Bidisha Ghosh | Selected Works | 2018 - 2023

A Bibliophile with a love for the rains.

A Foodie with a limited appetite.

A Musicophile with not much of a liking for Metal.

A Raconteur at heart.

I believe that every space is not just limited to the visuals; but rather it has innumerable stories to tell.

Stories that arise due to its surroundings, its luminance or obscurity, its textures, its aroma and above all its inhabitants.

Stories that are delicately interwoven ; their dynamics being what makes that space unique.

I like, try and aspire to design such spaces that tell silent stories and impart an unforgettable experience to the users, by stimulating all their senses.

EDUCATION

Kamla Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute for Architecture and Environmental Studies (K.R.V.I.A.)

Mumbai University (B.Arch)

Juhu, Mumbai , India

August 2018 - December 2023

Gokhale Memorial Girls’ School C.B.S.E. (Science)

Bhowanipore, Kolkata , India 2016 - 2018

Gokhale Memorial Girls’ School W.B.B.S.E.

Bhowanipore, Kolkata , India 2004 - 2016

ELECTIVES

Ecological Design workshop by Anurag Tamhankar

Tracing History through Community workshop by Sarah George, Ginella George

Story to Screenplay workshop by Roopa Desai

Performativity in Cinema, TV, News and Social Media workshop by Avijit Mukul Kishore

BIM with Archicad workshop by Vistasp Mehta

Unravelling the Anthropocene workshop by Sandeep Menon

Making Meaning - Mediums and Messages workshop by Rohan Shivkumar

Urban Spaces workshop by Andre Baptista

Histories of Railways, Cities and Partition workshop by Zaen Alkazi

OTHER INTERESTS

PROFICIENCY

AutoCAD Sketchup

Archicad (basics)

Rhinoceros

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Illustrator

COMPETITIONS

Abode Indesign

Lumion

Twinmotion

MS Office

Hand Sketching

Hand Drafting

Model Making

Sketching

Watching / Analysing Movies

Reading Music

Writing Photography

Cooking

Sundarbari - SEARCH INTERNATIONAL STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION 2020

COA-TRC : Essay Writing Competition 2020 Role of Architecture in Nation Building

Reviving Silk Route Architecture Competition by Switch Competitions

Children’s House Architecture Competition 2022 by Kaira Looro Architecture for Peace

EXPERIENCE

Of Possible Architectures

NYC, USA

November 2021- April 2022 (6 months)

Abin Design Studio

Kolkata, India

May 2022- June 2022 (1.5 months)

CO-CURRICULARS

Horlicks Wizkids 2014 - Quiz Team (2nd position)

Horlicks Wizkids 2014 - Musical Band (3rd position)

International Spellbee 2013 - Zonal 10th position

The Great TTIS Challenge - Quiz (1st position)

Satrangi Inter School Singing Competition -1st position

K.R.V.I.A. Music Club Member and Leader

LANGUAGES

English

Bengali (native)

Hindi

The Heavenly Light ; Medium : Charcoal on Paper

“You do not come to Euphemia only to buy and sell, but also because at night, by the fires all around the market, seated on sacks or barrels or stretched out on piles of carpets, [......}on your return from Euphemia, the city where memory is traded at every solstice and at every equinox.”

- Italo Calvino, Invisible Cities

The Silk Route has had a long history of bringing people and cultures together, giving rise to towns and cities and acting as a thread of globalisation, even before the term got coined. The Route’s effect on architecture induced the idea of shared spaces birthing caravanserais,souks, trade centres and other such nodes scattered across its stretch.The initial study investigated the special case of Kalimpong - a quaint, pictureque town in Noth Bengal,overlooking the gorge of Teesta; a town that used to be an important bustling trading town from the Silk Route days. A thorough study of the town fabric through an investigation of the several typologies that have cropped up looks at the spatial quality of structures that were influenced by the several migrations it has seen.

The project explored the possibility of an intervention that redefines the architecture of trade and travel,relevant to the modern context highlighting its syncretic nature. It helps in the redevelopment of the architecture of travel and trade in the town of Kalimpong thus rejuvenating the dying heritage of the town (post Tibet occupation by China and death of the route) and giving its lifeline a new aesthetic purpose in turn promoting tourism, an attempt at reviving the glory days of the Silk Route times.

OF SOUKS AND SERAIS : ARCHITECTURE OF TRADE AND TRAVEL

In the olden days, travelling was far more painstaking than it is today. The travellers along the route did not just need a place to sell their wares. They also needed to rest, eat, stay and recharge themselves and their cattle before moving on to the next market. This gave rise to two major types of architecture :

1. EPHEMERAL 2.ENDURING

The first ever markets came up as units of bamboo or wooden poles and heavy dismantled and carried off to for yet another day. Such either sides of winding streets referred to as souks, bazaars those days. Organic and ever based on wares, businessmen

LHASA

Ephemeral in the truest sense

heavy cloth. Easily to the next market stalls flanked on streets were what people bazaars or markets of ever growing seamlessly businessmen and customers. sense of the term.

These markets were airy and much more accessible than how shopping malls have evolved of late. One had the freedom to compare goods from several stalls and choose the one that suited their taste the best.

