FOOTPRINTS OF PAST AND FUTURE

ALVA Architects whispers a new life to an existing bungalow in Mumbai conjured as a single family home with warm interiors framed by a sweeping scale

- AATISH NATH

Viewed from the street, a two-storey bungalow in Juhu, Mumbai is anodised aluminium panels and angular geometry. Once you enter inside, soft light fills the double-height courtyard where the simplicity of the colour scheme first strikes the sight. It’s not too long before one notices the textural play — of black basalt stone, of verdant green foliage, of smooth wood veneers that envelope the space.

The home seems newly-built, but in fact, has been structurally retrofitted, utilising the bones of an existing structure to create a space that’s modern, functional and visually cohesive. Ashwin Alva, Principal Architect, A L V A Architects, explains that the original home was built at some point in the 1970s, split into two sections of the central courtyard.

Ashwin notes that the original rectangular building hid within it, “Eight, eight and a half foot ceilings, multiple levels, arches, cornices and other stuff.”

Its new owners wanted to see if the house could be redesigned without making any changes to the existing canvas. Within these constraints, the home shape shifted with astute strokes of creative decisions by Ashwin, his late wife Nimeran Singh, alongside Shobhna Batra and Pia Sodhi, who envisioned the bungalow in its original profile, but with a completely different floor plan.

Nimeran and Pia together lead Bona Fide Design, under the aegis of A L V A Architects. Collaboration, intuition and an unwavering design acumen honed over the years alongside Ashwin was characteristic to Nimeran through every project of hers. And this residence was no different, reflecting her ingenuity to transform thoughts into life.