The house is on a narrow plot, flanked by neighbors. Correa built high, blank parapet walls on the sides. From the street, it looks like a Brutalist bunker. But inside, the magic happens.
Correa introduced a split-level section . He didn't just stack floors; he staggered them vertically. This created a double-height living room that acts as a thermal chimney. Hot air rises and is sucked out through jaali (perforated stone or brick screens) at the top. parekh house charles correa archdaily
Correa’s response at Parekh House was simple, scientific, and stunningly sculptural. He asked: How do you build a modern home that breathes? Unlike Le Corbusier’s villas that sat on pilotis (stilts), Parekh House sits on the ground but carves into its own volume. The house is on a narrow plot, flanked by neighbors
Here is why ArchDaily readers—who obsess over section cuts, passive cooling, and brutalist poetry—should revisit this gem. By the 1960s, the International Style (glass boxes, flat roofs, white walls) had landed in India. It was a disaster. Glass turned interiors into greenhouses; flat roofs leaked during monsoons; and air conditioning was a luxury. But inside, the magic happens
In the humid, bustling heart of Mumbai (formerly Bombay), where real estate is measured in square inches and the din of the city is relentless, stands a silent fortress of light and air. It is not a museum or a public library. It is a private residence: Parekh House (also known as the Kanchanjunga Apartments’ lesser-known sibling) .