Put up during the day, during business hours and dismantled at night when the winding bazaar streets transform into cross cultural hubs where merchants, travellers and buyers all come together

The transformation into semi - permanent structures occurred soon. The shops stayed ephemeral while the upper floors of the now two storeyed structures were dedicated to residences. Material palette now had brick, stone and mortar alongside cloth and bamboo.

Arcades were introduced into the spatial scenario, some time during the several Islamic reigns along the route.

It was around the same time that Caravanserais were introduced formally solidifying the mixed use of a structure as a zone of merhandise as well as living. Caravanserais became an integral part of all towns on the Silk Route, an enduring architectural expression of travel as an act.

TRANSFORMING FROM EPHEMERAL TO ENDURING.

OFTEN CARAVANSERAIS WERE LOCATED ON WERE EASY TO SPOT FROM FAR

AT NIGHTS, MARKET SPACES TRANSFOMED INTO MINGLING SPACES WITH THE SOUNDS OF MUSIC, LAUGHTER AND CHATTER AROUND THE WARMTH EXUDED BY BONFIRES.

KALIMPONG AND SYNCRETISM:

Kalimpong in North Bengal, counterpart to Darjeeling and Gangtok happened to be the stop for mules before going further uphill to Pedong from where the caravans would continue to Lhasa, Tibet. This town has over time emerged as a syncretic holyground of multiple cultures and architectures due to constant migrations.

Major ones to leave a mark are :

1.The Lepchas (aboriginals)

2.The Buddhists (from Tibet, Nepal, China etc.)

3.The British and Scottish ( during the Raj)

Lepchas. Original sons of the soil lived in traditional ikra homes. Mud, hay and stone were used sometimes too.

Kalimpong before migrations happened to be a Lepcha hamlet. The town tapestry began changing as people started migrating.

The Gorkha invasion brought about fresh migrants. A new cultural movement occured with their arrival.

Anglo occupation the country the invaders Silk Haat at the locals. Silk The suggests process. ridge traders with Eventually, to stay and same serving floors

Over time monasteries started cropping up. Their material palette now including glass aside from the usual stone and wood.

Haat Bazaar is the main market of the town. It is the heart of the town and frequented by locals. Its glory days are long gone since Route times.

growth of Haat Bazaar as time suggests has been an organic process. The street along the main ridge of the town, was where the traders of olden days would come their wares for business. Eventually, some traders decided stay back in this business hub set up residences along the same ridge. The lower storey serving as the shop and upper floors used as residences.

occupation of country allowed invaders to use the Silk Route.

A heavy British and Scot influence can be seen in this town as well in all the bungalows and churches and convent schools like Dr. Graham’s Homes. All a part of the syncretic tapestry of Kalimpong

Haat Bazaar during British Raj HAAT

MACFARLANE CHURCH

LARGER CONTEXT

Haat Bazaar is believed to have grown organically with the arrival travellers, migrants and pilgrims in Kalimpong via the Route. Eventually, English and Scottish ever so obsessed with order and formalisation, got the original ephemeral markets to set up barrack like columnar structures with sloping roofs, compromising on its souk - like spatial qualities. entire street continued as a market street with the ground floors of all the houses serving as shops. It would sell wares of all kinds. Local, imported, heritage, crafts etc. All until Tibet was occupied by China.

There has been a steady decline in the demand and produce of craftswork causing a major loss of material culture that the Silk Route trading once signified.

The intervention aims at reinstating the glory of the bazaar souk by attempting a hand at formalisation of the informal, inculcating the souk dynamics in a contemporary form, allowing the people to rejuvenate their lost material culture markets. Among both interventions, this one, the heart and soul of the Silk Route stands for the ephemeral; the path as an experience of travel.

Currently, with the Route defunct, the bazaar however is no longer a twice-a-week market. It is permanent. However, twice a week, vendors aside from the usual local ones come to sell their wares in the market.

HAAT

The current market spills out onto the straight street, where no vehicle can pass through with blue tarpaulins as overhangs that obstructs vision when one looks up. The sky a tiny sliver.

BARRACK MARKET STREETSCAPE

1. The street higher linear

2. Nearby with the barely 3.Design

market is located on a plateau like flattened sandwiched between two retaining walls - one higher than and another lower than the site level. A walk experience rather than the mystery of olden souks.

Nearby buildings are mostly newer constructions the original syncretic architecture of the town existing in some of the older buildings. Design concept is based on the souk experience.

CONCEPT PROCESS

Volumes borrowed from site buildings. Arranged in different ways to create sqaures and paths in non-uniform rhythm.

Built volumes placed complementary to the existing building placement angles and congregation spaces carved out from within.

DD’

AA’

CC’

BB’

The ground floor and first floor constitute of a revitalized and repurposed marketplace along with newer stores addressing the local material culture better. Haat Bazaar was once an organically structured marketplace, an embodiment of the fabled souks of the Silk Route.

The ground and first floor plans try to implement a sort of structured randomization into the spaces. Throughout the building, the most celebrated idea is the act of travelling. The allure of discovering items unique and rare almost as if chancing upon them mimicing the reality of Silk Route bazaars and customers exploring their nooks and corners for the best bargain.

The shops almost seem to be lagniappe to the pathway that guides the movement within the project. The path shrinks and distends, bulges and diminishes to form congregation bubbles both indoors and outdoors inspired by market squares where people can mingle or stop for respite or simply gather.

