Nothing defines Madras fairly like a wave of scorching, sultry air hitting your face the second you enter town. Mention ‘Madras’ to anybody not of town, and the quick response is, “Oh the heat!”. And sure, it’s scorching. But through the years, Madrasis have advanced their very own methods of cooling down themselves and their houses. One of those, named after town, is the ‘Madras Terrace’.

Believed to have been round because the 18^th Century, this roofing approach could have been a mingling of British and native engineering, and was seen in each personal residences and public buildings, although it’s extra widespread now in heritage buildings, because of the elaborate course of and expert masonry required for its building.

It entails using wood beams, typically teak, throughout the 2 reverse partitions requiring a roof, with every beam positioned about 18 to 24 inches aside. Very skinny, excessive density clay bricks, referred to as ‘achikal,’ positioned on their edges, diagonally, make up the roof and are bonded with lime mortar. The roof is cured after which strengthened with a layer of limestone, damaged bricks and gravel. More layers of bricks and lime mortar might be used as properly, with flat tiles topping them.

In the absence of air-conditioners, this multi-layered roofing of pure supplies saved houses cool by filtering out scorching air; it was additionally rain resistant and saved the necessity for periodic roof upkeep. And it was not simply Madras, because the approach, at one time, was widespread throughout Tamil Nadu and South India.

Thus, as Madrasis have all the time defended: it’s not that scorching. Sitting on a porch topped with a Madras Terrace roof and sipping a cool drink is attainable. Want to take a look at an instance? The Humayun Mahal of the Chepauk Palace had its Madras Terrace roof restored lately.