A greener, slower way of living, with like-minded neighbours and a forest next door.
Come and walk the land
The forest and the valleys
Banavasi shares its northern boundary with the Cauvery North Wildlife Sanctuary, known locally as the Jawalagiri Reserve Forest.
The sanctuary covers 504.33 square kilometres of dry deciduous hill forest. Three wildlife corridors link it to the forests around it: 41.60 kilometres of protected passage for elephant, gaur and everything that moves with them.
The forest is home to elephant, gaur, leopard, sloth bear, spotted deer and sambar, and to a rich world of birds, butterflies and reptiles that is easy to miss until you slow down enough to notice it.
Beyond the boundary lie the Melagiri hills, where the Eastern and Western Ghats meet. Ridge follows ridge, and the valleys between them carry streams south to the Cauvery. From the higher ground at Banavasi, this is the view: hills fading to blue, and a forest that goes on as far as you can see.
The Melagiri valleys at sunset.
Shot at the siteThe idea
Where the sanctuary ends, Banavasi begins, and the forest does not stop at the fence line. Trees come before buildings, rain stays on the land, and the nights stay dark. Forty-four families could fill a housing society in any city. Here, they share the edge of a forest instead.
Banavasi is for people who want the same things from land: room, quiet, clean air and a place worth handing on. The land holds the community together, and the community looks after the land. Owners are chosen with care, so these values hold as the place grows.
Location
Banavasi sits on the Jawalagiri–Denkanikottai road in Krishnagiri district, Tamil Nadu. It is an easy drive from Bengaluru, near enough for a weekend and far enough that the city falls away.
This is the country around Thally, known as Little England for its cool, gentle climate: misty mornings, mild summers and evenings that call for a shawl. At around 1,000 metres above sea level, the land sits high enough to stay noticeably cooler than Bengaluru through the year. The same climate has made the Hosur region one of India's great rose-growing centres, and its flowers travel from these fields to markets across the world.
| From | Distance [approx.] | Drive [approx.] |
|---|---|---|
| Bengaluru | 90 km | 2½ hours |
| Hosur | 45 km | 1 hour |
| Denkanikottai town | 12 km | 20 minutes |
The land
Fifteen acres of land at the forest edge, divided into forty-four generous plots. The layout follows the natural contours of the land rather than a grid drawn over it: roads run with the slope, plot lines follow the lie of the ground, and rain finds its own way down to the pond. Internal roads are lined with avenue trees, the club house sits at the heart of the site, and the pond is kept as it was found. Each plot has room for a home, a garden, an orchard and more besides, and every plot is large enough to farm and to hold as agricultural land.
The land is gated with a single entrance. Its boundary is a chain-link fence carrying solar fencing strands, which turn elephant and wild boar away without harming them.
Amenities
Three places everyone shares: a club house at the centre, a pond that was here before us, and two viewpoints at the western corners of the land.
The club house — concept render.
At the centre of Banavasi, a short walk from every plot. An open café and common kitchen, with a dining and meeting space under a deep verandah. Guest cottages for visiting family and friends. A natural swimming pool, cleaned by plants rather than chemicals. All of it powered by the sun and set among the trees that were already here.
The pond.
A natural pond holding around 30 to 40 lakh litres of water [approx.], kept as the low point of the land. Rain from the roads and plots drains toward it, birds come to it, and it holds water through the dry months.
The viewpoints at sunset.
Two viewpoints sit at the north-west and south-west corners of the land, each with a sit-out. Both face west and catch the last of the evening light, and the north-west point looks toward the forest. A place to bring a cup of tea, sit with neighbours, or simply watch the valley go quiet.
Living lightly
Living lightly here is not a slogan. It is how the place is built.
We will help owners understand what thrives here. Native trees, fruit trees and crops suited to this climate and soil do better with less water and less care, and we will share what we know about what to plant, where and when.
Around fifty thousand kilolitres of rain fall on this land each year. Banavasi is designed to keep as much of it as possible. Roads are shaped to guide rainwater toward the pond, plots slope to hold it, and the planted boundary slows water running off the land above.
The swimming pool is a natural one. Water is drawn through a planted bed of gravel and roots that cleans it, with no chlorine stored on site.
Banavasi runs on the sun. Solar power supplies the club house, the pumps that lift water to the storage tank, the pool pump and the street lights. Lighting is warm, low and shielded, so the night sky stays dark for people and for the forest next door.
Contact
The best way to understand Banavasi is to stand on it. Call or message us to arrange a site visit.
