Small is beautiful. Thrissur native Sandeep Pothani's typical Kerala-style house is one such. He wanted a small house that was cocooned in the midst of Nature rather than a sprawling mansion that burnt a hole in his budget. He did a lot of homework before commencing the construction work for this cost-efficient dream house. As Pothani himself designed the elevation, purchased raw materials and supervised the work, the 900-sq ft house could be completed on a shoestring budget of Rs 5 lakh.
The modest house, which is located in Irinjalakuda, is flanked by coconut, mango and jackfruit trees. Raising its green quotient, little concrete has been used for construction. Thick-looking walls have coir pith filled up in the empty space between columns of hollow bricks. There’s no cementing or concreting outside too as the outer walls have exposed brick work. GI pipes were laid for the truss roof and old tiles were paved over it. The roof is what gives the house its distinctive look.
The foundation was fortified with 3 ft of granite. The foundation juts out and gives out the effect of an elevated structure as it is way up from the ground level. A long verandah runs along three sides of the house, though the rear has been fortified with grills. The design of the verandah railing is attractive.
The whole house, which fits in snugly in the natural setting, is airy and bright. There are two bedrooms, a bathroom, a hall and a kitchen. The hall holds a drawing section and a dining space and a bathroom has been set outside. Though the owner did not go in for any deliberate design elements, the interiors give out a rustic finish. A few attractive pieces which would have cost a fortune in antique shops were, however, sourced from local shops for bargain rates and these lend a vintage charm to the house. A chimney lamp, a brass betel nut case (vettila chellam), a spittoon (kolambi), a stone trough (ural) and a grinding stone (aattukallu) complete the traditional décor inside.
The open kitchen looks stylish. Its windows have been made of bamboo. In fact there’s ample bamboo work both on the roof of the kitchen and on the walls of the rooms. The minimally designed bedrooms have storage built in.
Pothani says he managed to obtain a lot of items at cheap rates, though he had to scout around from shop to shop. As each stone was laid according to the availability of funds, it took almost a year before he could finally moved into the house
Cost-cutting measures
» Recycling old items after refurbishing
» Minimising floor area
» Hardly any use of concrete
» Old tiles that were sourced at Rs 2 per tile
» Floor tiles that were laid at Rs 9 per tile
» Minimising light points
» Purchasing paint at reduced rates
Project facts:
Location: Irinjalakuda, Thrissur
Area: 900 sq ft
Owner and designer: Sandeep Pothani
Mob: 9745043009
Budget: Rs 5 lakh
Year of Completion: Jan 2018.
