Can you imagine a castle located in a slum? In Mumbai, there is a building called Antilia, which is the gold left in the desert. It is said that Antilia is the most expensive building besides Buckingham Palace.
Introduction
Background of homeowner
Located on the most expensive stretch of Altamount in Mumbai, Antilia is owned by Mukesh Ambani, whose family of six lives in the mansion. Mukesh Ambani is ranked 10th in the Forbes Billionaires 2022 list, with assets of $90.7 billion.
The 37,000 square meter, 173 meter high, 27-storey mansion is the same height as a normal two-storey building, with three helipads, nine elevators, 168 car parking spaces, a theater for 50 people, a sky garden, a gym, a swimming pool, a ballroom, guest rooms, and a view of the Arabian Sea from the building.
Architect
Antilia was designed by Chicago architects Perkins & Will and constructed by Australian architectural firm Hirsch Bedner Associates for a market value of approximately $1.5 billion. Construction began in 2006 and was completed in 2010, a process that took five years. It is said that the house can also withstand an earthquake of 8 magnitude.
Special Facilities
The mansion contains some special facilities such as:
- Inspired by the Hanging Gardens of Babylon hanging Gardens
- Ice House
- The world’s nine fastest elevators
Floor Overview
| Floor | Facility |
| 1-6 | Car Parking |
| 7 | Cinemas, dance halls |
| 8-2 | Hanging Gardens |
| 13 | Pool, gym, igloo |
| 14-20 | Guest rooms, maintenance floors |
| 21-27 | Mukesh Ambani family living floor |
| 天台 | Helicopter ramp |
Mansion Features
Antilia’s design ingenuity does not stop there, as the following highlights the features of the mansion
- Hydroponics: Hydroponics is a technique of growing plants without the use of soil, using only water to carry the nutrients needed for the plants to grow, so it is also known as soil-less cultivation.
- Different from floor to floor: It is said that each floor of Antilia has its own unique design.
- The name Antilia comes from a phantom island: In the 15th century, many explorers were trying to find new lands. In this era, an island in the Atlantic Ocean was called Phantom Island, and this Phantom Island was named “Antilia”.
- Bringing in a lot of sunlight: Since Mukesh Ambani’s family loves to sunbathe, light-transmitting materials were chosen to allow a lot of sunlight to enter the building.
Controversy
Antilia contains many controversies, such as:
First, Antilia was formerly an orphanage and Mukesh Ambani bought the land for $3 million, yet its market value was $20 million.
The Maharashtra government’s revenue department and the board of directors of Waqf, which controls the trust, objected to the sale of the land at such a low price. A lawsuit was filed in the Supreme Court of India and a stay order was issued on the sale of the land. The Supreme Court dismissed the order and asked the Board to approach the Bombay High Court. Nevertheless, the matter was settled after Mukesh Ambani agreed to pay US$24,000 as compensation through his company, Antilia Commercial.
Second, the Indian Navy opposes the construction of a helipad on Antilia. Some local NGOs have also complained that it violates local noise laws. In addition, there is the issue of illegal parking lots being built.
Thirdly, although Antilia claims to have built a green energy efficient house, it’s monthly electricity bill is as high as INR 7.06 million, which is equivalent to the monthly electricity bill of 7,000 average Indian households.
Moreover, there is a building near Antilia that is not very different in appearance and size, built by the Singhania family, owned by the Raymond group.
Public perception
Despite being the most luxurious building, many people find Antilia’s appearance “ugly” and do not appreciate the architect’s design. Others commented that the floors of the building looked as if they were created individually and then stacked on top of each other. This shows that the architect’s design does not resonate with the people’s thoughts.
Internal Events
- On July 10, 2017, a fire broke out on the ninth floor and was extinguished within minutes. The fire was confined to the 4G antenna and plastic frames in the hanging garden.
- On February 25, 2021, a vehicle containing 20 explosives and a threatening letter against Mukesh Ambani’s family was found near Antilia. Fortunately, the suspect was taken back to the police.
Conclusion
As India’s most famous mansion, Antilia is not open to visitors, and Indians are not proud of Antilia, but rather feel that “it is a shame to build a mansion in a country with so many hungry children”.
Most of the residents believe that those who live there should care more about what is going on around them and ask themselves if they can do something to help the poor. This is because the country needs the great wealth of these people to help the needy residents around Antilia.
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References
- ‘Antilla’, Mukesh Ambani’s house, shows lack of empathy for poor: Ratan Tata – The Times of India 🔗
- Most expensive home in the world has 27 floors, ocean and slum views – Los Angeles Times 🔗
- Antilia is the world’s most expensive house for $1 billion – luxurylaunches.com 🔗
- Antilia: Incredible Images Of The Most Extravagant House In The World – allthatsinteresting.com 🔗
- 5 facts about Antilia, Mukesh Ambani’s $2 billion Mumbai mansion – architecturaldigest.com 🔗
- Cover image taken from pixabay
