Chennai’s architectural panorama breathes like a dwelling entity. The cityscape is dotted with Indo-Saracenic, colonial, and Art Deco landmarks, their presence a robust illustration of Madras, and now Chennai’s layered tradition, historical past, and design language. But the previous few years have seen a revived curiosity in restoring older structures, particularly as the attention in conservation has grown.
There are scores of examples, from the 73-year-old Art Deco constructing in Rutland Gate that now homes the multi-designer boutique, Collage, and The Woodhouse Coffee & Cocoa Co, to The Entrance Cafe in Kilpauk, which is housed in an previous colonial home. The cafe’s updates features a koi pond and a large 10-ft. picket door, courtesy architect Faisal Manzur.
A stroll round city manifests in lots of such likelihood encounters — every heritage constructing, as soon as a grand interval residence, now embraces a brand new chapter, and thus adaptive reuse showcases its inherent potential and lore.
Una Villa, Nungambakkam
Una Villa’s gently restored construction resembles a beacon of heat amidst the verdant embrace of the home backyard.
| Photo Credit:
Hashim Badani
J. Rafiq Ahmed, managing director of Kothari Industrial Corporation Limited (KICL), has lengthy championed the culinary arts. Una Villa marked a big milestone in that trajectory, an area that Ahmed envisioned would foster intimate, high-quality eating experiences. And what ensued was a spatial sleight of hand, courtesy Anisha Murali and Denver Pereira, principal architects at u:i:make, a Chennai and Mumbai-based follow.
Ahmed’s frequent commutes alongside Uthamar Gandhi Road received him keen on a Nineteen Sixties dwelling and this quickly advanced right into a deep dedication for him and his spouse, Basheera. “I was immensely drawn to its high ceilings, large windows, and symmetrical façade. I knew I didn’t want to rebuild; the structure needed to be restored,” he says.
Denver Pereira and Anisha Murali.
| Photo Credit:
u:i:make
Set inside a home backyard, the two,500 sq.ft. venue rests on a 6,300 sq.ft. land parcel. “With a deep respect for context, materiality, and everyday life, we approach spaces as a hopeful exploration. Una Villa transforms one of the area’s few remaining mid-century houses into a restaurant and bakery after years of vacancy,” highlights Murali.
In Murali and Pereira’s rendition, the bungalow’s authentic circulation stays intact. The load-bearing partitions have been stripped again to the plaster beneath, revealing worn surfaces and layered color. Pereira says, “A textured border runs along the bottom of the walls, colored to match the earth outside.”
The stairwell defines circulation, its wonderful kind up to date with solely a contemporary coat of lime plaster and brass handles. Surface-mounted wiring and copper conduits make their manner throughout the partitions and ceiling, introducing ingrained motion. “Rather than erasing the past, the design builds upon it, allowing the abode’s history to shape its quiet transformation into a public space,” observes Murali.
Primrose 131, Mylapore
All exercise comes alive underneath the shade of the traditional mango tree at Primrose 131.
| Photo Credit:
Gautham Krishna, Phosart Studio
Mylapore’s veins thrum with an historical rhythm, courtesy the vivid gopurams, and the perfume of temple flowers. Tucked in a leafy enclave is Primrose 131, an ancestral dwelling from the mid-Fifties, within the care of producer Archana Kalpathi and her husband. “This was my husband’s family home. The house is synonymous with their happiest memories; every anecdote unfolds under the shade of the mighty mango tree. We wanted to extend the warmth of our home towards meaningful celebration. And that is how its adaptation into a versatile event space transpired,” remembers Kalpathi.
The motivation to breathe new life into its sturdy bones led the owners to Sruthi Reddy, principal architect at Chennai’s Ceebros Designworks. Reddy shares, “Our portfolio is a testament to the lasting legacies we craft. Each design is deeply rooted in its context, the overarching story, and the artisanship that enlivens it.”
Spanning 9,600 sq.ft., the bungalow’s id was reconfigured by Reddy and her workforce, comprising Priyanka and Santhanam, in 2021. “The magnificent mango tree was our muse! Traditionally, all gatherings unfolded around the home’s courtyard and its resident tree. We wanted to evoke that atmosphere through design, creating a bridge between indoor and outdoor spaces,” Reddy provides.
Sruthi Reddy.
| Photo Credit:
Gautham Krishna, Phosart Studio
The constructing’s structure lent itself instinctively to a reprised tackle Art Deco.
A monolith in white, the construction is accented in daring strokes of black — in jambs, the staircase, and lighting. The alfresco house is sheathed in a contemporary white terrazzo selection by Facilini Design Lab, and flows into the verandah’s harlequin-style flooring. “The staircase makes for the most loved insert. The balustrade’s gently curved form and its colour against the all-white backdrop make for a stunning vignette,” says Reddy. The inside options expansive areas supported by slender steel columns, changing the unique ground plan’s compact rooms whereas preserving the constructing’s Madras terrace roof.
