In Chennai, Fulcrum Studio’s Kalai is a 9,000 sq ft residence by Husna Rahaman that balances heritage, craft, and light to create a soulful family home.
Curated by: Rupali Sebastian
Photographs: Naresh and Nayan
The project
Kalai is a 9,000 sq ft residence in Chennai designed as a soulful, tactile space where light, craftsmanship, and memory converge. True to its name, Kalai, meaning artistry in Tamil, the home is a confident celebration of the handmade, where every surface carries the presence of a human touch.
The site
Set within Chennai’s residential fabric, the house is conceived as a quiet retreat that reveals itself slowly. From the entry into a gracious living room to the semi-outdoor lounge and skylit voids, the home is designed to unfold in layers of light and intimacy rather than announce itself at once.
The brief
The clients sought a home that was contemporary yet rooted in South Indian traditions, a place where modern living could be enriched by cultural memory, emotional resonance, and artisanal craft. The house was to embody stillness, depth, and sensorial richness, resisting ornament in favour of nuance.
The design intent
Designed by Husna Rahaman, Founder of Fulcrum Studio, Kalai was envisioned as an emotional architecture where every element has both presence and purpose. “For me, Kalai is not just about surfaces, it’s about what surfaces within you. It is an ode to emotional design — a space that listens, holds, and heals,” says Rahaman. The house draws from heritage but translates it with subtlety, where textures, light, and materials create a home that hums quietly with memory.
The civil intervention
The structural shell was adapted with subtle but impactful moves. Skylights punctuate the roofline, creating ever-shifting atmospheres of light and shadow. Internal partitions were reworked to encourage flow between formal, semi-outdoor, and intimate zones. Arched thresholds, curved walls, and open voids replace rigidity with softness, establishing calm and continuity.
The spatial configuration
The home opens into a living room anchored by deep seating, custom handwoven rugs, and warm ochre and clay palettes. Afternoon light softens lime-washed walls, creating a meditative atmosphere. The family lounge transitions seamlessly to a semi-outdoor space, its central swing (oonjal) becoming a gravitational point for connection and nostalgia. Dining is anchored by a sculptural marble-and-brass table, more artwork than furniture, drawing family and guests alike. Bedrooms deepen in mood and individuality: one embraces natural textures, another harvests sunlight, and a third layers bold colour and accents. Throughout, transitions are softened with murals, rugs, and accessories, turning movement into pause and presence.
The material palette
Kalai’s materiality is rooted in craft and memory. Mother of pearl, a Fulcrum signature, appears like stardust across coffee tables, consoles, and inlay, bringing the shimmer of the ocean indoors — a visceral nod to Rahaman’s Mauritian roots. Marble defines volumes in the living and dining areas, veined and sculpted with brass inlays for depth. Stone platforms anchor beds and basins, while handwoven rugs, handloom curtains, and artisanal accessories enrich every room. Artistic accents — from black sculptural pieces to silver-leafed tables and copper artefacts — create a tactile dialogue with the textured walls. Glass partitions introduce visual continuity, while skylights and Italian circular lights orchestrate changing moods of illumination.
The challenges
Designing a 9,000 sq ft home that balances intimacy with expansiveness required careful orchestration. Ensuring light remained dynamic, integrating multiple layers of artisanal detail, and avoiding a sense of excess while celebrating craft were constant considerations.
The highlights
The dining table, sculpted from twin shades of marble and veined with brass, is the showstopper — more sculpture than furniture. The oonjal swing in the family lounge captures nostalgia and stillness, while mother of pearl inlays shimmer as emotional accents throughout. Skylit voids and circular lights create an architectural choreography of light and shadow, turning the house into a theatre of mood.
The takeaway
For Fulcrum Studio, Kalai reaffirms the belief that homes should move beyond spectacle into emotional depth. When craft, memory, and light are composed with restraint, architecture transcends shelter to become a sanctuary that heals and hums with life.
Fact file
Project: Kalai
Location: Chennai, India
Area: 9,000 sq ft
Principal designer: Husna Rahaman
Design firm: Fulcrum Studio
Photography: Naresh and Nayan
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