Ar.

Midhul 1
Module4 - Contemporary Architects & Ideologies

Hafeez Contractor
- Hafeez Contractor (born 1950) is an Indian architect. Hafeez Contractor’s career spans more than
three decades with over 75 national and international awards for excellence in architecture
- Contractor has referred to the standardized ratings used in Western countries for certifying green
buildings. In his view, conditions in India require a rating system that takes into account the unique
problems faced by that country, such as the loss of farmland

- The essence of work is that there is no signature style. He believes that architecture should be
based on current demand, should respond to the spirit of time and should be for the people.
- He has worked extensively on common man’s housing and has championed the art of residential
architecture, affordable or luxury. The most important is design efficiency and time.
- Focussed in designing master plans with 30 per cent lesser infrastructure, bigger green area and
better plot sizes. He always challenged own designs to do something better.
He calls this ‘zero waste architecture’

- Hafeez Contractor started working in 1968 as an apprentice with his uncle T. Khareghat while
working toward his architecture degree
- In 1991, Contractor was enlisted to add buildings to Infosys' Bangalore campus, firm's first software
development park outside Pune, and its corporate educational facility near Mysore.
- His most famous project is Hiranandani Gardens, a township in Powai, a suburb of Mumbai.

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- In 2005, Contractor designed the twin-tower residential skyscraper- The Imperial, whose 254
metre-tall Tower I became the tallest residential buildings in India (with Tower II slightly behind)
upon completion in 2010
- It was displaced by One Avighna Park (266 metre) in 2017. That building was, in turn, displaced by
The 42 in Kolkata, which was also designed by Contractor. He also designed 23 Marina in Dubai,
which was briefly the world's tallest all-residential building.
- Awarded Padmabhushan in 2016

Famous works:
DLF Ericsson - Gurgaon, Topsia Kolkata, Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology – Assam,
Mahindra World school – TN & Delhi, DY Patil stadium – Mumbai, Indian School of Business,
Hyderabad, NIFT Bombay, IIT Bombay, Osho International meditation resort – Pune

Christopher Benninger
- Christopher Charles Benninger (1942) is an American-Indian architect and planner
- On the invitation of BV Doshi, in 1971 he resigned from his tenured post at Harvard and shifted
to Ahmadabad, as Ford Foundation Advisor to the Ahmadabad Educational Society, where he
founded the School of Planning.
- In 1986 he was engaged by the Asian Development Bank to author paper on Urban Development,
arguing successfully the case for extending financial assistance to the urban development sector.
- He is a Distinguished Professor at the Centre for Environmental and Planning Technology
University, Ahmadabad, and on the Board of Governors of the School of Planning and Architecture,
New Delhi.

- While in Ahmadabad he innovated the concept of Site and Services, an approach to housing -
providing access to shelter via developed small plots, allowing poor families to construct their own
homes, according to their means.
For the World Bank and the Madras Urban Development Authority he designed over 20,000 such
units in four locations, the largest at Chennai.
- With the advent of institutional housing finance in India 1972 he created a unique neighbourhood
of small ground level houses for about five hundred households in Jamnagar, Gujarat. This was the
first shelter program funded by the Government of India for the economically weaker section of
society.
In 1976–79, using funding from the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO), he built
a township for low income households in Hyderabad, with over two thousand houses, public
amenities and shopping centres. This was the first project of the Hyderabad Urban Development
Authority

Principles:
- Use of materials in forms, Honesty in expression
- Critical regionalism – importance to context. Integrating structures with context.
- Drawing elements from Vernacular – balance with tradition
- Creating public domains and convivial spaces – balance with community
- Bringing natural landscape to the buildings – balance with nature (Organic architecture)
- In campus design, pedestrian movement were given priority than vehicle movements

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Famous works:
Planning – Development plan for Kalyan & Thane in Mumbai Metropolitan region, 6 regional capital
in Srilanka, 28 urban centres in MP, 3 towns in Bhutan
Architectural – Suzlon One Earth Corporate HQ – Pune, Bajaj Institute of Technology - Maharashtra,
Samundra Institute – Lonavala, IIM Calcutta, Indoor Stadium - Ahmadabad, The Governance Centre -
Hyderabad, Second campus of KIAMS – Pune, Mahindra united world college - Maharashtra,