The complex has four interconnected blocks , for - local crafts and heritage, apparel and fabrics and two blocks dedicated to the produce market. Liminal spaces play a vital role in the built experience. They make transition from inner bubbles to outer courts seamless.

The first floor plan is developed around the same concept. Except here, pockets of double heights bind the two market floors together making it a more rounded experience; an ode to the all inclusive olden markets promoting cultural intermingling.

THE PIAZZA VIEW

CONGREGATION BUBBLE

LITTLE COURT

31. FLYING ROOFSCAPE

(single sloping curved roofs inspired by chinese roof elements, that looks like sails of traveller ships)

30. CONCRETE AND GLASS SKYLIGHT (atop every staircase shaft for dramatic light effects)

29. STEEL COLUMNS (corten steel columns as an ode to local timber columns)

28.TRADITIONAL CUM CONTEMPORARY FENESTRATIONS (mix of wood and glass fenestrations for filtered light)

27. VIEWING DECK (watchtower of sorts overlooking the entire complex)

26. TOWER OF VISION (watchtower of sorts overlooking the entire complex)

25. 1 BHK (for smaller families or couples who work at the workshop)

24. HERITAGE WORKSHOP (large free spaces for repurposing local material culture)

23. STUDIO APARTMENT (meant for single artisans with allotted workspace)

22. DUPLEX (flat units with two bedrooms, toilets, balconies & a living-dining)

21. TOILET BLOCK (all toilet blocks are located without hindering “the path”)

20. CONGREGATION BUBBLE (gathering and respite spots where the path widens)

19. THE CONNECTOR (guiding movement between two blocks)

18. THE PATH (the winding guide of movement, central design concept)

17. PAVILION (partially covered, used for food festivals and other fairs)

16. GREEN ROOM (for the artists’ respite and preparation)

15. PERFORMANCE ZONE

(artists can showcase their talent to one and all here)

14. POKHRI (waterbody grounding the performance zone and steps)

13. MAIN PIAZZA (largest market square as a spillout space)

12. APPAREL AND FABRICS BLOCK (shops for antique/modern fabrics and contemporary local clothes)

11. RETAINING WALL (thick stone wall used as support to the soil of the contour)

10. THE STAIRS (this dramatic flight of stairs leads upto the retaining wall)

9. STAIRCASE SHAFT B (concrete shaft with steel monostringer staircase inside)

8. PRODUCE MARKET BLOCK (shops for local vegetables, fishes and groceries)

7. LITTLE COURT (green reliefs acting as manicured market squares )

6. STAIRCASE SHAFT A2

(concrete shaft with steel monostringer staircase inside)

5. CONGREGATION BUBBLE (gathering and respite spots where the path widens)

4. LOCAL CRAFTS AND HERITAGE BLOCK

(shops for antique/modern woodcarvings,stone and metalworks, thangkas,incense and other worship items etc. )

3. SHOPS

(placed around the winding path for intentional mystery)

2.VEHICULAR ROAD

(for customer vehicles and supplies)

1. STAIRCASE SHAFT A1

(concrete shaft with steel monostringer staircase inside)

The second and third floor constitute residences for the artisans mostly or people who sell wares in the marketplace, originally having to travel from far far away based on previous site studies.

Unlike the market floors, they follow a more traditional (read orthogonal) arrangement. There are three main typologies of flats : duplex, studio apartment and 1BHK. Balconies are provided for each duplex. Alongside these residences, there are workshops where artifacts get created on a smaller scale for the shops below. Large scale workshops are situated on the second site at the edge of the town. Though meant for the occupants mainly, the workshops are still open to public exploration to understand the methods of creation as well as nuances of craftsmanship.

The path in these two floors doesn’t twist and turn unlike the lower ones. It is far more tame even while upholding its other constant nature of change. Here too, it distends and contracts before throwing itself out of one block entirely and jumping over to the new one. At places, the path reaches a dead end culminating into a community balcony or a terrace for gatherings and events, small celebrations etc. Dramatic double height spaces continue as a design language here as well culminating into airy overlooking terraces.

PLASTERED FACADE

The residential floors have a plastered stone facade, following the traditional plastering methods of making the mixture earth or lime based similar to the local monasteries.

SECTION DD’

DOUBLE HEIGHT PARTITIONS

Powdered steel fixed frames with colourful softwood blocks as filler that act act partitions/rails that prevents one from falling down from the double height space. Their aesthetic is inspired by local fenestration styles.

LITTLE COURT

Soft cover green relief of grass and moss and some wildflowers that steps down a little from the ground level. This can also act as a groundwater recharge point.

TOWER OF VISION

Two storeys above the third floor. decks that serve as a modern watchtower and allow visitors to take a look at the market complex the town and the mountains beyond.

SHOPS

Most units separated from the other by openable Shojis sliding screens, allowing for shops to combine for exhbitions of fairs etc. Shops are arranged around the winding path and have unique shapes B

INCENSE SHOP

Being an important site of the Buddhist religious and cultural boom, incense making is an important local craft. A large number of shops hence offer this as a commodity.

CASTELLATED STEEL BEAM

The market floor ceilings are supported by castellated beam that allow for the passage of servive pipelines through them hidden by false ceilings made of wooden or bamboo units.

SECTION BB’

B

SKYLIGHT

Atop every concrete stair shaft, there are diagonal aluminium elements forming a frame that holds clear glass fixed with epoxy sealant.

