In praise of wood

Naturalist Pradip Krishen’s home in Delhi shows the whimsical possibilities of wood with each piece contributing a story. His experiments with wood extend from practical structures to playful aesthetics.
In praise of wood
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5 min read

CHENNAI: Wood is a material of endless possibility — rich in texture, versatile in use, and deeply embedded in human history. Pradip Krishen, an environmentalist, author of Trees of Delhi: A Field Guide and Jungle Trees of Central India, former filmmaker, and restoration expert, captures this perfectly: “Wood is absolutely fascinating and delicious to work with. I deal a lot with living trees and dead trees. I find that quite a nice combination, as both are completely different things.”

Sitting in his Delhi home, surrounded by furniture crafted from lesser-known woods, Pradip reflects on his journey that began over three decades ago. “My interest in wood started in 1992-95 when I was building a house in Pachmarhi. At that time, teak was `2,000 per cubic foot, and I couldn’t afford to buy all the structural wood, doors, and windows in teak,” he recounts.

Woody journey

He began searching for alternatives. “I asked a forester friend if it was possible to buy wood from forest depots. You need to know what you’re looking for,” he explains. He turned to Dietrich Brandis’ book, written by India’s first Inspector General of Forests, which included details on the trees of the region. “I made a list of about 12 to 13 species that should have been available in the forest depot.”

Pradip Krishen
Pradip Krishen

After navigating the auction system, Pradip managed to acquire 10 of the 12 species he had listed. “The average cost came to `140 per cubic foot. Then I learned how to season woods. We had really wonderful results with the grain. This was 30 years ago,” he says. Pradip has since developed an expertise in using “waste woods”, ones that would otherwise be discarded or used for firewood. “It’s nice to know these were otherwise going to get burnt or made into crates. In a sense, we were using waste wood.”

Experience and experimentation improved his knowledge of wood, often challenging conventional choices. “When carpenters hear that you’re not using teak, they either get worried or snobbish, saying, ‘There’s no teak, what’s the point then?’” he says with a laugh. But his resolve remained firm, and he found joy in exploring the possibilities offered by unconventional woods. “The stuff the wood is made of is called lignin, and nobody has figured out how lignin came into being, how this magical material grows naturally and lasts and lasts,” he muses, describing how different woods have their own secrets. “Some have reverse grain, so when you’re carving, you have to discover how it behaves.”

In 1998, after his mother passed away, Pradip moved to Delhi and aimed to transform the house to reflect who he is rather than who his parents were. As part of this renovation, “at great cost, effort, and time, we stripped all the structural timber that was painted green back to reveal the natural grains of the wood,” he recalls. He discovered a local furniture market in Delhi, where timber from trees that did not belong to municipal authorities used to go to be auctioned.

“A man named Wadhawan conducted the auctions, they used to happen in Punjabi. I didn’t attend the auctions; I would go afterward and ask Wadhawan, ‘Bauji, dikhao kya bacha hai,’ meaning ‘Show me what’s left.’ He would introduce me to new types of wood. I bought ten kinds, all considered waste or firewood, which were quite affordable. Next to him was a workshop where we could process the wood and watch the beautiful grains emerge.”

Whims of wood

For Pradip, wood has always been more than just a material — it’s a canvas for creativity and discovery. He speaks of jhand, a wood marked by dark lines that intrigued him. “Wadhawanji told me, ‘Aye, tussi mat lo, iska to aata ban jayega,’ meaning ‘don’t take it as it would become powdered.’ But I bought it anyway. It has lasted till now.” Nearly everything in his home reflects this hands-on approach, from the dining table to sideboards, all bearing the marks of overlooked woods.

His house is a testament to the whimsical possibilities of wood, where each piece contributes its own story. His experiments with wood extend from practical structures to playful aesthetics. “My wooden rainbows,” he says, referring to door panels made from ten types of wood, offer a vivid example of this. The variety of wood types creates a dynamic visual narrative throughout his home.

Love for unusual wood extends into smaller details. For instance, a towel bar at his sink, carved by him from guava wood, retains some of the bark. “Guava is lovely to carve; it’s very homogeneous,” he says. His cabinetry displays bakain wood, a fast-growing yet short-lived tree. Much of his cabinetry is made from bakain in the centre and babool at the edges, surviving for over 25 years.

His attention to detail includes scalloped edges, carved legs, and curving furniture tops that interact with light.

“I like the way scalloped things work with light; it gives you different lighting textures from varied angles,” he explains. For large poster frames, he used wood from the chudail papdi tree, and for a kitchen door’s push panel, he carved cyrus wood into what he affectionately calls “Gandhiji’s ear”.

Even the house’s main entrance reflects his adventurous spirit. The wooden planks forming the gate are arranged in flame-like shapes, with a pseudo tree-like pillar adding a fantastical touch. These whimsical elements, combined with wood’s natural textures, create an atmosphere where each piece tells its own story.

Collaborative craft

Pradip’s relationship with wood is deeply collaborative. He credits much of his success to the craftsmen who helped him bring his ideas to life. “Ram Kishore was my main carpenter,” he shares. “We worked together for three years, and nearly every piece in this house was made by us. He set up a workshop in my driveway, and for those three years, I was constantly designing, and he was producing — it was great fun.”

Even today, he occasionally makes things for friends. “I did a lot of stuff for Arundhati Roy’s flat with Ram Kishore. He was from Bihar, and although he had worked with other woods, this was his first time with many of the types we used. Some, like imli, are very hard and contain a lot of silica, which blunts tools quickly. Carpenters often get upset because they have to sharpen their tools repeatedly, but Ram Kishore adapted fast,” he says.

Pradip’s attention to detail doesn’t stop at design; it extends into the final touches, especially polishing. He developed a technique through experimentation with penetrating oils when living in the jungles of Pachmarhi, where there was no access to traditional polish. His home exemplifies the beauty of wood, revealing its stories, textures, and versatility — a testament to the timelessness of this material in shaping our spaces.

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