Nariman Gandhi
- Nari Gandhi was an Indian architect known for his highly innovative works in organic architecture.
- After completing architecture from Sir J. J. College of Architecture, Mumbai in early 1950s he
travelled USA to apprentice with Frank Lloyd Wright and spent five years there
- After Wright's death in 1959, Nari left Taliesin and studied pottery at the Kent State University for
two years.
- While working in India, Nari continued to work on Wright's ideology of organic architecture and
further developed his own unique style with a subtle influence of local climate and culture.
- He ceaselessly continued to work on Wright's idea of 'flowing space'. Nari worked without an office
and rarely made any drawings for any of his projects. Nari spent a lot of time on his sites and worked
closely with the craftsmen and often participated in the construction process himself.
Also known as ‘Howard Roark of India’.
- Each building designed by Nari is as an example of unconventional thinking in architecture.
He created built spaces that remained forever connected to their un-built surroundings allowing
sunlight and wind to interact with the inside and animate the space with time. Each house is a series
of dialogs between the built and the unbuilt.
- Nari's works display distinctive organic character, highly skilled craftsmanship and structural
ingenuity

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- Throughout his works you see extraordinary use of stone, brick, wood, glass and leather.
Nari rejected conventional ideas and paradigms and introduced his own through his work.
- Extensive use of brick arches, buttresses, stone masonry are seen in his construction.

Famous works:
Residence at Revdanda - Mumbai, Dayas bungalow Madh island - Mumbai,
Mountain Lodge for Jal Gobhai at Lonavala – Pune , Gateway to mosque at Kolgaon - Ahmednagar,
Residence for Kishore Bajaj at Karjat - Mumbai, Residence for Asha Parekh at Juhu - Mumbai

Brinda Somaya
- Architect and conservationist completed her Master of Arts degree from Smith College, USA after
graduating from the Sir J. J. College of Architecture, Mumbai.
- She believes that development and progress must proceed without straining the cultural and
historic environment. Architect has the role of guardian – the conscience of the built and unbuilt
environment .
- Her field of work, spanning large corporate, industrial and institutional campuses extends to public
spaces, which she has rebuilt and sometimes reinvented as pavements, parks and plazas as well as
historic restoration and adaptive reuse.
Ex. Some of these campuses include Tata Consultancy Services, Banyan Park – Mumbai,
Nalanda International School, Vadodara – Gujrat & Zensar Technologies – Pune
- Travelled to the rural parts of India, from where she has got knowledge and inspiration for
vernacular architecture which uses locally available resources and technique
Ex. The Nalanda International Schools in Vadodara
- Her designs are both traditional as well as sustainable

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- In 2004, Somaya she won the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage award for the restoration of the
St. Thomas' Cathedral in Mumbai. She is also a Leading European Architects Forum award winner for
the new Nalanda Schools Campus in Baroda in 2006.
- She is currently the Chairperson of Board of Governors for SPA, Vijayawada.

Famous works:
Goa Institute of Management – Goa, Birla Institute Of Technology and Sciences - Pilani
Rehabilitaton of Bhadli Village of Bhuj – Gujrat, Zensar Technologies – Pune

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Module4 - Contemporary Architects & Ideologies

Sanjay Mohe

- Mohe graduated in architecture from Sir JJ College of Architecture in 1976 and went on to work
with the likes of Ar. Charles Correa
- Vauki Prakash, Suryanarayanan and Sanjay Mohe formed MindSpace in 2004,
which strives towards a more sustainable approach towards Architecture
- His ideals revolve around the five elements of nature.
ie. Climate and context are the two main factors around which their designs are centered. Instead of
imitating the west and designing glass blocks unsuitable for India’s climate, one needs to act with
common sense while constructing spaces and design spaces responsive to local climes.
- The human mind perceives its surroundings in five different ways – sight, sound, smell, touch and
taste
ie. For a complete experience of any space, the built form has to cater to all five senses
superimposing upon each other, but not overpowering any. This is the principle followed by Mohe
while crafting masterpieces with building materials.

