Team Uru has committed itself to the paradigm of sustainability as the chief driving force of its design purposes. It cannot be happier when it gets to work with clients with the same vision. The international structure of the Box house, situated amidst the lush green of a rice field with coconut trees along the borders that brings to life a picture-perfect village of Kerala, goes local in its choice of the materials used for construction. Every material from clay tiles of Feroke Jally, Indian white marble for the floors, laterite stones on the front yard, buffalo grass landscaping, to the planting of the tropical plants like Elanji and Parijatham, and Mandaram were locally available that goes with the motto “going local is the new global” and contributes greatly to the vision of sustainability. Even the coconut trees in the plot were included in the plan so that they will go undisturbed despite the construction of the house. The plot contained a more than a 100-year-old pond, which, according to the suggestion of Team Uru was reconstructed and conserved, serving both as a function, a major water resource, maintaining the ecological balance, and as a form of poetic beauty, a pool.

With the construction of a house that is empowered with Solar power, Team Uru and its client walk one more step towards preserving energy for the future. This Solar-powered house hardly needs electricity for light or fan during the daytime, as the plan has given room for natural light and wind in abundance. Their eco-consciousness is further revealed in the rainwater harvesting system, including the pond and the laterite tiles which do not hinder the rainwater from being absorbed into the soil. As a smart waste management tool, a biogas plant also subscribes to its dedication to energy preservation.

The plan challenged Team Uru from the aspect of satisfying the client’s need for a better view of the rice field, facing southwest, and preparing the house for being resistant to the South West wind and the heat. The overhangs were devised into broader sunshades to shield the house from the scorching sun, the southwest wind, and the Monsoon. The usage of the cavity walls (double-layered wall with a hollow in between) was another strategy. The magic of the house is cool and still, a well-lighted place owes greatly to the trellis.

The new criterion for choosing to buy or build a house in Kerala has been this: It should survive a natural calamity, and more specifically, a flood. During the construction time of the Box House, Kerala had faced and survived two floods, consecutively in 2018 and 2019, first of which alarmed Team Uru to plan a more scientifically guarded landscaping in the plot. They can claim proudly that intelligent landscaping has protected the Box House from the second flood as well.

The perception of privacy in the living rooms had to be balanced with the client’s idea of an open house with lesser walls and more light and wind. The unique Scandinavian design has given no space in the house that misses the great view of the rice field from multiple levels, right from the sunken living room, through each step in the stairs, the mezzanine floor, to the recreational space in the balcony, adjacent to the Home theater as MTS. Like the unhindered openness into the view, the plan also makes sure that the interaction of the members of the family further extended through the central point of the house that is the connection point between the dining area, the courtyard, and the stairs. This particular space enables interconnectedness between all the other spaces like the kitchen, the two bedrooms in the ground floor, to the upstairs and outside as well. This brings strong ties of intimacy within the family as well as it makes a more welcoming house for guests. The Box House indeed is a home of unreserved happiness. “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” is not only about the physical space of the Box House, but also about the psyche of the people who make a place like this possible.

- Uma A V