An alluring Pune apartment replete with rustic charm

Shrutika Raut Design Studio weaves an evocative narrative with natural materials and ethnic art.

Curated by: Rupali Sebastian
Photographs: Hemant Patil; courtesy Shrutika Raut Design Studio

The site

Saga House is located off Viman Nagar, Pune and situated in a bustling lane of the neighbourhood. Considering the ever-evolving and busy city surroundings of the house, the palette for the interiors was so chosen as to act as a place of refuge and to seek solace at the end of the day. “The home started its journey from a bare shell structure and hence we had the liberty of carving out interesting and flowing spaces to achieve the desired fluidity in design,” says architect Shrutika Raut whose eponymous Pune-based studio crafted this evocative home.

The design intent

The architect endeavoured towards a sublime narrative constructed with stories from the bygone and new stories that would unfold with time. “The design is an outcome of a seamlessly stitched mood board for the dwellers, clients who are avid readers, to weave new stories every time,” she says.

The material and colour palette

Natural materials being the biggest inspiration here, the home is entirely born out of the Indian sandstone variety used in every space of the house – from flooring to entire wall claddings in the toilet and refurbished teak wood furniture. In fact, for Shrutika, the “curation of a very timeless and indigenous material and colour palette of the house,” was something she particularly enjoyed about this project.

The home showcases statement walls donning terracotta bricks, polished yellow tandur flooring caressing the feet, wooden rafters shaping the ceiling, refurbished teak wood furniture with cane weaving, fluted glass and organic fabric upholstery. A wine red console and deep sage of the wall strategically accentuate the colour sensitivity of the palette, while Pichwai, Pattachitra and Kalamkari art add visual delights on the walls. Earthy decor with wheat reeds and saag fruit bearing twigs from the house owner’s farm craft a beautiful marriage of true materials, enhancing the rustic design values.