This Thrissur Home Bridges Memories With Modernity

Guruprasath R G -


“Sometimes, I think, ‘how the home feels’ can be measured by how rain falls on it”, exclaims Ar. Sujit Nair, Principal Architect of Bangalore-based architecture firm, SDeG. And, this holds exactly true for Villa Shakthi, which he conceptualised to bridge memory and modernity with ease.

A Homecoming Rooted in Heritage

The towering 5-foot swiveling door welcomes guests, orchestrating the transition from the home's external gardens to its inner, quiet core. Watch the complete video and access the PDF eBook on Buildofy. Photo Credits: Justin Sebastian Photography.

When the NRI family decided to return to Kerala after many years, they chose a site at Cherpu—close to the Bhagavathi Kshetram Temple, with its rituals, festivals, and processions—not just for its serenity but for its sense of continuity in heritage and values. “I am also from Kerala. So, I was able to understand, dissect, and comprehend the clients’ requirements”, Ar. Sujit confesses. With the family’s need for creating a simple sanctuary, the floor plan included three different layers of zoning– a social front for gatherings, a private family area,  and secluded personal retreats(bedrooms), addressing various levels of privacy. 

The Anchoring Heart

The shaded verandah offers a meditative retreat, positioning the family to interact with the reflecting water and the rhythmic intensity of the tropical rain. Watch the complete video and access the PDF eBook on Buildofy. Photo Credits: Justin Sebastian Photography.

This zoning strategy is unified by a central court, conceived as the home's anchoring heart. This is not merely a design flourish but a functional necessity, ideally socketed into the plan to meet the demands of the tropical setting. It acts as the core around which all circulation paths and adjacent rooms converge; spaces flow directly into this calming void, overlooking its presence. This deliberate, embedded arrangement ensures the interiors are naturally cooled and remain comfortable, successfully mitigating the persistent humidity throughout the year.

Tracing the Gradient of Privacy

Light floods the home's central family zone, where the liberated volume draws the eye upward and features a sculptural staircase that acts as the primary visual anchor. Watch the complete video and access the PDF eBook on Buildofy. Photo Credits: Justin Sebastian Photography.

This zoning strategy is unified by a central court, conceived as the home's anchoring heart. This is not merely a design flourish but a functional necessity, ideally socketed into the plan to meet the demands of the tropical setting. It acts as the core around which all circulation paths and adjacent rooms converge; spaces flow directly into this calming void, overlooking its presence. This deliberate, embedded arrangement ensures the interiors are naturally cooled and remain comfortable, successfully mitigating the persistent humidity throughout the year.

Ar. Sujit Nair emphasizes that the pool area was designed not just for swimming, but as a visual extension of the living space, ensuring a dynamic and natural backdrop for the most intimate family gatherings.

“I remember, in some of the early conversations, the clients did suggest to us that they should be able to sit in their verandah, just to witness nature”, Sujit recalls. And, thus, the verandah towards the swimming pool is planned deep enough to adapt to the rain, and shaded enough to sit and relax. Most of the spaces in this home overlook the outdoors, in some way or the other, and even the pooja room is not an exception. Here, the typical arrangement is reinterpreted: the island of the prayer pedestal is placed at the centre, permitting a circumambulatory path around, while utilizing the surrounding greenery as a serene and living backdrop. And, even the personal retreats at the rear end accommodate their own green spaces to step out and rejuvenate. 

Intersections of Materials and Moments

The blurring of boundaries is materialized through continuous surface treatments; the robust granite floor flows seamlessly from the landscape, unifying the interior and exterior domains. Watch the complete video and access the PDF eBook on Buildofy. Photo Credits: Justin Sebastian Photography.

In this home, intersections and junctions are designed not only to seamlessly integrate the indoors and outdoors, but also to facilitate the meeting of materials and moments. Take the sculptural staircase, right in the middle of the double-height expanse. “The staircase is designed almost like a sculpted artifact. And, an expert structural engineer, Akhil, helped us engineer this,” Sujit mentions. As a result, the staircase feels light, floating from one end to the other. One of the other intersectional moments is the bridge that spans across the different wings on the upper floor. The running balcony, on the other side, includes the outdoors within. 

The sculptural staircase anchors the double-height expanse, engineered as a floating artifact to feel light and seamless. On the upper floor, the spanning bridge creates another intersectional moment, connecting different wings while featuring a running balcony that incorporates the outdoors within the circulation path. Watch the complete video and access the PDF eBook on Buildofy. Photo Credits: Justin Sebastian Photography.

On the other hand, there are various material intersections – the granite flooring, for instance, which flows from the outdoors towards inside, climbs on the walls, and occupies the staircase as well. There are also hints of other natural materials, such as teakwood on the staircase treads or the limestone walls and pavements around the swimming pool. 

For Sujit, Villa Shakthi reaffirms a language rooted in craft, climate, and cultural memory, yet open to the present. And for the homeowners, it marks more than just a physical homecoming—it is a meditation on what returning means in a larger sense: returning to meaningful memories, to contextual clarity, and to the uncompromised authenticity of their identity. 

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