-IIM B New Classroom Complex isn’t just a built structure of Steel and RCC, but a space which evokes
positive emotions from students, teachers and visitors alike
IIM-B focuses on the internal potentials of a space rather than just the external ornamentation.
Intertwined with greenery, the corridors and the student blocks are a true amalgamation of mass
and nature

- Spectrum of proects includes Research Laboratories, Knowledge Parks, Campus Designs, Beach
Resorts, Libraries, Corporate Offices, Hospice and Residences.
- Some of the awards won include- The Golden Architect Award by A+D, Spectrum Foundation
Architecture Award (2009), The Award of the Journal of the Indian Institute of Architects –
2002;Gold Medal from ARCASIA

Famous works:
Dr. Kallam Anji Reddy Memorial Centre- Hyderabad, Titan integrity HQ Bangalore,
JNCASR auditorium Bangalore, Parkside Retirement Homes Bangalore

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Imp works: Lecture Hall block IIMB, Karunashraya Bangalore

IIM-B (Area: 6500m²/2014) focuses on the internal potentials of a space rather than just the external
ornamentation. Intertwined with greenery, the corridors and the student blocks are a true
amalgamation of mass and nature
- IIM B New Classroom Complex isn’t just a built structure of Steel and RCC, but a space which
evokes positive emotions from students, teachers and visitors alike

- The classroom block is proposed above an existing building along the main movement axis of the
campus. The existing columns were strengthened and some new columns were added along the
periphery of the proposed building without obstructing the existing building.
- The program for the new block was 8 classrooms, discussion rooms and its ancillaries.
A wide flight of steps perpendicular to the central spine became the main axis of the classroom block
with a courtyard as the focal point at the end of the axis.

- The classroom block is made disable friendly by providing ramps and lifts to access all the levels.
The layout of classrooms and the location of openings are aimed at improving natural air circulation.
The openings are designed with three layered screens which can adapt to the following methods of
teaching like lecture, projection with AC & without AC.
- The ground floor is conceived as an extension of common areas of the campus and therefore is
kept barrier free. The ground floor columns are cladded with stone to bind it with the existing
campus. The upper levels have exposed concrete surfaces.

- Importance is given to informal interaction areas, which is centred on the belief that these break-
out spaces will spawn many a novel idea amongst the students.

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Karunyashraya (Area: 3400m²/1999) meaning ‘Abode of Compassion’ a non-profitable organization.

Its a registered charitable trust by the Indian Cancer Society (Karnataka Chapter) & Rotary Bangalore

A care center for the advanced stage cancer patients who are beyond cure.

- It has welcoming entrance; the building has stone structure with composite masonry.
The balance is maintained between the sizes and forms of courtyards with relationship between the
green spaces and water.
- Use of courtyard in design to aid the ventilation of the ventilation of the internal spaces & to create
meeting places for interaction.
- The design makes extensive use of landscape elements such as fountain, pond, rockeries, greenery
& pavers. Such spaces are shrouded with heavily shaded trees to the right of entrance.

- All the rooms are designed to receive natural light and ventilation with the view of green
landscaped spaces on one side and water on another. Individual spaces lead out to a Verandah
which has a view of water.
- Spaces are designed for recreational activities and for religious activities to create positive
distraction of patients from sufferings.

- The design serves the organization to offer patients the flexibility of alternating between the
hospice and their home, they help patients live without pain and in dignity and peace till their
journey’s end.

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Sanjay Puri
- Graduated from the Academy of Architecture Mumbai, started working with Hafeez Contractor at
the age of 18, and started his own firm at the age of 27.
- Sanjay Puri Architects is a leading firm in the country today with a name in India as well as
overseas. Reversing the trend of foreign architects being called to India to design projects, Sanjay is
being sought out to lend his design expertise abroad
- Each project is contextually unique and no singular approach towards all designs.
He used to create a built environment that engages with the surroundings and simultaneously allows
people to engage with a relationship of open and enclosed spaces.
- Indian traditional architecture has many principals and elements that effectively today can
generate contextual and sustainable design. The vernacular regional architecture of different cities
& cultures has made a strong impact in his design when it is organic in essence

- Winning the World’s Best Housing project at the World Architecture Festival 2018, and the World’s
Best Residential Project of 2017 at the LEAF Awards, London , Sanjay Puri Architects have now won
134 international architecture awards.

