Curious Case of Maze House: This 14,000 sq. ft. Ahmedabad Home is Fashioned Like a Maze to Unpack Inquisitiveness With a Traditional Charm

As kids, when social media wasn’t trending and telephones echoed in the living room, generating competition among siblings, books, newspapers, and magazines fostered ‘mindful flipping.’ While flipping through these pages, one often came across mazes, requiring a pencil to solve and reach the middle through a gamut of ways. But a question lingered: who crafted this genius? In the land of ‘Master Architects’—Ahmedabad—an artist proudly accepts credit for his chef-d'oeuvre, the Maze House. This 14,000 sq. ft. home is a consequence of MISA Architects’ affinity for the bygone era and an ode to the architecture that sustained, altering Ahmedabad’s character forever!

“Tarun, if you’re running late to go somewhere, but if you still feel like staying behind and forgetting the world then, you have designed something valuable because only good design can make you forget the world,” Tarun of MISA Architects bittersweetly reminisces his guru’s statements.

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Fitting in the Land of Aces

On a frantic quest to manufacture and foster familial bonds, “the client’s brief was very simple,” said Tarun. “He said, ‘Tarun, we only want a five-bedroom bungalow, nothing else.’” Thus, a home was designed on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, a land that has received love letters celebrating conscious designs from Louis Kahn, Le Corbusier, and B.V. Doshi. In order to harmonize the design with the effervescent, ingenious, and indigenous architecture bequeathed by these visionaries, the architects' minds boggled with a series of questions. Tarun further explains, “Ahmedabad is a Mecca for architecture; the who’s who have worked here. We thought, ‘What exactly are we offering to such a city?’” As the susurrus of the willed assemblies grew louder, another question emerged. Tarun reveals, “How can we design something rooted in our culture that also speaks for its time?” Consequently, the architects resolved to peer into the previous lifetime and borrow design hacks from the thriving assemblies of erstwhile eras.

Keeping with the region’s rustic charm and in an ode to Louis Kahn, a brick façade with segueing geometries blazed radiantly in the monotonous steel-concrete neighborhood. As this auburn assembly smears honey-dew warmth on the onlooker, blended with a placid sense of equal parts beauty and belonging. Exposing the raw materials used, Tarun reveals, “In a climate like ours (in Ahmedabad), brick is a porous thing, which will maintain the temperature.” However, the INR 40/- per brick posed a challenge. This challenge was tackled by using capricious sizes of bricks that are assembled to orchestrate a cat-and-mouse game with light and shadow, painting the façade with chiaroscuro strokes. The challenge led to another hurdle of bolstering the structure. “So, we actually designed our own masonry bond,” Tarun voices, while sketching its fabrication for better understanding. He adds, “While there is a 2-inch brick coming in the stretcher bond, we placed the vertical joint here (between two stretcher bonds). This is how the 4-inch bricks meet the 2 ½ inch brick.” To further add to the frivolous character of the façade, “we have created our own ‘Swastik’ bond,” Tarun reminisces about the arduous grind of laying each brick for the contractor to grasp this discovery.

A Packet of Surprises

In the pursuit of crafting a journey, Tarun muses on the questions, “What will this space offer? How can we instill a perpetual sense of celebration, 'utsav'? How can we infuse soul into this space?” A journey commences toward the enigmatic abode through a built-in door. “Once you start your journey, you’ll directly arrive at these two courtyards,” Tarun explains. The publicly accessible ground floor warmly welcomes the visitor with two light-filled, open-to-sky courtyards separated by a 'massgarh' or middle room, spreading warmth throughout the entire abode. Tarun reveals, “The clients wanted the ground floor to be completely open,” so all the spaces were deliberately positioned around these two courtyards.

While the first courtyard houses a pooja space and a living area on opposite sides, the second courtyard is anchored by a dining area adjoining a kitchen and a multipurpose room. Continuing the theme of drawing inspiration from the past, a grid pattern was adopted to plan these spaces with nearly equal dimensions. This grid pattern emphasizes balance, highlighted by two additional courtyards emerging on either side of the central massgarh. Diaphanous wooden-framed French windows establish a profound connection with the surroundings.

Twists and Turns

As one reaches the opposite side of the entry, Tarun explains, “There is this amphitheater, sort of steps… you’ll arrive at the mid-level of the ramp which will take you to the upper floor.” The entry to this ramp is actually at the entrance, designed to slow down the pace of the residents after a strenuous day. Upon arriving at the mid-landing, a deliberate pause point emerges. “We intentionally created this for a playful arrangement of spaces,” Tarun explains, set against a colossal cobalt door. Masked behind this door, are a series of stairs leading to the ramp's pause point, transforming the space into a common ground that nurtures the ecstasy of discovery. Akin to a maze, the home’s spaces appear interconnected yet also distinctly separate, nurturing curiosity among its explorers.

"Moving up from the ramp, there is a porch or vestibule area," Tarun points out, leading to an oversized double-height door that contrasts with the light and airy character experienced in the spaces below. This dim passage, speckled with light through a brick jaali, creates a sense of emptiness. "Similar to temple planning, the darkness enhances the sensation, heightening your senses," Tarun explains. Upon crossing this transition space, one enters the larger-than-life frames created by the courtyards, with the massgarh serving as the mediator. "As it is a multigenerational house, all the rooms are connected through the massgarh," Tarun reasons, gesturing towards a range of spaces neatly tucked behind sliding windows and louvred frames. The double-height living room is sheltered under a concrete vault, while a jharokha overlooks the space, serving as a link between floors.  Further beyond, a bedroom discreetly peers into the first courtyard through the louvers, keeping a watchful eye on the activities below. Further, the second courtyard is overseen by dining and a balcony that blethers with the surroundings.

In a corner on the first floor, a staircase is hidden from the explorers' eyes to perpetuate the home’s archetype. Tarun explains, “The staircase is again a mystery, so when we are moving to the second floor through this staircase, we don’t know exactly where we are heading.” He adds, “Everywhere, we tried to create that journey to the unknown,” cultivating curiosity to explore the clandestine spaces. This exclusive area houses a trio of bedrooms that lounge in secrecy while basking in the home’s light and airy character. The bedrooms ingeniously coalesce with the corridors, offering views of the other bedrooms and the courtyard below, drawing inspiration from traditional palaces.

Maze House transcends the boundaries of being just a home; it aspires to be, as Tarun explains, “a journey of discovery, a journey of human quest.” He muses, “Can architecture provide the same journey?” To this, the home’s buoyant spaces, perplexing yet mesmerizing transit routes, and serene vibe nod ‘yes’ in unison. This peerless mixture of form and function fashions a milieu where discovery and serenity coexist amicably.

To watch the complete home tour, peruse the drawings in detail, and browse additional photographs, visit Buildofy. While there, don’t miss out on the other impressive contemporary homes in Gujurat and across India.