These Sri Lankan villas pay homage to the architecture of silence

Around an hour’s drive from Sri Lanka’s sacred city of Kandy, after we've passed streams of school children wearing immaculate, bright white uniforms, and idyllic villages, sits Santani, the country’s leading wellness retreat. Utilising the ancient practice of Ayurveda to try to ease contemporary afflictions, the hilltop sanctuary has been welcoming in-the-know travellers for almost nine years, and while the remote retreat’s expertise is perhaps the destination’s main draw, its design, by two-time winner of the Geoffrey Bawa Award for Excellence in Architecture, Thisara Thanapathy, is a spectacle in its own right.

Spanning 48 acres of hilly terrain, Santani’s paradisical grounds, dotted with vegetable and herb gardens, are cut through by the Hulu River, where it’s possible and even encouraged to partake in daily swims. Atop a peak, an impressive two-storey entrance pavilion holding the hotel’s restaurant overlooks treetops, and 20 airy villas tumble out across hillsides in opposing directions.

Santani introduces new villas

In addition to these original structures, two new villas have recently been unveiled: a two-bedroom suite and a three-bedroom residence, each featuring self-contained kitchens, indoor and outdoor lounge spaces, and individual private infinity pools overlooking far-reaching valleys and pristine forests.

Paying homage to the ‘architecture of silence’, an ethos that celebrates contemplation and nature, the new structures utilise natural ventilation through careful design that eliminates the need for air conditioning. The result? Silence. Apart from the comforting rustle of dry grass jostling in the breeze, melodic birdsong, and meditative daily paritta chanting drifting curiously across the valleys and mountains from a nearby Theravada Buddhist Temple.

The new additions were also designed to capture the ‘beauty of the context’, including the mountains and the tea fields that surround Santani (the property is set in a former tea estate at 2,800 ft above sea level). Thanapathy tells Wallpaper* his aim was to ‘bring guests into a state of mindfulness’, making a stay ‘a spiritual experience where relaxation is paramount’.

‘Like in meditation, where you become aware of the space around you and ultimately become at one with it, the villas mimic this spiritual phase, creating an atmosphere where solidity disappears,’ he says.

To achieve the sense of a lack of solidity, Thanapathy wanted the landscape to almost ‘run through the villas’ and utilised lightweight structures with see-through spaces to help bring the surrounding scenery into the design.

Contrasting materials, including solid fair-faced concrete and lightweight steel and timber, have been used to achieve the desired effect. Thanapathy added a ‘concrete base to provide a protective feel; juxtaposed with lightweight structures to provide an airiness that helps to ‘connect guests with the immensity of the landscape’.

Floor-to-ceiling glass allows for this landscape to unfurl straight into living spaces, while strategically placed narrow-cut windows mean outdoor foliage can be admired from beds and built-in bedroom desks.

Elsewhere, furniture is minimal; black daybeds sit poolside, metal-framed outdoor grey sofas boast streamlined silhouettes, and industrial stools provide countertop seating throughout open-plan kitchens. Wooden floating steps ensure a seamless transition from the pool deck to a large terrace punctuated by a single silver birch tree.

According to the architect, ‘the only challenge was balancing the aesthetics of such a minimalist design with practicality’, since function is highly important in a hotel of this grade. Yet the outcome delivers on every level; nature is respected, silence is championed, and the spiritual tranquillity of Santani continues to flow unabated.

Santani is located at Arantenna Estate, Werapitiya, 20908, Sri Lanka.