Goan Architecture - A forgotten beaut!

The last article was about the Goa of south India, Pondicherry* and so obviously this post must honor the tourist paradise of India, GOA. *click here to visit the blog

Goa holds a strong identity for India and people from various countries and continents feel like home here. It is a real-life paradise for people who know to party and for people who love design and architecture.

People feel home here is because the architecture of traditional Goan houses are a blend of various cultures and multiple influences. The main reason behind this is the fact that during older times the Goan people travel abroad and used to bring in a variety of ideas and influences they derive from that place. Later they execute the very same ideas using local building materials giving rise to Goan vernacular architecture.

Developed during the long colonial Portuguese-Indian era its elements are a fusion of Neo-classical and gothic revival styles. With influences drawn from various styles of architecture such as Portuguese, Mughal, Indian and baroque. This style is an amalgamation of European aesthetics brought alive through a desi medium, and thereby not losing its Indian essence. The city has a Portuguese body with an Indian soul.

The planning is quite similar to that of chettinad architecture, which again has a lot of foreign influences due to the fact of trade that happened during its respective era. Symmetrical in geometry, the features or spaces include Sala (main hall), Sala de visita (small hall), kitchen and storage at the rear end of the house, bedrooms, Perpendicular dining area all placements revolving around the central courtyard. In case of two storey the baroque inspired stair cases were situated in the foyer or dining room and lead to other bedrooms on the next floor.

The materials were considered based on the fierce monsoon weather of the place and the most preferred ones were baked clay tiles and laterite stones, wood and wrought iron. Initially natural dyes and vegetable oils were used to color these houses and it is evident as we stroll through the city of Margao which stills exhibits the cultural reference which the city is gradually losing.

Large ornamental windows, glazed tiles, high ceilings, internal courtyard, decorative cornices, statement exterior and interior colors, plastered walls, stucco mouldings, intricate railings, stained glass effects, European columns on the front porches or more fondly known as the ‘Balcaos’. Burnt earth plastered floors with elaborate tile designs and a whole lot of floral patterns. This house has the best of every style put together flawlessly and moreover very much practical in its approach and attitude and that’s what makes this architecture so unique.

Goa might be the ultra-modern’est’ state in India yet the state holds the soul of a hippie. It is almost as if you have been lost in a land of ‘the ethnically ambiguous’.Next time you plan a trip. Explore this beautiful city! J 

Image source: Google