The disappearing barsati, or rooftop dwellings, of Delhi

2015-12-21T17:33:00-05:00

Buildings in Delhi’s residential areas were restricted to two storeys, with construction permitted on only a fraction of the space on the third floor, so on top of homes, families built small dwellings for their own use, as accommodation for domestic staff or to rent out cheaply. Exposed to the elements, the single room on the top floor became known evocatively as the barsati – derived from the Hindi word for rain, barsaat.

"These apartments – generally, a small shack with a large terrace – afforded a new generation of urbanites cheap living space near the centre of town... But it’s a typology that, as land values rise and the population grows, is fast disappearing. While there are no official figures, anecdotal evidence suggests that in the 1980s, 75% of small rentable properties in many residential suburbs were barsatis – the same areas today have only a few dozen such properties, but many more apartment blocks."

Archinect - News

The disappearing barsati, or rooftop dwellings, of Delhi