Journeys and Jottings
People Make Places - Meet architect Arsh Banshal from Tenpy who believes in minimalism and sustainability and is building tiny cabins in the woods for us to take a vacation
Hello
It’s Thanksgiving and I am really grateful to all of you who have subscribed, motivated, and goaded me to find my mojo again to write. It was indeed my newsletter that helped me find my voice after a couple of bad years. It became my companion as I pulled myself out of the abyss and started writing again.
I write this newsletter today in between trips, Over the last couple of months, there have been quite a few of them and I am probably going to take some time off next month to slow down and process them. However, the schedule of the newsletter is going a bit haywire but am trying my best to write as regularly as possible and get back on track in December.
I am just back from a short trip to Uttarakhand, from the lesser-known towns of Tanakpur and Champavat, and am headed to two national parks - Pench and Tadoba. And I have just got back to birdwatching after a brief hiatus as well and am looking forward to these trips.
I have also been interested in sustainable farm stays and I recently went to Chiguru, an organic farm near Bangalore city with my pets, and stayed in a charming container home, built by Tenpy. In People Make Places, we will be talking to Arsh Bansal, architect and founder of Tenpy, which is all about vacationing in tiny cabins built in the lap of nature, in farmlands and wilderness that promote sustainable living as you switch off from the world.
People Make Places
I first interacted with Arsh Bansal when he reached out to me sometime mid-last year (2021) to experience an overnight stay in a tiny container home called Heidi, located on a farm. I loved the book, Heidi, by Johanna Spyri and I was intrigued by the concept. The pandemic had then brought travels to a standstill and I really needed a breath of fresh air.
We had also adopted a semi paralysed dog, Raju from the streets (more on him later ) and we wanted him to explore the outdoors in his wheelcart. And so I had one of the most magnificent stays in Heidi, located at Vishal Farms, and the entire experience was managed by Linger, who prioritises “Do Nothing “ Holidays and slow, sustainable and mindful living.
Recently I had also been to Tiny Rusty and Timothy for another break. Located in Chiguru, an organic farm, this trip was all about connecting back to nature, reliving traditions and heritage, and focussing on simplicity and sustainability. Also managed by Linger, we did a farm tour as Chiguru is all about losing yourself amidst a temple of trees.
I chatted with Arsh about the concept behind Tenpy cabins which are now available only in Karnataka and Maharashtra, mainly around Bangalore and Mumbai, but they are also starting in Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand.
Arsh is from Lucknow who grew up in the foothills of the Himalayas where he attended boarding school and wanted to get back to nature via his career and passion. He says, “I was burnt out and tired of the concrete city life. As an architect, I started focussing on building small living spaces that resonate with nature and the immediate surroundings. I wanted to keep it minimal and simple.”
1.How did the concept of Tenpy begin?
I was always fascinated by tiny living and the idea of living small and also studied architecture. I personally believe that living small will benefit the planet long term. We started upcycling shipping containers initially because I believed that it would make sense.
But for the Indian climate, we realized that the metal box will heat up unless you provide air conditioning . So we are now focused on prefab and hybrid homes that are built with some local materials and some of it is prefabricated. So we are now using a lot of strand boards (made of wooden chips), bio panels, polycarbonate sheets, aluminum composite sheets, and brickwork for some places.
What is so unique about these designs?
The design is focused on two aspects: one is having large openings that you would see in all our tiny homes - the big picturesque window to look out from the bed so that the indoors and outdoors are merged and secondly ample space to sit out and take in the nature even more.
Which is the most favourite among all your tiny homes ?
Hobbes, one of our crowd favorites is loved because of the gigantic skylight right above the bed. Be it winter, autumn, or summer, people love just watching the leaves fall or the raindrops splashing on it. If you are lucky you might even spot some stars at night if the sky is clear. We get a lot of young families, pet owners, people who are overworked, and couples coming in to unwind and connect with nature
What inspired you to build these tiny homes ?
I was always been fascinated by the cottage and cabin culture and design from Nordic countries and the aesthetic of minimal design from Japanese culture. For smaller spaces, minimalism is key because a small space can feel cluttered very easily if there are too many things going on.
Most of your homes are located on farms that are managed by Linger.
Yes, Linger and Tenpy have similar ideologies to focus on low-footprint travel and "do nothing" holidays. We work together in bringing new locations to users who want to escape the city. We both stress the fact that we are not selling a hotel-like experience but something that’s raw and rustic with local experiences at the forefront of it.
If you want to stay in any of these cute cabins, then you can connect to Tenpy and Linger and you can follow them on social media.
Feedback
I do hope that you enjoyed reading this issue. Looking forward to your feedback as always.
I would particularly like to know if you have any other suggestions regarding the travel content.
We are going to keep the flow of conversations going and I would really appreciate it if you will share my newsletter with your friends and family.
See you soon! You can also read my travel stories on my blog and follow me on my social media.
Blog - www.lakshmisharath.com
Twitter - www.twitter.com/lakshmisharath
Facebook - www.facebook.com/travelwithlakshmi
Instagram - www.instagram.com/lakshmisharath
Great little houses! Say more about your dog! 🧡