The Container Home in Gandhinagar is one of the first weekend homes in the city made using a shipping container. The plot area was 4000 sq.yards with a built up area of 77 sq.yards. More than three-fourth of the land had deep contours which left very little flat land for containers.

Aranya: The Container Home in Gandhinagar – One of The First Weekend Homes in the City | Studio Espaazo

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The built mass was placed keeping in mind the site topography, landscapes and requirements. The strategic placement of the containers captured stunning views of the valleys from both, the inside and the outside. The cantilevered deck was one of the most important requirements, which eventually also turned out to be one of the most used spaces.

During the construction process, all the trees were fully preserved and one of them was used as a focal point to locate the containers. The blues and the greens created a beautiful harmony and contrast in the space. 

The challenges faced in this project :

The site had deep contours and 75% area of the land was taken up by the contours which left us with only 25% flat land making it a big challenge. Considering we were using containers, the location of the containers was difficult to decide. Keeping in mind the plumbing lines, electrical connections, structural constraints and design requirements in terms of spatial planning, we tried out multiple options, geometries and then finalized upon one. We also kept all the trees intact and used one of them as our starting point for the design. 

The containers (as can be seen in the plan) capture views of both the valleys and are connected by a veranda which faces the valley filled with lush greenery. The tree between the container shades the entire house naturally (considering containers have extreme heat gain issues).

During the execution, the roads were only 30ft and the site is located at a place where there are slopes and deep contours which did not give the hydra vehicle enough turning radius so we divided the container into two equal halves and got them welded using girders on site. Second, as the photographs show, the container canti-levers at the end, so for the machine to put the container at it’s right place, there was a hassle with the distance (somehow we managed to do it).

Our clients wanted to use their weekend home during the COVID lockdown so we had only 4 months from design to execution which was a task but we delivered the project in the given time crunch.

What is that one design element in the entire space which has your heart?

The canti-levered deck that opens at the end right into the valley from all the 3 sides has our heart. It is the most favourite space of our clients and we are in awe of it too. The canti-levered deck.

If the project is influenced highly by the context of the site, please share with us the insight for that. 

The project was definitely influenced by the context. We really wanted to respect the site topography, the site conditions and make sure none of the trees were harmed during the entire process. The valley had wild trees which were also conserved. This was one of the biggest reasons we worked out a column grid for our structure instead of creating a flat plinth, which allowed us to conserve maximum flora and existing land. The positioning of the containers was also derived by the natural formation and shape of the valleys as we wanted to avoid extra filling.

Color Palette of the Project :

Material Palette of the Project :

Fact File :

Designed by :  Studio Espaazo

Project Type : Residential (Mobile Architecture)

Project Name :  Aranya: The Container Home

Location : Gandhinagar, Gujarat

Year Built : 2020

Duration of project : 4 months 

Plot Area : 4000 sq. yards

Built up : 77 sq. yards

Project Size: sq feet :  700 sq.ft 

Project Cost Appx : 30L

Principal Architects : Avishi Jariwala, Smeet Kaswala

Team Design Credits : Avishi Jariwala, Smeet Kaswala

Interior Styling: Avishi Jariwala

Photograph Courtesy : Mr. Dhruv Thakker

Products and Materials : Construction Materials: GM Sons | Lighting: Anmol Lights | Doors and Partitions: Parth Containers | Sanitaryware: Jaquar | Windows: Parth Containers | Furniture: Fabindia, Pepperfy & Bespoke | Flooring: Patidar Ceramics | Kitchen: Bespoke | Paint: Bahubali & Sons | Artefacts: Fabindia | Hardware: Was sourced by Parth Containers

Consultants for the Project : 

Civil: Maruti Constructions

Interior Designers, Landscape Architects, MEP & HVAC Consultants and Lighting Designers : Studio Espaazo

Structure Engineers: Parekh Associates

Acoustics Consultants: Parth Containers

Contractors: Maruti Construction

Quantity Surveyors: Kalpesh Dobariya

Firm’s Website Link : Studio Espaazo

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Email Id (For any inquiry) : [email protected]