DOUBLE HEIGHT

Voids are an important volumetric feature of the local syncretic architecture influenced by Tibetan, Nepalese,Lepcha as well as British architecture. Double Height spaces here bind the upper and lower floors by allowing visitors to connect.

People or simple shopping. grow through

BALCONY

Provided with each duplex. Goes beyond the lower floor’s extreme facade edges. Safeguarded by sleek weathered steel rails.

LIMINAL SPACE

Transition between outdoors and indoors that acts as spots of congregation. People can practically use this according to their needs.

LITTLE COURT

can sit here with a snack in hand simple to relax after a busy day of shopping. The rest of the complex has through pavers as cover that allows the site to drain naturally.

STAIRCASE SHAFT A1

CORRIDOR AND CONGREGATION BUBBLE

One of the few concrete design elements in the project. The staircase is made of steel with floating treads of custom steel sections topped with kadappa stone block supported by a stringer with thin steel sheet as rails.

A chunk of congregation bubble with seating area and indoor vegetation on one side and with stalls of food on the other side meant for respite during shopping sprees.

JAALI WALL

Interpretation of the filtered light characteristic of local syncretic architecture. The facade here loses its compactness right next to the path with alternate stone blocks used to build the wall.

EXPOSED STONE FACADE

The market floors have exposed stone facade with large floor to ceiling corten steel frames for windows giving the building an overall lighter appearance.

SHOP ENTRANCE

Unlike most stores in shopping malls or complexes guarded by glass, the ones here are simply bounded by sleek powdercoated steel framework. The openable portion is sliding folding and framed with glass. The rest is fixed and open mimicing the openness of olden marketplaces.

DUPLEX

With a combined living-dining area that is overlooked by the family lounge of the upper floor connected by a steel sawtooth stringer staircase with wooden treads. A bedroom and bathroom of each floor makes this perfect for a family of 3-5.

FERROCEMENT CONCAVE ROOF

The roof was cast insitu, with ferroement sprayed on strong wiremesh supported by hidden curved beams. The gap between the curve up and the edge of the wall below is protected by skylights that allow for enough light and air within. Along the corridors, the gap remain open as the overhang is enough to keep the weather out.

ELEVATION FROM RETAINING WALL SIDE

The programs are divided broadly into -

1. Experience Type (Gallery of History and Folklore for each of the Historically relevant communities, Gallery of Art and Craft culture, Interactive Performance Area, Library and Archive, Interactive workshop areas, Souvenir Souk Units, Plazas, Restaurant)

2. Skill Development Type (Handicraft Studio, Art Studio, Textile Studio, Masters’ Lounge, Apprentice Gathering Space)

3. Residential Type (Artisan homes, Tourist retreats)

The design concept prioritizes the act of travel in this intervention as well with the entire design being guided by the easiest routes possible on this tricky landscape.

Due to time constraints, further resolution was not possible.

The heavily contoured cover and is located part of it towards the dedicated

The intervention Incubator is to the “route” that for. A place for thrive beyond the workshops that market complex offers.

the Deolo Hill is owned by the Government. sites of importance such as - Deolo View Point, Kalimpong Bio diversity Park and Dr. Grahams Homes downhill. Being probably the highest point of the hill, it provides a panoramic crown jewel Kanchenjunga and the wild Teesta flowing down the gorge on a clear day.

contoured site boasts of a good vegetation located near a large water reservoir. A the main road is also permanently dedicated to paragliding activities

intervention ,an Ethnocultural act as the node to the Bazaar stands the artisans to the limited the

THE MOUND

Highest point of the site and too close to the paragliding zone. Hence cannot be built on.

MUSEUM

A museum dedicated to the experience type programs showcasing the rich material culture of the region. Both heritage and contemporary.

PARKING

SERVICES BLOCK

Located right at the entrance point to the site for easy access to the rest of the towan downhill along the ridge

PARAGLIDING ZONE

Owned by WB Tourism Department of the Government. A constraint while designing.

TOURISTS’ BLOCK

Meant for the eager tourists who visit to exxperience the rich heritage of the town otherwise amiss.

ARTISANS’ ABODE

Residential units for artisans and their families who practice, showcase and impart their skillsets at this ethnocultural incubator.

TICKET COUNTER

A formal ticket counter for the tourists who wish to avail the paragliding services.

“[…]where the merchants of seven nations gather at every solstice and equinox. The boat that lands there with a cargo of ginger and cotton will set sail again, its hold filled with pistachio nuts and poppy seeds, and the caravan that has just unloaded sacks of nutmegs and raisins is already cramming its saddlebags with bolts of golden muslin for the return journey...”

- Invisible Cities, Italo Calvino

Semester : VI Year : III

Type : Ward Office

Site : Ernakulum , Kochi , India

Guide : Vandana Ranjit Sinh

The way of water has guided the way of life since time immemorial. History is witness to the phenomenon of towns and cities thriving next to permanent water bodies. During the time period in which supposedly the Ramayana took place, the area of Ernakulum happened to be at the centre of commercial and economic activities due to the presence of the canal.

The inception point of this project happens to be the fall of the canal. The design development occurs around possible ways of reviving it. A treated canal edge repurposed with floodable landscapes meant for gathering as well as improving the health of the water culminate into a ward office unlike the ones we are used to.

