Before/After: Breathing new life into a Goa villa

PCA GROUP Architects redesign a villa in Goa without altering its structural framework

30 Jun 2026

A home that feels as though it has wandered out of the pages of a well-thumbed storybook, filled with heirloom recipes, grandmother’s tales and afternoons that seem to stretch endlessly. There is an unmistakable warmth to its cosy alcoves, spirited palette and sun-dappled corners, inviting you to sink into an armchair with a novel in hand and lose all sense of time. It is the kind of home that wears nostalgia lightly, not as sentimentality, but as an atmosphere.

It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that when faced with the decision of whether to demolish or redesign, the architects chose the latter. Working within the villa’s existing structural envelope, Komal Shah Malwade and Amit Malwade of PCA GROUP Architects embraced the challenge of transformation over replacement. This approach aligned impeccably with the client’s vision. Rather than discarding the bones of the house, the intervention sought to recalibrate its relationship with the verdant surroundings, proving that a home’s greatest potential often lies hidden within its existing framework.

Scroll till the end to see the complete Before/After transformation…

“Overall, the house lacked spatial coherence and failed to respond to its setting. The redesign therefore focused on reworking the internal planning within the existing external walls to create a more open, functional, and contextually grounded home”

- Komal Shah Malwade

Styling by Komal Shah Malwade; Photography by Elmer D’Souza of The Photoarchitects

Bones worth keeping

Like many villas within the gated community, this home was originally characterised by a compartmentalised layout and decorative nods to Indo-Portuguese architecture that stopped short of capturing the spirit of the style. While the exterior remained largely intact, the interiors presented an altogether different opportunity. Surrounded by lush greenery and at the same time curiously disconnected from it, the home suffered from awkward planning, undersized bedrooms and a concealed roof volume that dulled the generosity of the space. The redesign begins at the heart of the home with what is perhaps its most transformative intervention: a sculptural spiral staircase in mild steel. Replacing a bulky dog-legged concrete stair, the new insertion occupies a considerably lighter footprint while establishing visual continuity across the three levels.

More importantly, it unlocks valuable floor area, allowing the revised plan to accommodate five en-suite bedrooms, a powder room, utility space and staff quarters without extending beyond the existing shell. The newfound sense of openness continues across the ground floor, where internal partitions have been pared back to create a fluid living and dining space centred around a semi-open kitchen. Concealed doors allow the kitchen to shift between open and enclosed configurations, while the former kitchen has been repurposed as a bedroom that spills onto a secluded sit-out, strengthening the home’s long-overdue dialogue with its landscape.

Familiar, anew

On the upper level, subtraction once again proves more powerful than addition. False ceilings were removed to reveal the original sloping roof, restoring volume and lending the lounge an airy, almost cathedral-like quality. Beyond it, the terrace has been transformed into a convivial retreat with an open-to-sky jacuzzi and lounge bar, while a newly introduced Juliette balcony frames the views ahead and ushers daylight deep into one of the bedrooms. Colour completes the transformation. Earthy hues anchor the shared spaces, dissolving the threshold between the interiors and the surrounding gardens, while the private rooms embrace richer palettes that lend each bedroom and its adjoining bathroom a distinct identity.

The flawless material palette ensures that these expressive moments remain balanced, allowing colour to become an extension of the architecture. This is a home that demonstrates the power of thoughtful renovation. Instead of beginning anew, the architects have revealed the latent possibilities of an ordinary villa, proving that meaningful transformation is often less about rebuilding walls than reimagining the life they hold within.