“The space is looked after like a regular, functioning home. Housekeeping services, close assessment of details, maintenance of floors, and paint touch-ups are administered per requirement,” shares Kalpathi.
Malligai – Raw Mango, Cenotaph Road
A leafy compound off Cenotaph Road homes Malligai, its id a collage of myriad influences.
| Photo Credit:
Akshay Sharma
Anchored alongside Cenotaph Road is Malligai. Raw Mango’s Chennai location bears witness to town’s wealthy historical past and its quiet march in the direction of modernity. The story comes alive in a 5,400 sq.ft. residence with overlapping architectural types, an area rejuvenated by Sanjay Garg, founding father of Raw Mango, in collaboration with Delhi-based design studio Squadron 14, spearheaded by Adityan Melekalam.
“Akin to all our stores, the Chennai outlet also conjures an experience for our clients. We envisioned a gallery that showcases the brand’s textile offerings and fascinations. The store is inspired by the context of the building, and at the same time, we are not too burdened by it,” Garg states.
A diligent pursuit spanning over 50 residences landed Garg an encounter with the property that’s now a sanctuary for connoisseurs of Indian handloom. The inside homes parts which are nearly as delectable because the design home’s choices — a sculptural staircase, mosaic flooring, ornate mullions, and gently curved cornices. Garg’s curatorial prowess is obvious — the shop hosts antiques collected over time, finds from India and the world.
Sanjay Garg
| Photo Credit:
Amlanjyoti Bora
“The project was not about imposing a new identity but revealing the preexisting layers. The bungalow sports faint Art Deco influences and vernacular traces, but as with most things in Chennai, it’s a confluence — neither strictly traditional nor entirely modern,” notes Melekalam. For Garg, the enchantment lay within the inhabited dwelling’s distinctive structure, which mirrored the residing household’s aspirations. The problem? “Maintaining the built form’s character and integrity to lend a design aesthetic that resonated with our manifesto,” suggests Garg.
Deconstructing the spatial format, Melekalam elaborates, “We reconfigured the flow between rooms to make the experience more fluid. The materials and hues respond to the space’s quirks, like the original flooring. We designed most elements in-house. The museum-esque glass displays, for example, are inspired by vitrines from the turn of the 20th century.”
Holding a mirror to Raw Mango’s work, the adaptive reuse technique embraces contradictions — treating the house as a container for concepts whereas absorbing myriad influences.
KUP Budan House, Alwarpet
Budan House instructions the streetscape with its sweeping kind and monochromatic palette.
| Photo Credit:
KUP
Memory serves as a relentless compass, guiding one’s journey in the direction of the vacation spot their coronary heart has all the time sought. “I recall a visit to veteran actor Sivaji Ganesan’s home. The breezy thinnai, a signature of traditional Tamil homes, never quite left my mind. KUP Budan House was a serendipitous find, an ode to my upbringing in Madras and this childhood memory,” Jivesh Goenka, founding father of KUP Coffee Roasters, shares.
Building on profitable operations in Nungambakkam, Goenka’s eager eye for design and enterprise potential drew him to an 80-year-old, 4,000 sq.ft. dwelling in Alwarpet, the place the café opened its doorways in 2024. He depends on inspiration gathered over his travels overseas, “There is a remarkable presence of adaptive reuse overseas. It was a challenge I posed to myself. I wished to recreate this — give my city a landmark!”
Jivesh Goenka
| Photo Credit:
KUP
Crafted in collaboration with Roaish Architecture + Design and Orange Elephant Interiors, the house is alive with KUP’s electrical DNA. The construction’s sweeping kind is unmistakable, its ivory façade animated by daring gray streaks that circulation into the columns. Hand-painted lettering echoes signage from previous a long time, bridging totally different eras.
The design language flows via the restored house, in line with its previous. The format is a collage of varied seating choices — the ethereal verandah, non-public eating rooms, the restored yard configured across the mango tree, peripheral seats gazing on the frangipani timber, and the favored espresso bar, which was as soon as a derelict storage. “Community-building is central to KUP’s ethos. The variety of spaces available at Budan House strengthens events where patrons from diverse backgrounds come together to interact and converse. Each visitor finds a nook that feels like their own,” says Vidya Vijay, model head – KUP.
“White, black, brown, grey, and orange manifest across the café, representing KUP’s visual identity. Polished mosaic floors, refurbished I-beams, Bakelite switches, exposed conduit lighting, and louvred windows speak of the site’s history,” says Goenka.
Lessons in legacy
Preserve current timber on web site each time doable.
Choose furnishings that resonates with the house’s historical past.
Retain authentic supplies wherever doable. Brick, timber, and terrazzo are key examples.
Engage structural consultants and design professionals whereas endeavor the overhaul of heritage structures.
Survey rising street ranges, waterlogging zones, and invasive root networks.
Audit previous plumbing and examine for wooden decay.
Maintain the house like a lived-in dwelling with common housekeeping.
The author is an architect and design specialist.
