A swansong for country living

Under the spell of rafters

Perched like a belvedere in the lee of the Sahyadri mountains, the arresting beauty of this home called Amber & Grain is in how natural light gathers under its rafters like a long-cast spell and how, like the landscape it sits in, the villa is steeped in an off-grid melange of terracottas, olives and misty greys. To offset the ivory-toned walls and understated marble floors, Vinithra introduced two dusty-rose sofas that mirror each other in the open-concept living room, naturally framing a jhulha suspended from the ceiling with heavy-duty cords as the focal point, while conferring a conversational quality upon the space. 

Combined with French windows through which it’s hard to resist drifting out into the tropical garden and espresso-coloured timber beams running across the vaulted ceilings, the light pouring in lends the living room a certain pastoral dreaminess. And then there are the evocative accents, like the cast-brass Buddha sculpture atop a mid-century console, or the gouache artwork of rural vignettes by Richa Kashelkar.

A rich, tactile experience

Few gratifying liberties were taken in the family lounge, where a polished wooden chevron floor and a biscuit-brown grid accent wall splendidly bear witness to multi-textured throws and sectional seating, paired with a light oak-finished tray table that wraps fastidiously over the ottoman. A loose, languid fluidity prevails thanks to the inspired use of smooth, rounded archways that grace every room on the ground floor, creating effortless transitions between the living room, dining parlour, kitchen and family lounge. 

The dining parlour is spartan in furniture and submerged in sunlight, a familial scene where a wooden trestle dining table is tucked in with a cosy picnic bench. A masterful attention to tactility is equally evident in the kitchen: sage-green fluted panelling for the island base, surrounded by virginal white countertops; rich caramel leather-upholstered bar chairs; and brushed-brass pendant lights. Things become more nostalgic still as we climb the stairs, with their simple metal balusters and marble underfoot, to the first floor.

Less is more

The idea for the master bedroom, with its lustrous grasscloth wallpaper and exposed ceiling beams drawing the eye upward, was to create something “neutral but embodying multiple textures,” says principal designer Vinithra Amarnathan. Peep inside the son’s bedroom and you will find a scaled-down bed with tapered legs, snugly fitting Roman blinds, bold oversized demijohns, and the fine geometric webbing of woven cane on the dresser drawers, all of which add a lived-in comfort to the room’s sharp architectural lines. Spherical light fixtures, botanical-inspired art and open-grain oak floors recur throughout, turning the experience of exploring the house into a fascinating journey where unexpected details are slowly revealed. 

Beyond the bedrooms lies a Japandi-infused reading nook with cylindrical bamboo lanterns, an L-shaped built-in banquette flanking the window, and a dramatic, high-angled vault that slopes downward to create a highly desirable cocoon effect. All these impressions crystallise into a scenic picture of the homeowners and the restful, autumnal season of life they find themselves in. Despite the generously proportioned spaces that underpin Amber & Grain, there is, perhaps ironically, a sparseness here too. As Vinithra discovered, it was challenging to stay true to the austerity the family was seeking and refrain from adding unnecessary elements to the space.

Read more: Encasa Archstudio plays with contours and concrete at this multigenerational home in Kerala