Famous works:
Bombay arts society – Mumbai, Chapel at Murcia – spain, 72 Screens - Jaipur,
Rustomjee international school – Mumbai, the street Residential student housing - Mathura
Triose Lonavala, Chrome Hotel Kolkata, the Courtyards House Rajasthan,

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Imp works: Mosaic Hotel Delhi, CIE Cochin

Mosaic Hotel (Area: 6500m²/2008) A small 48 room hotel for over 20 years in Noida with minimal
room rates opened its door one year later as MOSAIC , a boutique hotel with almost 3 times the
earlier rate.

- Angular plans transformed the original plastered box shaped building into a composition of solid,
transparent, straight and angular forms that are further defined by colour and abstract composition
of purple, white and clear glass along with metallic pink and silver aluminium and pink granite.
The underlying concept was to redefine the way a Hotel is perceived.

- A large silver angular canopy heralds the entrance into a 7.2m high lobby. Clear glass on three sides
allows this small lobby to visually extend up to the boundary of the plot with each side facing a
different view. Circular glass inserts in a 7.2m high wall with colour change LED’s keep changing the
ambience in the lobby at regular intervals creating dynamism. Warm colour tones and textures used
in a predominantly white room also allude to the spatial character of the room.

- The Mosaic has 2 F&B outlets primarily.

The first is lounge bar – FLUID due to its design. Floor wall, ceiling and furniture merge in
undulating ripples across two levels creating a completely fluid cocoon like space within. Colour
changing lights used throughout the interior of this bar allow for complete transformation.
- The other F & B outlet - LATITUDE, a multi-cuisine restaurant situated at the first floor.
Long continuous wraps of stacked plywood float within this restaurant forming alcoves of varying
scales to create varying compositions of form as one moves through the restaurant and creating
individual identities for the space within.

- The design of the hotel completely supports to the name. A hotel with a mosaic of experiences, a
mosaic of colours, of textures, of lighting, of compositions, of forms, of spaces each with a unique
identity and yet integrated together holistically.

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Shirish Beri

- Beri is a poet, painter, philosopher, and has interest in extensive travelling.

- Personal Love of nature, solitude, meditation, philosophy, yoga, photography, arts, writing poetry,
painting, films, gardening, farming, deep ecology - with a live experiment of creating a balanced
ecosystem at his farm
- Beri graduated from School of Architecture Ahmedabad , India in 1974.
- Instead of pursuing higher studies in U.S he opted for living and work in the mountains near
Kolhapur. He felt that after studying architecture, it was necessary to uncondition oneself and
unlearn rather than spend two years learning for masters degree abroad.

- Beri's works have been bearing distinct mark on modern Indian architecture since 1975.
He tend to reflect his values and concerns in life of man moving further away from nature, from his
fellow human beings and from his own self.
The issues he tried to address through his work are: Over-commercialization and deterioration of
human values, information overload and overconsumption resulting from greed. Too much
dependence on technology and an overall loss of identity in a mass produced environment, with a
sudden break in the traditional socio cultural continuam as well as the handcrafting skills of
craftsmen. Destruction of natural resources and disturbing of the ecological balance.

- Andur Lake House built on a hillock overlooking the lake, was purposed as a rejuvenating natural
retreat for himself away from a crowded and hectic city life. Glancing across the lake, its pre-coated
green metal sheet sloped roof merges perfectly into the surrounding trees in terms of colour, angle
of slope and scale.
Masonry structure made of laterite blocks, Floors made of cow dung, mud & wood

Famous works:
DY patil hospital at Nerul – Mumbai, SDM institute of management development – Mysore,
Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species - Hyderabad

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Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species, Hyderabad - (Area: 4200m²/2005) is

the product of observation of the location by Shirish Beri, with a special focus on sustainability.
The Government of India wanted to set up a unique laboratory for the conservation of endangered
species through research on reproductive biology and in-vitro fertilization.