The plot of land is a vegetative relief flanked by the grey of the city fabric on all sides.

I decided to work with the essence of the site itself and created a play of such green reliefs amidst the built area, thus giving accessibility the utmost importance.

CONCEPT PROCESS

These relief spaces guide one’s movement within the structure acting as spaces that facilitate human interaction.

The site is located by the Mullassery Canal near Entekochi.The Mullassery Canal that ultimately ends in the scenic backwaters of Kerala, has been reduced to a ditch where locals throw their garbage.

History suggests that it was an essential asset for transportation of goods in the olden days when Ernakulam was Muzris, a bustling economical and cultural hub. Back then, the canal edges had been at the zenith of all activities, unlike the current scenario.

DIAGRAM 1: The existing plot with the narrow canal flanking it. The canal’s health facing a downfall with its concreted edges.

DIAGRAM 2: Widening of the canal and naturalizing its edge in order to better the water quality and allow for water ferries to carry people in and out of the site.

DIAGRAM 3: The building blocks arise by offsetting the edge of the land and building around the existing vegetation of the site, thus giving rise to a playful plan.

3D VIEW FROM THE BACK

3D VIEW FROM THE FRONT

The project being a government ward office, the initial approach was to explore several ideologies regarding democracy and its possible meanings, interpretetions and expressions.

For me, democracy is a system which is of the people, for the people and by the people. Something that provides accessibility and transparency to the people and advocates for their maximum participation rather than being an instrument of imposition and dictation. This very idea drove the design process through and through solidifying the importance of openness and accessibility in each of the spaces.

The ground floor is distributed among the ward office zone towards the east, the KUAC office towards the west and the archive and think tanks flanking the central courtyard.

It is noteworthy that each set of spaces has their own courtyard from which they can be accessed.

The first floor houses the lesser public functions like the seminars and conference rooms, studios and meeting rooms.

These spaces are still wrapped around those same relief courts acting as the breathing bubbles for a building with otherwise rigid functionality.

Apart from inculcating transparency in a govertment house, they are crucial in imparting a certain playfulness to the stoic concrete volumes.

Majority of the second floor is occupied by the multipurpose hall. The rest of the space has the ward office and the Ente-Kochi offices with a large terrace occurring between the central and the eastern blocks.

All the staircases occur flanked by the relief spaces which dictate the circulation in the project.

The project intends to create an office space where people enjoy working and a seat of the government the public don’t feel conscious while approaching; such that the edge of the Mullassery canal can become rejuvenated again, thriving with life.

SECTION AA’ (THROUGH THE KUAC OFFICE RELIEF)

The elevation is characterized by clean straight lines and a linearity that comes about due to the use of rectilinear fenestrations. This linearity is what camouflages the playful nature of the plan , painting a vision of austerity in the eyes of the visitor at first, the kind people expect to encounter in a government building. But even in that austerity, it shows a great transparency ; something I aimed to achieve. The numerous glass fenestrations and the shoji screens makes one feel that everything is within their reach and openable if they wish for it.

The elevation brings a regular rhythm into the project while the plan follows an irregular, blithe one.

The shoji screens play an essential role in imparting a feel of pellucidness which upholds the idea of easy access and approachability. A shoji is a door, window or room divider used in traditional Japanese architecture, consisting of translucent (or transparent) sheets on a lattice frame.

The open spaces outside the building are designed as floodable landscapes which act as gathering spaces as well thus improving people’s interaction.

120

BEAMS

8 DIA MS LINKS AT 100 C/C

12 DIA STIFFNER REINFORCEMENT BARS

8 DIA MS LINKS AT 100 C/C 300 120 MM THICK R.C.C. SLAB 12 DIA STIFFNER REINFORCEMENT BARS 16 DIA BEAM MAIN

16 DIA DIAGRID BEAM MAIN REIFORCEMENT NOTES:

8 DIA LINKS FOR PERIPHERAL BEAM

BARS 300 THK HOLLOW CONCRETE BLOCK MASONRY WALL 20THK EXTERNAL PLASTER

1.

4.

DIMENSIONS.

5. ALL DRAWINGS TO BE READ IN CONJUNCTION WITH RESPECTIVE SERVICES DRAWINGS.

NAME: BIDISHA GHOSH

YEAR: 3RD YEAR B. ARCH KAMLA RAHEJA VIDYANIDHI INSTITUTE FOR ARCHITECTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

SEMESTER: VI

DATE: ROLL NO. : 1820

SCALE : AS SPECIFIED

SHEET: ADVANCED SLAB DETAIL

SHEET NO. :

SIGN: 11

Semester : V Year : III

Type : Culinary Institute And Hub

Site : Gariahat , Kolkata , India

Guide : Jude D’ Souza

“Hneshel” is an old word from the Bengali dialect, meaning - the kitchen. An undeniable part and bare necessity of our daily lives - food has been celebrated in the grandest possible ways in the City of Joy. The culinary art like most others gets enriched by mutual interaction, discussion and analysis. This project is explored spatially on that very reality in the realms of street food fusion , an up and coming topic of discussion among the food-loving cityfolks. The project intends to give street food vendors a popular platform to impart their skills to future generations.

