Restoring Memory: The Revival of India’s Heritage Homes

Across India, a quiet renaissance is unfolding as families choose to reclaim their ancestral properties instead of razing them for glass-and-concrete replacements. Time-worn verandas, Burma teak rafters, and lime-washed walls are being lovingly revived—not merely out of nostalgia, but from a deeper yearning to root modern living within memory, craft, and place. Drawing from conversations with a homeowner-restorer, a conservation architect, and a seasoned practitioner, this revival story unfolds through lived experience, technical insight, and long-term stewardship. For Luv Jain, the restoration of The Verdun, a 1914 Edwardian residence perched above Mussoorie’s Mall Road, was as intimate as it was […]