This holiday home in Kurseong, West Bengal by Dulal Mukherjee and Associates is a visual delight, set against the backdrop of mountain ranges, and inspired by them as well. The angular form and sloping facade harness the essence of the Himalayas and are complemented by numerous gardens and water bodies. With beautiful transitions between the open and enclosed spaces, the bungalow is more representative of a sculpture than a residential project. Scroll down to read the architects’ description of the space.

Cradled in the foothills of the snow-capped Himalayan range, the Bungalow of Mr. K D Paul, an industrialist and a friend of the architect Dulal Mukherjee, celebrates nature and draws inspiration from it. The bungalow is located in the Uttarayan complex of Kurseong, a quiet hill station in the Siliguri-Darjeeling highway. The form of the bungalow is a stylised adaptation of the mountain range and is a sloped angular building with contrasting spaces.

It is a guesthouse, serving as a getaway from the chaotic metropolitan urban life into the solace of nature’s lap. Dissembling the regular forms, the architect chose to follow the philosophies of deconstructivism and reflected it into various facets of designing.

The essence of the snowy Himalayas is evident in the built form. The mystic woven into the spaces upholds unusualness as one traverse through the nooks and corners of the bungalow. The staircase like atrium is the centre of attraction. The aim was to create a transparent built form and hence the whole building is treated as a sculpture with pointed ends, gardens, numerous terrace gardens and water bodies, which enables one to experience the transition through open and semi-open spaces.