The initial exercise involved taking a thorough walk through the neighbourhood taking in the surroundings, the little nitty gritties of regular life that enriches the individuality of that particular locality. Documentation led to the discovery of a recurring lens through which the neighbourhood came together in it’s varied diversity.

It is a lens reverberating throughout the city as a whole. It always has for the neighbourhood is after all at the heart of the “City of Joy”. Food. The inception of the street food culture can be largely owed to what I can proudly call my neighbourhood. There are many food stalls to quench your thirst and hunger. ‘Muri walas’ sells spicy puff rice with tangy flavours, and the ‘Puchkas’ are bound to tingle your taste buds. For non-vegetarians, kebabs and roll shops are abundant here. Travellers also visit old renowned sweet shops. Food items like fruit candies, flavoured fennel and carom seeds packed in jars are also quite popular in the market. Often times people forget shopping and get lost in the delicacies Kolkata has to offer here.

At the rudimentary stage, spatial studies of typical Kolkata houses or “bari”(s) were made.

Their courtyard patterns, built and open to sky volumes, congregation spots, private and public bubbles were taken note of.

The elevations were studied for their filtered light qualities that is characteristic of Kolkata bari(s).

Louvers and stained glass being the main heroes.

CONCEPT PROCESS

The site is located just by the main junction of the Central Business District of South Kolkata, in Gariahat, a locality known for its street marts and scrumptious street food.

People of Kolkata have a famous saying that one can find anything at the Gariahat bazaar, from ivory to a tigress’s milk; boasting of it as a one-stop destination for all things required.Even in the age of depatmental shopping malls and online shopping, the tapered paths of the Gariahat road that hold thousands of small and big kiosks covering entire footpaths are preferred.

Alongside clothing, jewels,accessories and home decor, it happens to be a paradise of food lovers as explained through the comic strip that attempts to capture the essence of the locality’s food culture; something that resonates with the rest of the city for after all, Kolkata is indeed a city of foodies.

THAKUR DALAN + DALAN OF BHITOR (ANDAR) MAHAL

BAHIR MAHAL + BHITOR MAHAL

The project eventually took shape as a culinary institute both dedicated to and inspired by the exotic streetfood heritage of Kolkata. In the current scenario where Michelin stars are considered equivalent to international cuisine,the design attempts to provide the street food vendors with an opportunity to share their knowledge with eager students, in turn giving it a more celebrated status. It also attempts to give their families a chance of carrying the business forward by getting trained in the art systematically.

Additionally,it has the provision of a linear public pavilion (meant for improved visibility of the street food shops and food festivals unlike the current existing scenario) acting as a thread that binds the built form together. The waterbody (Shaapla pond) and kitchen garden form the “daalaan” (courtyard) at the larger scale separating the public domain from the rest of the institution .

The ground floor is the heart of the project with the two interactive workshops arranged around the central courtyard within the building inspired by the spatial distribution in typical Kolkata bari(s). The hands-on workshops that open out into the central courtyard attempts to capture the way the act of cooking in “hneshel”(s) of Kolkata spill out into the courtyards upon a boom in the number of guests during festivals and other occasions. The produce garden joins in the celebration of the humble “barir khabaar” (home-cooked food).

FIRST FLOOR

The first floor has classrooms overlooking the workshops to facilitate interplay along with a seminar hall and a cafetaria where the food made in the institute itself plays a crucial role. The classrooms becoming a balcony for the workshops is a spatial experience deliberately inculcated into the project, a direct inspiration from the traditional Kolkata Bari. In the traditional setting,the floors above had long corridors that overlooked the courtyard below. With the cooking activities spilled out into the courtyard upon failure of accommodation within the stipulated kitchen area, the people in the corridors above would get a direct view of the activities and even add their two cents facilitating a conversation between all members, livening up the courtyard as a result. A similar quality seemed achievable in the workshops if theoretical classes occured in spaces overlooking the ones that showcased the practical application of those theories.

The second floor has the fusion food laboratories, the remaining classroom and a library overlooking the pond below. It accommodates the upper floor of the cafetaria and a teachers’ room too.

The third floor has two small dorms mainly meant for temporary use.

The elevation with its characteristic terracotta louvered panels is instrumental in providing enough light to the interiors while effectively keeping the heat out. It is infact a contemporary take on the typically ornate louvered windows Kolkata boasts of.

The overall semi-permeable facade and the roof with its pergolas make the structure seem lightweight and breezy, a welcome feeling in the hot and humid weather of the city.

NORTH WEST ELEVATION

NORTH EAST ELEVATION

“The Hneshel” is the culmination of a contemporary take on food and the culture of Kolkata’s love of coming together even if it’s for an activity as rudimentary as shopping.

It aspires to become an important and happening congregation zone amidst the busy metropolis in an attempt to give back a sense of relief to the city and its busy lifestyle via food both old and new, both timeless and contemporary for all the ages, for one and for all!

CENTRAL COURT FLANKED BY WORKSHOPS

SHAAPLA POND FROM KITCHEN GARDEN

Integrated Design Studio

Semester : V Year : III

Type : Performance Centre

Site : Navghar , Almora ,India

Guide : Jamshid Bhiwandiwala

The project captures the essence of the stepping terraces of Almora where the people cultivated and established their homes ages ago. It is envisioned as a centre for propagating local music and performing arts. It also aims to provide a place for relaxation to the townsfolk.

