalities and gap sizes. These different shapes will help us understand how BC grows in various geometric configurations. After drying the samples, a set of 3 prints for each geometry are set under a reactivation set up that are automatically sprayed at 3 hour intervals for 20 seconds with a nutrient mixture. We recorded images of each sample throughout the process to track these changes.
This ongoing experiment will be conducted over 1 to 5 weeks for each set of sample geometries. Each week, the samples visibly change from clean and inert to dirty and merging, showing signs of self-healing and repair by covering holes, similar to those observed at the microscopic level. After 2 weeks, we also observed unexpected bridging of samples due to BC growth in areas with high tea concentration.
Robot 3D printed samples
ASSEMBLY INVESTIGATION
Although bio prints are solid, their lifespan of 5-10 months limits their use as structural materials. To ensure stability, traditional materials with greater longevity and natural aging properties were incorporated. These materials provide a robust framework for printing bacterial cellulose (BC) blocks. This combination enhances durability and supports longterm biological growth. While bio prints degrade faster, the traditional materials maintain structural integrity, allowing the design to evolve over time. This hybrid approach achieves a balance between innovation and stability, creating a dynamic and sustainable architectural solution.
stone componants
stone and concrete componants
stone and BC with wood as a transitisional componant
The initial concept for the material assembly as the exterior wall in housing design
Initial wall prototyle for BC assebly
Physical 3D printed biopolymer componants assembled with wood and concrete components
