Anjalendran by Robson David Gomis Waruna

Author:Robson, David, Gomis, Waruna
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-4629-0580-5
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing

The courtyard of the Anjalendran House with Geoffrey Bawa’s housewarming gift of a Kandalama chair

THE HAMEED HOUSE

Koswatte, Nawala 1987–89

Hameed and Dani met in 1970 at the newly opened Serendib Hotel, that quintessential Geoffrey Bawa design on the beach at Bentota, where Hameed was the front desk manager and Dani the local representative of the Swiss tour firm Hotelplan. The Serendib developed a reputation for simple, relaxed hospitality and was a favourite watering hole for both Bawa brothers, who each owned country estates in the vicinity and used it to entertain their friends. Hameed became an indispensable member of their circle, someone who could always be relied on to solve problems, and was a close confidante of Bevis Bawa. After Hameed and Dani married, Geoffrey Bawa tried to persuade them to buy an old walaawe in Bentota, but Dani was sceptical and they opted to build a new house which Bawa designed for them on the neighbouring piece of land. Bawa later converted the old house into the Mohoti Walaawe Hotel, while Hameed’s house was extended at various times by Anjalendran and Channa Daswatte to become the Club Villa Hotel.

A decade later, in 1987, the Hameeds bought a piece of land at Koswatte on a sloping site which faced east across the marshes of Etul Kotte at what was then the very edge of Colombo, and asked Geoffrey Bawa to design a house for them. Bawa was tired, having recently completed the Ruhunu University campus, and suggested that they use Anjalendran instead.

Hameed’s family came from Kandy and his grandfather had been involved with the construction of the ‘Malay Mosque’ which had been built during the British Period to serve a regiment of Malay soldiers. When the mosque was modernised Hameed managed to salvage the doors and windows and these dictated the scale of the new house.

The site was entered from its north-western corner and sloped upwards towards the south as well as falling steeply away toward the east. Anjalendran’s strategy was simple, but brilliant. Visitors entered at the lowest point beside the carport and encountered a long lateral loggia incorporating a small dining area running beside the kitchen and staff quarters. This led up a half-flight of stairs to the double-height living room which acted as a turning point on the axis. From here a return half-flight connected back to an upper loggia which fronted the main bedrooms and served as a family sitting room. This articulation of loggias results in a subtle hierarchy of space from public to most private.

The architecture is straightforward and robust, and Anjalendran works his magic through the manipulation of light and space, exploiting the old arched windows with their beautiful wooden louvres. After twenty years of use the house is still in its original state and is lovingly inhabited by its owners.

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