Thannal believes in the Indian way of Learning. Indigenous knowledge in shelter making, which was practised in India from the Vedic ages is what we explore and examine. Descriptions about pozzolanic reactions of suda (lime) and surkhi (burnt mud) are found in Vishnudharmottara’s Chitrasutra and how to use natural derivatives from plants and animals effectively in construction. India lacks legitimate documentation of indigenous knowledge in every field now, as many such sources have been either destroyed by foreign invasions and the existing sources are devoid of scientific explanations.

As we see in most of the ancient human settlements, people have lived in durable, comfortable buildings made from natural materials. A third of the world’s population today still lives in building constructed on Earth.

Houses are material extensions of the way the people in it live. The components used in building a house are entangled in the day to day lives of the inhabitants. So, the materials which we use, the way it is used have a dominant effect on the way the house functions. Using natural materials without altering them can minimise the effect on nature and thus can make us live in harmony with nature, just like a bird nesting on a tree.

If we look back to how self-sustaining villages were, amazing conclusions could be drawn. Buildings were made of mud and other materials procured from the vicinity. A Limekiln supplied the requirements of a village then but now truckloads of cement (often transported from long distances) are required for a single house. So how genuine is a ‘sustainable’ building is if it uses truckloads of manufactured materials? So natural buildings are a genuine solution to this scenario and for the ‘Revival’ of indigenous methods.