The local stone made walls and the flight of accessible green terraces allows the project to camouflage within the context effortlessly. The cascading terraces eventually go up to meet the level of the land contour behind.

An attempt at a contemporary yet contextually aware building.

RCC SLAB WITH GRASS COVER

WOODEN MEZZANINE FLOOR

400*400 RCC COLUMN

800mm THK RETAINING WALL

GLASS FACADE OF CAFE

250mm PLINTH

EXPLODED AXONOMETRIC

DETAIL OF GARDEN ROOF

Semester : VIII Year : IV

Type : Select projects handled during Internship

Firms : Of Possible Architectures

Abin Design Studio

Professional work is an integral part of the curriculum. The 8th semester was completely dedicated to internship period.

From November 2021 to April 2022, I interned at Of Possible Architectures; their headquarters being in Brooklyn, New York City, under the guidance of Harsha Nalwaya.

From May 2022 to June 2022, I interned at Abin Design Studio, Kolkata, India under the guidance of Abin Chaudhuri and Jui Mallik.

01 Kailashpuri Villas and Pavilion

Firm : Of Possible Architectures

Type : Tourism Project

Site : Kailashpuri Village, near Eklingji Temple

Udaipur, India

Project Leader : Harsha Nalwaya

Vincent Appel

Other Members : Andres Macera

Emily Koustae

The Eklingji Temple of the Kailashpuri Village played an important role in the form exploration of the project. The project started off as the renovation of an existing cabin on site, overlooking a huge lotus pond. This cabin was refurbished as the pavilion eventually.

The villas were curated eventually after a lot of trials and errors. They went through a lot of alterations and iterations taking into consideration, the context, climate, users and topography. A thorough volumetric study was conducted before zeroing in on the final options.

The project construction was set to begin soon and was to happen in phases according to the built permission acquired.

ARRANGEMENT OPTION 1

The very first among iterations was this one. A direct volumetric interpretation of the shikhara of Eklingji Temple. The stepped up broken down pyramidal structures were thought to be that perfect piece of puzzle which fits into the historically rich conext of the village rather than looking like an alien entity plugged into the landscape.

The balconies form as slices of plane surface along the acute sides with a pool facing the large lotus lake. A cosy villa design for a perfect weekend getaway.

COMMON PATHWAY CONNECTING ALL VILLAS

BATH & TOILET

BED AREA

PRIVATE BALCONY

LIVING AREA

LOUNGE BALCONY POOL/ JACUZZI ENTRANCE

PRIVATE BALCONY (LOWER LEVEL)

W.B.M.ROAD

W.B.M. ROAD

W.B.M. ROAD

ARRANGEMENT OPTION 2

One of the final villa placements and iterations. This design breaks away from a direct inculcation of the temple volumetrics. Instead, it opts to capture the essence of the spatial play of the temple. The villas are placed against the main retaining / boundary wall with their heights playfully decreasing towards the roundabout near the pavilion. There are two kinds of villas.

1. One that juts out towards the lake. Its pool being at the farthest end.

2. The other typology has its living room and lounge balcony at the farthest end.The pool snuggled between two units.

WALKWAY

STAIRCASE FOR TERRACE

STAIRCASE FOR TERRACE

COMMON PATHWAY CONNECTING ALL VILLAS

BED ROOM

GREEN COURT TOILET

LOUNGE TERRACE

LIVING ROOM

TYPICAL VILLA (BOTH KINDS)

JACUZZI / POOL

GREEN COURT

LIVING ROOM BED ROOM

JACUZZI / POOL TOILET

LOUNGE TERRACE

The playfulness of the shikharas of traditional Indian temples is inculcated in the roofscape of the villas. These are a play of stepped down volumetrics with the steps going down towards the lake, a gesture capturing the essence of the rolling landscape moving down to meet the water.

The stepped roof has puncctures framed by pergolas atop the green courts. These allow for enough sunlight for the plants to thrive.

The stairs lead one upto the roofscape from the common walkway that connects all the villas.

PAVILION OPTIONS

The pavilion is a repurposed cabin that existed from before on site. It shall serve purpose as an artist’s retreat of sorts with it being secluded from the rest of the villas. It is a cozy combination of a bed, a working area and a toilet with a corner meant for unwinding, facing the landscape and the lotus lake. Built

02 Ranakpur Villas

Firm : Of Possible Architectures

Type : Tourism Project

Site : Ranakpur, near Udaipur, India

Project Leader : Harsha Nalwaya

Vincent Appel

Other Members : Andres Macera

Emily Koustae

This rolling plot of land beside the ghats gave rise to concepts of a mysterious walk through the built volumes that would eventually lead one to the water edge, mimicking a forest walk - where one always wonders about what comes in the next bend.

Several placements were tried alongside varied iterations for each villa, the common spaces and landscape elements that would provide privacy to each private patch, keeping in mind the adjacent hillock and the farms on the opposite side of the plot.

Construction was bound to begin soon on site.

ARRANGEMENT OPTION 1

One of the initial villa placements and iterations. This design is dominated by orthogonal villas with spaces for congregation and relaxataion nestled in between them.

The internal pathways progress like a maze culminating in a lounge facing the chabutra, the ghats and the baori aka stepwell. The restaurant is located near the entrance almost centrally placed with respect to the villas.

Each villa has its own private garden.

