Kriss Real Estate, SAV architects complete 'Si-oul' trio with Lua and Terra villas in Goa

Designed by Kriss Real Estate in conjunction with SAV Architecture + Design, Sol, Lua and Terra are a trilogy of bespoke luxury villas within the 'Si-oul' residential masterplan in Siolim, Goa. Lodged on the forested banks of the Chapora river, the three homes, with the recent completion of Lua and Terra, draw inspiration from the unique elements of the universe – the sun, the moon and the earth; each carefully curated to reflect on the space and energy of its respective astral namesake. Just as one cannot imagine the sun without the moon or the moon without the earth, the relationship between the three villas is conceived to be indissoluble - unquestionably unique when individual but mellifluent in concert.

The layout of the buildings has been choreographed to reflect continuity in composition. The co-dependency of the three celestial bodies can clearly be recognised through the roof plan, which evidences the waterbodies bridging a connection between the distinct villas. Moreover, the spatial arrangement also works towards an overall encapsulation of the character of each villa as observed through its shape. The sun or Sol plays out in the form of wind that blows on the earth, the moon or Lua takes the shape of waves, while the earth (Terra) is spatially organised to represent birds, a metaphor for life on earth; thus scattering celestial conversations throughout the Si-oul landscape.

Inspired by the tranquillity and sensuality evoked by the lunar cycle, the Lua house follows an orbital arrangement featuring three distinctive wings connected via a floating hallway, two walkways and pool bridge. The teak wood entrance threshold features an opaque black screen patterned with motifs of the lunar cycle, hinting at a consistent theme within the villa. Using a combination of a dark slate and granite textured stone walls with corten metal panelling, the house maintains a cool grey gradient scale that mirrors the soft curves and raw textured surface of the moon. Each house comes with a beautifully sculptured dominant wall - for the moon house this is a 600 sqft POP wall explicitly emulating the blue grey cratered surface of the moon. This wall together with a low-hanging shooting star cluster chandelier amplifies the intended celestial atmosphere.

The homes are inspired by varying design heuristics including the modernist pragmatism of the Bauhaus movement conflated with the seamless integration of public and private realms observed in the works of Geoffrey Bawa. For the Lua house, a crescent shape pool serves as a central axis positioned to allow division of the house's communal living and bedroom space. In addition to contributing to the interorbital alignment of the home, these spaces are joined by semi-open floating walkways focused on pulling the outdoors, indoors.

The hallway has been cautiously positioned to manipulate sunlight as well as channel breezes from the adjacent waterbodies for the interiors of the house. The living room is flanked with ceiling height glass doors that further harness daylight and seamlessly extend the interiors into the pool and garden, making the house intrinsically energy-efficient. The monotone concrete-walled master bedroom, with its large sunlit bath, is situated in a corner of the house overlooking the pool. Following an internal stairway, the bedroom leads to an open-air moon observatory deck with a louvered wooden ocular sky roof offering uninterrupted views of Goa’s moonlight starry nights.

The Terra or earth house, designed as an expansive extension of its resplendent surroundings, interprets home and nature to be one and the same. A congruent influence of Bawa’s unique indoor-outdoor fusion spaces, the house by Kriss Real Estate and SAV Architecture + Design discreetly blurs the line between public and private by spilling quiet enclaves into the vast verdant courtyards and waterbodies. These water gardens, brought to life with internal courtyards, open to roof gardens, tree wrapped balconies and patios, contribute to nearly half the size of the expanse.

The exteriors of the villa make use of the sandstone to mark a stark contrast against the surrounding green landscape. A shallow waterbody runs parallel to the louvered teak front door and walls, serving to ventilate the space in a similar manner as the Lua house. The generously high walls of the living room allow expansive views of the infinity pool and surrounding lush foliage. For the main wall, the architects deployed a refurbished teak wood panel sculptural installation, balancing the warmth and colours of the space. One side of the living room extends into kitchen and dining spaces. Indo-Portuguese inspired tiles hand painted in hues of Mediterranean blue map a floral pattern across the sunken kitchen floor.

The master bedrooms have been designed to reference Bauhaus’ minimalistic style, each equipped with private balconies framing views of the Chapora river. Like the living room space, the bathrooms too feature double height ceilings and sunroofs distributing sunlight throughout the interiors. The other end of the living space opens into another water garden and pool side bar, which extends into its own gazebo and outdoor seating area. The layout of each space prioritises fluidity and ease in circulation dedicated to infusing the tropical outdoors within the serenity of the home.

Both houses are designed to be environmentally sensitive. Implementing water conserving plumbing fixtures, angular roofs, louvered panels and fluid layouts around pre-existing trees, Kriss Real Estate and SAV Architecture + Design have created a series of eco-conscious villas that invite you to immerse yourself in their galactically charged atmosphere.

(Text by Saamia Makharia, an intern at stirworld.com)