Of tender transitions in Ahmedabad

Compartment S4 reimagines downsizing through memory, textiles and a dash of red

24 Feb 2026

What does a new home owe to those who have spent decades weaving life into walls they have now left behind? Perhaps, a profound sense of gentleness. “I was shaped for the pace you now prefer. Set your memories down anywhere. This is simply the next chapter,” the home seems to murmur to its dwellers. Like the steady flow of the Sabarmati River, life at Pravaah, a 2,000 sq ft Ahmedabad apartment conceived for a senior couple, moves with the currents of remembrance. The home resists spectacle, allowing raw materials, layered thresholds, and the passage of natural light to create warmth without excess.

The vision behind the design comes from Compartment S4, the multi-city practice co-founded by Aman Amin, Manuni Patel, Monik Shah, Kishan Shah, Vedanti Agarwal, Krishna Parikh and Nishita Parmar as a travelling design collective. The project’s name, Pravaah, carries a symbolic meaning. Translating to ‘flow’ in Sanskrit, it is a nod to the continuous progression of the abode and the inhabitants as they transition into a more compact, functional home.

“Our conversations led us to understand that what they needed was a space that felt emotionally grounding. A home that would respectfully carry forward a lifetime of memories, values, and personal identity”

— Team Compartment S4

The contiguous arrangement of spaces lends the home a layout that fosters both connection and intimacy; Photography by Harsheen Mengar

THE LIVES WITHIN

The most compelling forms of inspiration are often found in what remains unsaid, yet quietly expressed. So believes the team at Compartment S4. “Our conversations led us to understand that they needed a space that felt emotionally grounding. A home that would respectfully carry forward a lifetime of memories, values and personal identity,” the co-founders note.

While minimalism posed as a leitmotif, design refused to be sterile. Instead, it donned a familiar cape — one stitched with slivers of textiles, collected artworks, and passionately gathered objects — the kind of memory that slips into nooks, returning to greet you unexpectedly.

A vignette of the lounge, its design spearheaded by monotones, warm wood tones, and layered light; Photography by Harsheen Mengar

The apartment relishes minimalism, its spaces designed with versatility of function in mind; Photography by Harsheen Mengar

MATERIAL AS MEMORY

“An earthy palette lends rhythm to spaces, with rough stone-finish tiles and smooth expanses of micro-concrete. Glass bricks and fabric panels softly filter light into rooms, making them feel connected yet personal,” the studio shares.

The couple’s cherished trove of Indian textiles does not rest stowed away in vitrines or in opaque almaaris. It seeps into architectural inserts like tactile inheritance, repurposed into partition systems, the team illustrates, “Rigid walls have been swapped with partial dividers, sliding doors, and cut-outs to mark transitions. The use of fabrics embeds meaning into the structure instead of treating it as decoration.”

A peek at the dining space, set past the home’s central study. The sculpture is a Vyom Mehta creation, and the fabric in the cabinet shutters comes from the client’s collection; Photography by Harsheen Mengar

Colour and pattern debut across the abode through textiles, while red micro-concrete earmarks zones as one moves through the home; Photography by Harsheen Mengar

IN OPEN DIALOGUE

The home’s central study is organised around a sweeping band of red micro-concrete — its retreat-like ambience absorbing the couple’s rituals as they read, unwind, or bask in the brassy afternoon light.

“Designing the study was especially rewarding. It fused several concepts we were exploring: compactness, emotional depth, and flow,” the practice reflects. The earth-washed red moves through the home like a quiet undercurrent.

In the dining area, the colour traces the floor as a bold arc, gathering meals and conversations within its curve. Inside the resting spaces, the hue turns coy — present yet restrained. Mortar recedes in the presence of glass bricks in one of the bedrooms, creating a dynamically illuminated interior that evolves over the course of the day.

Wood’s solidity meets the lightness of glass bricks in one of the bedrooms, allowing light to filter deeper within; Photography by Harsheen Mengar

THE ACT OF REMEMBRANCE

In a city shaped by masters of modern architecture, this dwelling leans towards celebrating the human scale. It answers an imperative question: if a home could speak of its intent, what would it reveal? This residence would share that to start over is not to erase, it is to refine. “We only focused on stripping away the non-essential while amplifying what held emotional value. Every decision emerged from empathy and the clients’ identity,” reflects the team.