Will this beachfront mansion near Ocean Springs ever be finished? What the owner says

A Coast doctor has not given up on finishing the mansion he started building back in 2008 on Belle Fontaine Beach near Ocean Springs.

Pravin Saija said he threw up his hands after having bad experiences with a couple of contractors. He wants to wait until he retires as a Veterans Affairs physician to finish the house so he can supervise the work. He’ll be able to do that in 2025, he said.

Saija designed what some people refer to as “the castle,” then took his plans to an architect. The three-story house was supposed to be a replica of the Taj Mahal, but Saija said he was unable to find anyone who could replicate the domes, so the roof is flat.

Still, the Indo-Islamic architectural influence is unmistakable in the main structure, with towers on each side connected by covered breezeways and a third-floor terrace that overlooks the Mississippi Sound.

Saiji, 68, said he and his wife, Arti, hope to entertain friends in the home when it’s finished.

Hurricane-resistant construction used

The mansion’s exterior is insulated concrete form construction completed in four pours, said Jackson County Planning Director Marcus Catchot. Chatchot said the exterior structure has passed inspections but the interior work is far from finished.

A red gate bars the front door on the first floor of the elevated house. Saija said the first floor sits 30 feet above sea level. With elevation and concrete construction, he expects the house will fare well in hurricanes.

Saija said he also used an aerodynamic, circular design on the house to allow wind to flow around the walls, reducing hurricane damage.

The house has 4,400 square feet of interior space, and 12,000 square feet with exterior balconies, breezeways and terraces added. The house features five bedrooms and 5.5 baths, a previous listing on realtor.com says.

Saiji put the house on the market for $2 million in 2016 but it didn’t sell. “People want to buy it for nothing,” he said.

Legal setback

He’s had other setbacks as well. In 2009, he sued the first contractor on the home in Jackson County Chancery Court for breach of contract. A judge found that the contractor had stopped work in April 2009 with only 25% of the job completed, although Saiji had paid 50% of the contract price.

The judge awarded the Saijis $493,897 to compensate them for their loss, but Saiji said he was never paid because the company declared bankruptcy.

He hired other workmen in 2013, but continued to have problems.

“Then after that, I just stopped doing anything,” he said. “Everybody has their limit.”

Saija and his wife are living in Gulfport until their home is finished. He said it’s the first house he’s had built and he will never undertake another.

“Not after this experience,” Saija said.