- Shirish Beri worked on the basis of the conviction that architecture must fit into the landscape with
the utmost respect. He considered the work of man a product of the work of nature.
- Underlining the topography of the site, with the superb rocks at its centre, they are set in a sort of
natural amphitheatre which slopes down to the entrance door.

- At the same time, it was essential to build a construction with low emissions, a goal achieved
through a series of measures for recovering and conserving energy.

- Its irregular composition, with curved walls and an asymmetrical course following the site’s natural
shape, is achieved through a concrete structure combined with walls and cladding made of brick and
local stone taken directly from the soil below it.
The glass that underlines the curved walls with its uninterrupted surfaces allows the dialogue with
the landscape to continue inside the building.

- The rocks, greens, the people and the building fuse into one beautiful inseparable spatial
relationship by creating humane-natural interactive spaces that help in creating a symbiotic
brotherhood between the man – man , the manmade-natural by reducing our footprint on earth.

- This design rejuvenated the spiritual bond between man and nature and paid its homage to nature-
by honoring and preserving the natural heritage by creating an organic built form.

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Chithra Viswanath
Chitra Vishwanath - an Indian architect based in Bangalore who works on themes relat
related to ecology
and architecture, working with other architects on many projects in India and Africa. She is now the
Principal Architect and Managing Director of BIOME Environment Solutions.

- Her work has been inspired by the Laurie Baker approach as well as the design philosophy at
Auroville.
- BIOME’s buildings makeke use of plentifully available local materials, such as mud, and harness rain,
sun and the wind to the best possible extent. Earth is used in the form of compressed, stabilised
blocks and stabilised rammed earth is used for load bearing structures, such as as arches, vaults, and
domes.
- BIOME’s signature approach lies in excavating the earth to build a basement first, which yields
enough mud for the construction of the structure. The firm has also experimented with the use of
plastic and other non-degradable material to lay the foundation, so the waste material is cleared
from the surroundings and buried under the structure.

- The Vishwanaths’ home in an inspiration in this regard. Their multi-level

multi level home functions as a
laboratory for their architectural practice
pra in Bangalore.
Built on a 1500 sq. ft. plot the house does not need air conditioning or fans. Cleverly positioned
skylights and open passages ensure that plenty of light and air flood in. Walls made of mud bricks,
and do not have any plaster finish, reducing the use of toxic paints and chemicals. Water is heated
using solar panels, and the toilets are eco-friendly.
eco

A composting pit in the compound handles the organic waste and garbage from the house. The
building harvests
ests 90,000 litres of rainwater,
rai reuses washing machine water, uses solar energy for
cooking, lighting and water heating. The home also reuses grey water for bathroom flushes and in
the terrace vegetable garden. The space is truly sustainable in every possible way.

Famous works:
Swastika dance school - Bangalore, Yellow train - Coimbatore, Mathru blind school -Bangalore ,
Rustam vanias house -Bangalore
Bangalore , Govardhan eco village - Maharashtra , Olde Bangalore resort &
wellness centre.

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Yellow train school, Coimbatore (Area: 1400m²/2013)

- Mud forms the basic element in her architectural designs in view of its easy availability, labour
intensiveness, and ease of construction, incorporating water, energy and land-use processes.

- School system stresses hugely on child centric education wherein more impetus is given on mental,
spiritual, physical and psychological than only the academics.
So conventional classrooms are provided there is ample space and details added to make the
kindergarten and primary wing, to accommodate and encourage activity based group learning.

- An individual classroom has three spaces- a space where teacher leads with the blackboard and
seating, circled areas where group activity occurs with walls provided with facility to hang works of
children and nooks which allow for individual contemplation.

- Play is a very important part of the system. Coimbatore being a hot climate play spaces have been
brought in within the building too thereby making them accessible to children at all times.
Caves and unusually lit spaces like through jalis allow for explorations and creation of fantasy.
- Since basements as classrooms were not allowed, to get the classrooms as well as play spaces to be
close to 1.5 meters below the road level whereby the soil for construction was sourced.

