The rich Bunts of coastal Karnataka have traditionally enjoyed enormous social prestige. The coastal districts between Kasaragod in Kerala and Udupi are dotted with several Bunt houses that represent their fascinating modes of living, and architectural styles followed by the members of this community.
Nadibettu Mane in the village of Shirva (on the banks of Shirva river) is one such house that has undergone repair and structural reinforcement in recent years in order to impart longevity to this magnificent piece of medieval architecture of Karnataka.
Amidst coconut groves
Owned by a large family, the Nadibettu Mane stands majestically amidst groves of coconut and areca nut palms in solitude interrupted only by gurgling water of the river and chirping of birds.
Ever since it was renovated, it has begun to draw a constant stream of visitors.
It is a unique house that mirrors the social hierarchy of the erstwhile coastal Karnataka where contours of the family and occupants of the house were determined by the matrilineal system.
Most Bunts lived in such houses, but few of them remain today and still fewer remnants of those practices can be seen in the fast-paced life of the highly upwardly mobile community.
For heritage sake
With a large family owning the house, a host of family veterans representing a wide spectrum of professions contributed generously to renovating it.
They all did this in order to preserve this as a heritage house, for practically nobody lives in the house. The caretaker family lives in another dwelling situated close by.
Architect Harish Pai (from Bangalore) who oversaw the carpentry and masonry part of renovation says the exercise involved patience more than anything else as few masons and carpenters are willing to join such a project.
Pai says the structural reinforcement involved replacing puttu kallu (undressed stones), pulling out entire walls that had been burrowed by rats and termites.
“Since such houses belong to a whole clan, no single individual would be willing to spend his own money on a joint property.”
“This is why most of the heritage houses are sold and get the developer's axe. And precisely this aspect deserves appreciation as the members of the entire clan came together to contribute for the renovation of Nadibettu Mane,” he adds.
Contributors
The house proudly displays a plaque listing more than 50 contributors.
The major credit for the restoration goes to industrialist Nithyananda Hegde, a scion of the family who lives in Mumbai.
Carpentry style
The renovation claimed almost 18 months and saw replacement of several walls and a carpentry style which involved medieval joinery expertise where no nails were used.
“A lot of the wooden pillars embedded into walls too were rotten and had to be replaced by new ones, although we were committed to use only the recycled timber components,” observes Harish.
Today Seetharam Hegde, a retired headmaster from the family, is the local caretaker of the Nadibettu Mane. He, however, lives in Brahmavar.
More social space
Vijaynath Shenoy, the creator of the Manipal's Heritage Village, who inspired the team of architects working on the restoration, says the Nadibettu Mane is an ideal representative of the medieval architecture and social set-up where the headman would occupy the south-western room and the entire planning would emphasise more social space rather than space for individual intimacy.
Doors used to be small as they had to be carved out of the same trunk of the tree.
