Karaikudi is a city in Tamilnadu which is known as the homeland of Nattukotai Chettiars. Chettiars are a prosperous banking & business community many of whom migrated to Burma, Sri Lanka, Malaysia etc .
We visited a mansion of one of the Chettiars who welcomed us into their home with open arms.
Intricate carvings on the door just took my breath away. 
Close-up of the carvings in one of the main doors.
The design is typical of traditional south indian village homes...there is an open courtyard in the centre through which natural light fills the whole house.
Beautiful stone-carved pillars line the courtyard. Colourful handmade floor tiles called Athungudi tiles demarcate the various sections of the house.
This entrance room had a chess board floor design.
Just loved this space dedicated to the black & white pictures of their ancestors. Lovely!The highlights:
* Intricately carved doors in Burma Teak.
* Carved stone & wooden pillars and beams.
* Handmade Athungudi floor tiles.
* Carved wooden furniture with antique tiles.
* Antique furnitures, enamel, lacquer & wooden vessels from Burma, Srilanka, Malaysia etc
The handmade floor tiles make me gasp! So breathtaking. I adore India. I will have to come there!
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i m an interior designer from kolkata and i loved your blog....
ReplyDeleteI had no idea they were so enormous.
ReplyDeleteReminded me so much of Kandukondein Kandukondein's home setting. (Tamil movie where Aishwarya and Tabu live)
ReplyDeleteLove the heights an darchitecture detail! Lovely place you have here..
Loved everything about this post - there is so much beauty in India and in the past :) - our ancestors knew so well how to create and hone the space where we live as a womb of art born out of love. Thank you Archana.
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