- An open air theatre within the interior environs encourages the children to create impromptu acts.
While a learning space is created to stretch our boundaries of exploring the ecological issues.
- The entire roof’s water is harvested and stored as well as recharged. The building is completely
accessible by a ramp. It is day lit and ventilated passively.

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CnT

- Chandavarkar and Thacker Architects, or CnT as it is popularly Bangalore’s first architectural

practice started by Narayan Chandavarkar in 1950. After his untimely death in 1963, Tara
Chandavarkar merged the firm with the practice of Pesi Thacker.

- CnT has an inhouse research cell that explicitly articulates idea that becomes the beacon of their
practice.
They aim to rise above ‘architect’s architecture’ by constructing the practice as a sheltered space for
reflection. That enables community to think about how to enrich life through architecture.

-The primary idea was keeping the ‘Originality’. Apart from doing something interesting, pulling
together so that there is a refined solution – a restrained & an appropriate solution.
The second idea was ‘Integrity’ – a sense of all the elements belonging together in a way that the
whole is greater than the sum of the parts.
The third idea was that the work requires a ‘Spatial Character’- The work then seems to have a life of
its own.

- The architecture and its spaces must be scaled so that the person inhabiting it is not only
comfortable but is also given a sense of being and orientation.
Crafting an aura that emanates from the building, the dialogue between this aura and the inhabitant
must be an emancipatory experience such that it breeds memories over time that make the
architecture meaningful.

- The test of good architecture is not about the visual impact it has on the person, but on its
potential to be inhabited over the years.

- Some of the awards won include - iiid design excellence awards, Architecture + Design & Spectrum
foundation awards, Archidesign awards

Famous works:
Brigade Courtyard – Banglore, CREDAI Head office – Kochi,
Tata Dhan academy - Madurai, DRL corporate Office – Hyderabad, Science Gallery – Banglore, Mind
Tree - Banglore, Banyan tree resort - Chikmanglore

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Tata Dhan academy, Madurai - (Area: 5100m²/2009)

A management training institute that provides professional education in rural development, this
project won the J.K. Award in the Indian Architect category.

- The site layout picks up on the way villages are distributed across a region, with clusters from which
interconnecting roads spring out. The individual cluster grows as radiating squares and interlocking
courtyards, halls sided with verandas that open on to a landscaped courtyard, maintaining the
transparency of every space.

- The design began with a study of the Chettinad style to understand its planning, scale, detailing and
materiality, which was then reinterpreted to suit the spatial and functional needs of the school.

- The vocabulary of tile roofs, random rubble stone walls, stone columns, bright cement oxide floors,
and reed mats render the complex as a subtle yet striking composition of shade, light and color,
interwoven with landscape.

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DRL corporate Office, Hyderabad - (Area: 13900m²/2010)

A corporate base for the largely manufacturing oriented (DRL) Dr. Reddy Laboratories
pharmaceutical company

- The office was to project a global aura, while at the same time maintaining a local touch. This core
idea was reflected at various levels in details throughout.
- Whether in the climate responsivity of the overall planning or the selection of materials, like the
clay-tile external cladding, the building responds to the local context, while at the same time
satisfying international standards. The building is LEED Gold rated.

- The building is envisioned as a structure that is grounded by making it bottom heavy with a lighter
top mass. Relief is provided by the voids that are sculpted within this mass at various levels.
- The design is envisioned as three separate masses that interweave around and over these central
voids. The result is a series of office spaces at various levels branching off a central social street.

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Morphogenesis
Morphogenesis which essentially means the origins and development of form in response to nature
which includes process, and structure.
- The firm was established by Manit Rastogi & Sonali Rastogi in 1991. The firm is based out of New
Delhi and specialized in offering services in Architecture, Interior design, Masterplanning, Urban
design, Landscape design, and Environmental design consultancy.
The first project of the company was working with Apollo tyres corporate office

- Morphgenesis have three main guiding principles in the way of working, aimed at delivering the
best.
Following a methodology of professional rigour, informed by a belief in sustainability.
Client’s team are considered as an important part of the design process.
They believed that a great design emerges only through an exchange of ideas.

