MELKOTE CASE STUDY

MELKOTE FARMERS DWELLING 

HOUSE 1

• Number of occupants at present – 7
• Number of occupants before property division – 12
• Occupation – they grow wheat , ragi ,tamarind…etc..they even sell milk..

The oldest form of farmers house …a traditional dwelling. Most of the spaces are used for storage of things. The front elevation has attic (ATTA) at top where they store wood, dried coconut shell for hot water and cooking food. Either side of entrance (mumbagelu) there are platforms called JAGALI. Jagali is used mainly for sitting purpose but used for various other purpose like storage of wood, playing ,..etc . In this particular house they have storage room on jagali to east and have stored logs of wood to the west side.

     The steps and jagali enhances the main door. As we enter there is a veranda kind of space and cow shed(KOTTIGE)on either side of veranda. Front of veranda living space(CHAVADI)is of rectangle shape, to the west of living there’s room(KONE).Room has small window opening,1 single cart bed and surrounding is filled with ragi, wheat gunny bags, just outside room also gunny bags are stacked. To the east of living we enter into a dining space(PADHSHALLE).It has a small window opening, it also has stone grinder fixed to ground. Dining hall leads to kitchen which has 1 window opening, kitchen (ADUGE MANE) has gobber gas stove n stone slabs all over. It is a gabled roof of single ridge, supported by queen post ,struts, purlins …rafters and battens are of bamboo strips over which dried thick roof grass covering to roof .This roof had attic which covers whole area of dwelling, which was used for storage purpose and climb up with help of ladder. The wall was mud wall where boulders were placed in middle and plastered with mud.

    Next to jagali outside there is a public well towards east side. In this house there was no wash room(NEER MANE)but they used them in opposite house which also belongs to them……i.e, during partition division of the house one of them got the opposite house who has settled in Bangalore, which was built after old house…only wash room and room were used by old house people and other spaces(cow shed, living, dining and kitchen)were left vacant. This house was built of brick, cement…and gabled roof with clay tile as roof top.

INFERNCE

• ·         This was oldest house where well was outside and was used as public well whereas  in house 2 the well is inside the house used for their own purpose and other houses has tank instead of well.
• ·         Mud wall with boulders inside which is very strong as it is 100yrs old  but, now as brick and cement are used for constructing wall.
• ·         Cow shed is inside the house because they believe cow as god in their tradition…but in other recent houses cow shed was not found (as working as masonry, shifted to Bangalore.. etc).if found they are outside house.
• ·         Jagali is found to be spacious where as it goes on decreasing in area in recent dwellings.