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2026.07.05 | Sunder Engineering |
#Residential Design#Heritage Renovation#Stone Architecture

Shilaya: A Modern Stone Narrative Woven into Kotagiri's Colonial Tapestry

Shilaya: A Modern Stone Narrative Woven into Kotagiri's Colonial Tapestry

Executive Summary

Shilaya masterfully reinterprets Kotagiri's colonial architectural legacy through a profound homage to local stone, creating a timeless dialogue between history and contemporary living amidst the serene Nilgiri mountains.

Analytical Insights

  • Shilaya is strategically situated on a brownfield site in Kotagiri, Nilgiris, once home to a partially collapsed colonial-era stone cottage, deeply rooting it in the region's historical and architectural narrative.
  • The project's name, derived from the Sanskrit word "śilā" (meaning "stone"), encapsulates its fundamental design ethos: a profound reverence for and utilization of indigenous stone vernacular.
  • Through a sensitive reinterpretation of the original site's remnants, Shilaya meticulously blends colonial architectural influences with contemporary design principles, forging a cohesive dialogue between past and present.

Further Reading