Meet the Karnataka man who built his house of dreams in the shape of a camera

Hongal says building the house wasn’t an easy task.

“I love photography and camera and everything related to it. Over the years a lot has changed in the area, but my love for it remains the same,” he told indianexpress.com over the telephone. “It was my long-cherished dream to build a house that would look like a camera but I didn’t know how to build it — both in terms of executing the concept and monetarily.” .

However, after saving for years, he came across engineers and architects who helped him realise his dream.

Ravi Hongal with his wife Kripa Rani and their three sons Nikon, Epson and Canon (L to R).

Hongal credits Key Concepts Interiors, which did the construction and interior designing of the project that resulted in a  large number of photography-related features inside and outside the house.

There are camera brand names — Canon, Nikon and Epson — etched on the wall of the house, which interestingly, are also the names of Hongal’s sons. A railing of one of the balconies is shaped like a reel. A big flash mounted on top of a lens and hood is also seen outside. There are also features like a memory card and a roll of film on the walls, and a camera shutter on the main gate.

“There were challenges indeed, but they were open to my ideas and suggestions. I told them how I wanted a lens, lenshood and camera films in my designs, and while few were easier to achieve, others needed more work. I tried to help them with much input to get it just the way how I had imagined in my head. After two long years of many brainstorming sessions, finally it became a reality.”

Although the house was completed about two months ago, the pictures of the house — named ‘Click’ — had everyone talking online earlier this week when it was shared on Twitter.

A camera shaped house in bengaluru build by Ravi hongal who is a photographer from Belgaum Karnataka.
And even named his 3 sons
Nikon , Canon , Epson

This is called love for the passion pic.twitter.com/kBidBxpFrH

— ויקאס פנדיטה (@TORUKH_MAKTO) July 13, 2020

Each floor of the three-storey building is dedicated to his sons: the eldest Canon who is 20-years-old, Nikon who is 18, and Epson who is 13.

The night view of the house with proper lighting in place that ensures people to see flash and camera reels from a distance. (Source: Nikon Hongal)

When asked how his children feel about their unique names, Hongal said: “When I decided to name them after camera brands, they didn’t understand much but my wife was very supportive. They often used to ask me about their names as they got older, and even if they did mind earlier, now they’re quite happy. I explained that I named them after things I love the most and they understood it, and now are proud.”

Asked if he ever imagined that the photos of his house will become internet sensations, he said he did not build the house for publicity.

“I didn’t anticipate it at all. It was my dream and I’m just happy that that my passion is being recognised and people are enjoying it. I feel so happy and proud to see people stopping by to take photos and selfies,” Hongal said.