- Morphogenesis aims at achieving sustainable solutions using passive techniques of cooling such as
thermal buffers, evaporative cooling, ventilation strategies, water reservoirs, optimizing the surface
area to volume ratios and exploiting the building orientation to achieve thermal comfort in all kinds
of climatic conditions.
- Sustainable buildings are designed to achieve thermal comfort by reinterpreting and adapting
traditional elements and techniques and reducing dependence on mechanical methods of cooling.

At Morphogenesis, sustainability is a core creative value and is practiced in the evolution of the
design.

- In Apollo tyres corporate office, the idea of the office as a singular building was deconstructed,
broken into multiple parts, built a type of mini city, brought in everything that was familiar about a
passive design, orientations, courtyards, terrace gardens, 100% day lighting, linked all the building
services to human occupancy.

- Some of the awards won are : World Architecture Festival Award (2009), AD100 Award, NDTV
Architecture and Design Awards

Famous works:
Apollo tyres corporate office Gurgaon, INFOSYS campus Nagpur
Institute for Integrated Learning in Management Greater Noida, Pearl Academy Jaipur, Delhi Art
Gallery New Delhi

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Pearl Academy of Fashion, Jaipur - (Area: 20000m²/2009)

This project in Jaipur is geared towards creating an environmentally responsive, passive habitat.

The Pearl Academy is an exemplar of an inclusive architecture which is socio-culturally relevant and
is inspired by local heritage, whilst positioning itself within the contemporary cultural and
architectural paradigm.

- A radical fusion of traditional and contemporary architecture, the institute creates interactive
spaces for a creative student body to work in multifunctional zones that blend the indoors with the
outdoors seamlessly. Despite its compact, rectilinear external form, Pearl’s internal courtyard shapes
provide a sense of perpetuity - a continuous and fluid space with no end.

- The architecture of the institute is a confluence of modern adaptations of traditional Indo-Islamic

architectural elements and passive-cooling strategies commonly used in Rajasthan’s desert climate,
such as self-shading courtyards, water bodies, baolis (stepwell) and jaalis (perforated screens).

- The building is protected from the environment by a double skin, the ‘jaali’ which acts as a thermal
buffer between the building and its surroundings. It reduces direct heat gain through articulated
fenestrations and serves the function of three filters - air, light, and privacy.

- Traditionally inspired low-cost methods of roof insulation have been used to lower heat
absorption. Inverted matkas (earthen pots) are laid across the surface, the space between filled with
sand and broken bricks and then cast over with a thin, binding layer of concrete.

- The Pearl Academy was awarded India’s 1st World Architecture Festival (WAF) Award for ‘Best
Learning Building’ in Barcelona.

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PVR forum, Banglore - (Area: 8400m²/2004)

The forum mall is the first mall in south India which started multiplex theatres. It has eleven screens
of P.V.R cinemas with daily shows in six languages.

- The forum mall in four floors consisting both shopping and entertainment under one roof.
It is one of the first large scale mall in India and one of the busiest shops in Bangalore. The crowd of
the mall greatly depends on the PVR Cinemas. A complete shopping experience along with
entertainment under one roof was their concept.

Bangalore city was in its developing stage when the prestige group thought about constructing a big
scale shopping Centre. But, at that time most of the constructions were focused towards the city.

- The challenge was to design three types of cinemas and associated lounges, foyers, access foyers
and utilities in different ways for them to stand apart from each other while still maintaining them as
parts of a whole.

- The manifestations were different, but ideology was overriding. A vast atrium was inherited with
the building, which was flooded with light from a skylight. The design solution was to create a
layered sequencing in terms of light quality.

- A buffer along both sides was created which provided sequential exposure and created the
opportunity to step down light gradually and step up the colour saturation accordingly. Colour
saturation has been used as a strategy to enhance the swank technicolour imaging and movie
information systems that are provided in the cinema space.

- The experience of movie going has been enhanced by the Europa and Gold Class lounges which are
akin to nightclub environments in themselves. These were also especially designed with the idea of
hosting private viewings and launches.

IESCA