Palmyra Villa

The land already had a climate strategy: palmyra, neem, and a slope that drained east. We did not clear a rectangle for a “view.” The house finds gaps between trunks.

A long roof with deep eaves covers living, kitchen, and two bedrooms. Laterite walls take the monsoon and stay cool. Between the pavilions, a court holds a narrow pool — water for the air, not a resort photograph. Doors are large because the house is often empty; when it is occupied, it should open like a verandah.

Terracotta underfoot. Lime wash inside. Palmyra in the roof where we could use it without theatre. The villa is for weekends, so maintenance had to be honest: shutters that lock, a roof that throws water clear, a plan that does not need a staff of six to feel complete.