2024 Winner
Category - Architecture - Hospitality
Ankita Patil
Synectics Architects
Synectics Architects is a Nashik-based architectural practice committed to delivering imaginative, context-sensitive, and economically viable design solutions. Established in 2010, the firm has built a reputation for its ability to balance creativity with practicality, offering turnkey architectural and interior design services across a broad spectrum of project types including residential, commercial, institutional, and industrial spaces.
With a foundation in real-world functionality, the firm emphasizes seamless integration of design innovation with client aspirations and site-specific constraints. Synectics Architects approaches each project as an opportunity to craft enduring spaces that are as purposeful as they are aesthetically refined. Its experience spans collaborations, large-scale developments, and private commissions, all unified by a vision to create architecture that is timeless, responsive, and rooted in its environment.
Area: 3742
Where Light Meets Earth: A Home in Harmony
Rooted in the heart of nature, Vihaa redefines sustainable living. This contemporary farmhouse embraces vernacular principles while integrating modern environmental strategies, creating a tranquil retreat designed to adapt to its climate, context, and cultural soul.
Its form is inspired by the Bhadra flower, with spatial zoning organized around a central courtyard that invites light and air to shape the interior narrative.
Cooling by Design, Not Machines
True to its low-impact ethos, Vihaa employs passive systems to maintain indoor comfort. Terracotta pots, integrated with drip irrigation systems, line the southwest and west façades, promoting natural evaporative cooling as air flows through. The gentle sound of dripping water introduces a meditative rhythm, while keeping the spaces cool even in peak summer.
A Living Courtyard and Tactile Architecture
At the core of the house lies a hand-tiled courtyard, open to the sky and deeply connected to the earth. Surrounded by skylights and shaded by floating Kerala-inspired columns, this space is both grounding and uplifting—a gathering point where architecture meets atmosphere.
Brick tile screens act as breathable walls, diffusing light into gentle shadows while protecting privacy. In the evening, sunset filters through terracotta tile fins, casting dramatic patterns that animate the walls and floors.
Sensory Connections and Subtle Craft
The bathrooms bring nature even closer, with green zones integrated near showers to enhance the sensory experience. Meanwhile, local materials—granite, handmade tiles, and reclaimed wood—echo the land’s history while embodying a commitment to sustainability.
Every architectural element has a purpose—whether functional, emotional, or cultural. The result is a house that responds rather than resists, celebrating slowness, stillness, and sustainability.
Join the Future of Responsible Design
Vihaa – House of Light & Shadows exemplifies how sustainability can be aesthetic, local, and meaningful. It’s a beacon for future architects seeking to balance climate consciousness with creativity.
If you’re designing with vision and values, VOX Architecture Ideas is your stage.
Submit your project or explore the winners at our website.
Inspire us like we (hopefully) inspired you –
