MANOJ
BHAVAN
CHENNAI/TRICHY
HIGHWAY RESTAURANT
"They say
life is a highway and we all travel our own roads, some good, some bad, yet
each is a blessing of its own.”
One does not take a
road trip without stopping at a Highway Restaurant. Anyone on a journey, be it
an adventurous one or an arduous one, needs a break to refresh and relax. Such
highway restaurants must be inviting to the travellers who wish to explore the
journey more than the destination.
The story begins in a small town named Maduranthangam, with an elderly gentleman Mr.Padmakaran who had started his life on a bicycle selling tea in his early years, with a big heart and even bigger dreams of one day catering to the entire world.
The Manoj Bhavan
highway restaurant is located in Madhuranthagam, along the 100 feet wide
Chennai-Trichy National Highway. The essence of the restaurant is to attract
and arrest the attention of fast moving highway vehicles from a distance by the
use of strong geometry and bold shapes and sharpness, a play of varying
silhouette, material, texture, colour and form.
The restaurant is
an incorporation of massive structures with irregular angles that create three
different faces to the onlookers. This way, the travellers are welcomed from
all the directions. These three faces create a visual axis and what first looks
like haphazardness and chaos are diligent decisions - made with the public
users in mind.
The atmosphere of
the building mass and slanting walls along with the combination entice and invites
the weary traveller into the restaurant’s pleasant and rejuvenating interiors.
"The best
thing about concrete is that, it looks unfinished."
The exterior and
the interiors are constructed with exposed concrete and plywood shuttering. The
cantilevers are formed by steel truss framework and they are an interesting
play in the structure which emphasizes the outlook of the building.
Usage of exposed
concrete and the neutral colour scheme of various hues and tones of grey and
white create a balance and uniformity that compliments the usage of the
irregular angles.
The cantilevered
Director’s room is designed in such a way that it overlooks the processing and
the flow of activity of the restaurant. The glass frames with steel channels
are held together by channel sections. Niches have been fashioned as seating
along the interior exposed concrete walls. The janitor area in the washrooms
has also been carved with niches.
The tower which
holds the overhead tank and its head room acts a focal point that is capable of
attracting passengers in the surrounding 3km radius. The massiveness of the
tower makes it as a prominent landmark of the restaurant and its verticality
and vastness makes it easier for the visitors to spot it even from a distance.
The children play
area along with the landscape provides a relaxing ambience for both the adults
and kids. The pathways are defined through the means of landscape.
The highway
restaurant acts as a retreat for all the travellers. Its serene location and
ease of access makes it a pleasurable space for people to unwind and rejuvenate
after a long tiring ride.
The comforting
landscape and the sculpture-like mass will invite the tired traveller in, offer
a pause period and a time of bonding, and rejuvenate their senses, before they
restart their journey.
In conclusion, Manoj
Bhavan, makes the journey of a traveller to a destination more delightful and
enjoyable, because the journey to a destination is equally important as the
destination itself.
“The road is a
word, conceived elsewhere and laid across the country in the wound prepared for
it: a word made concrete and thrust among us.”
No comments:
Post a Comment