MAHMOODD RESIDENCE | Shatotto

Residence for Mr. & Mrs. Mahmood

Uttara, Dhaka.

...An urban installation, a pluralistic dialogue

This small residential project in Dhaka is an attempt to make “a pluralistic dialogue” through an architectural exploration between the building and it’s surrounding nature and neighborhood.

In our country, it is interesting to notice that though the legal owner of a roadside tree may be the City Corporation or the Forest department, we feel it is “ours”. However, we don’t feel the same over our buildings. Buildings, particularly residences in the Dhaka city explicitly belong to the landowners. The small sized compact multistoried apartment buildings with high boundary walls, barbed wire, “be aware of dog sign”, absence of greeneries in the city are all taking us away from the warmth of nature and neighborhood.

In Dhaka, like any other capital city, land is scarce and expensive. A small piece of land is a lifetime investment. The owner of this land had a limited budget with unlimited dream to enjoy nature and neighborhood warmth. Keeping the owner’s desire in mind, a better and sensible balanced living environment in and out side the building has been tried out.

Also, considering the client’s demand along with his future plan for his 2700 sft. land, efforts made to develop a pragmatic program that can generate financial support for the present and future and at the same time, providing a living environment for his own. Hence, the ground floor was basically designed for parking and other service facilities. The next two floors (first and second floor) each approximately 1,800 sft apartments have been made for rental purpose and a duplex on the top two floors (third and fourth floor) have been designed for the client’s own dwelling as an independent house having gardens, greeneries, terrace connected to ample day light and sky.

Considering the local climate, shades have been created in a contemporary manner to protect the building from sun and rain without upsetting the enjoyment of the dramatic sun, rain and wind of varying moods in different seasons, climate and days.

One of the important features of this project is its window. The window is a transformation of “khilkee” or “khirkee” a traditional term that has been in the buildings of the old part of Dhaka. The “Khilkee” is basically a space architecturally and an “eye” symbolically, particularly for the children through which they could see the outer world and communicate. One of the Khilkees in the master bedroom at the fifth level of this building has been designed in such a way that it gives different views from different arrangements of the window parts to see the adjacent gardens in different moods of the day and nature. At the same time, the different arrangements of the window shutters ensure privacy at varying levels.

The small gardens in the different levels (i.e. fourth level, fifth level and roof top garden) also bring the fragrance of the blooming flowers (belly, hasnuhensa) within the living areas having access for southeast breeze. The sculptural glass railing has been used in the verandahs and gardens to enhance the view from inside and greeneries from outside.

The elimination of boundary wall with different arrangements of greeneries and low height brick works derived didactically from almost typological ruins of Bangladesh. This “no wall” arrangement is also ambiguous, since it also represents the old Dhaka “Mer” in a transformed manner.

Mer- is a traditional threshold space in old Dhaka, which in fact create the relationship between the street and the house. Which invites tired passer by to take rest on its bench and also offer drinking water (some times) preserved in a pitcher.

The selection of material out side the building has carefully been done considering the climate and maintenance aspects. Traditional bricks and hand made Ferro cement tiles (on site production) have been used here as major cladding materials along with metal claddings to make the project a social collage.

At last but not THE least, an effort has been made to make a building where desire can live and rejuvenate the neighborhood from within and without…

Client’s Assessment: Mahmood’s Residence

I have been amusingly noticing lately that people from around are coming to my residence to take measurements of my window shades, low walls, entrance gate, sunshades etc. for the construction of the neighborhood buildings. There is a tendency I can see for others to copy my building now a day. As the owner of this house I took the right decision by listening to the Architect not to have this built a multi-family commercial residential apartment. This house made me feel the owner of an independent house at the same time making other people to live here as tenants. I have the feeling of both a traditional landowner and a modern apartment dweller. About the house, the arrangement for ample air, light and greeneries made our life comfortable and pleasant. I enjoy thoroughly the views from my bedroom windows. I can make relationship with the garden from my bedroom if I want to and can shut the windows if I don’t want to. I enjoy the raindrops in my garden during monsoon and in bad time of my business I used to spend time beside the garden and the terrace that takes me away from the bustling Dhaka city. I get lost in thoughts. I must also mention here that my house has never been vacant and I didn’t have to hang the “To let” signboard while some of my neighborhood buildings I notice have been lying vacant for months even since before my house was constructed.