One among many of the process villa placements and iterations. This design is guided by a grid of circles of the same size with three of them forming a unit of each villa with its own pool and lounging area.

The internal pathways in this iteration are more freeflowing than the sharp edged previous option. These pathways are less confusing. They culminate in a restaurant facing the chabutra, the ghats and the baori aka stepwell. The restaurant is connected to the storage located near the entrance for the ease of resource and supply transportation.

The site has several levels with the pathway being at its centre, It slopes down towards the baori.

One of the final villa placements and iterations. This design is again guided by a grid of circles like the second iteration.

The path here is not as maze-like as in the previous options. The straighter path leads to the services zone which in turn is connected to the restaurant facing the ghats while the winding paths touch all the villas and end at the ghats. One path goes beyond the site boundary leading the visitors closer to the water and chabutra.

Both the villa iterations have two bedrooms , one on each floor, a pool, a lounge area and a private garden.

03 CTC Apartments

Firm : Abin Design Studio

Type : Residential Project

Site : Tollygunj, Kolkata

Project Leader : Abin Chaudhuri

Jui Mallik

Other Members : Pradipta Pal

Amrit Mukherjee

Nishtha Mehta (intern)

A residential apartment complex namely “Sanctuary” located near the tram depot of Kolkata at Tollygunj. I mostly made working drawings for this project.

04 Khemka Residence

Firm : Abin Design Studio

Type : Personal Residence

Site : URBANA, Kolkata

Project Leader : Abin Chaudhuri

Jui Mallik

Other Members : Sneha Pradhan

Suvangi Guha

Ahsana Hamza (intern)

The Khemka residence required an outdoor seating/dining area, camouflaged within the landscape. The office went for a cleverly planned ascending order from rocks, grasses, widflowers to larger bushes and shrubs and trees , thus cutting off this private pocket away from the eyes of the others.

Astelia chathamica Asplenium nidus Lantana camara

The Khemkas wanted heaven nestled flora and fauna concrete jungle The vegetation flowering trees ones to attract little as squirrels, birds as explained

wanted a slice of in the cradle of even amidst the jungle of the city. was a mix of as well as leafy little animals such birds and butterflies in the brief.

chathamica

Verbena bonariensis Spathiphyllum spp.

Heliconia stricta

05 Salarpuria Office

Firm : Abin Design Studio

Type : Commercial Project

Site : Kolkata

Project Leader : Abin Chaudhuri

Jui Mallik

Other Members : Arpita Banerjee

Monomita Banerjee

Nishtha Mehta (intern)

Renovation of an office building.

During the internship period, the office was dealing with the material selection for this project as well as reworking interior details.

The idea was to create a warmer and more inclusive workspace for the employees to reach a new zenith of productivity in turn benefitting the office.

Kaira Looro Architecture Competition

Type : Children’s House

Site : Baghere , Senegal , Africa

In collaboration with:Anushri Joshi

Manasi Patankar, Dhriti Shah, Nishanti Srinivasan

Baghere is a remote village in the western part of the subSaharan country of Senegal in Africa. The site is characterised by a flat surface, mainly surrounded by mango and acacia trees. The soil is ferruginous-sandy and the water is scant.

The language of the project is of small, easy to build units which have the potential for incremental growth as per the community’s needs. The functional spaces are broken into parts, creating semi-covered inbetween spaces of flexible use depending on the needs of the users, time of year, et cetera. The varying scales and degrees of openness of courtyards allows for a sense of intimacy as well ascommunity at different scales.

Locally available materials like mud, bamboo, fabric have been used which respond to the local region and local skillsets while also creating engaging spaces for children and adults alike. Their knowledge and involvement in the process would help in creating a sense of belonging towards the structure which is fundamental to creating awareness about what the structure entails.

The architecture responds to the endeavour of battling malnutrition, in its own way through the introduction of elements like the water channel and trellises. The simple one way sloping roofs are used to collect rainwater with half cut bamboo gutter along the edge. The downtakes facilitate the movement of the water into the ground channels which could be used as irrigation channels, leading to the open farm fields around the building.The trellis formed with bamboo covered with vines and creepers is introduced to the south facade of the building to protect from the harsh heat. This feature is visible from the main road and encourages experimentation in farming along with the idea of self-sufficiency.

the structure entails. responds to the endeavour of battling malnutrition, through the introduction of elements like the water trellises. The simple one way sloping roofs are used with half cut bamboo gutter along the edge. facilitate the movement of the water into the ground could be used as irrigation channels, leading to the around the building.The trellis formed with bamboo and creepers is introduced to the south facade protect from the harsh heat. This feature is visi road and encourages experimentation in farming of self-sufficiency.

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION

BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN

Semester : II & IV Year : I & II

Type : Documentation Work Site : Almora & Maheshwar

Guide : Study trip faculty

Documentation was an integral part of the curriculum.

The second semester was dedicated to Maheshwar and the fourth to Almora. Both having stark differences and yet being an undeniable part of the complex town tapestry of our nation. A week was spent in each of the towns, documenting and studying their spatial, social and cultural characteristics.

LIFE ALONG THE RIDGE

Almora Exhibition

The study trip was conducted to explore and document the ridge on which the bustling, picturesque town of Almora is located, its valleys rolling down on both sides with vast stretches of the Himalayas in the backdrop. The town with all its cozy lanes and mysterious nooks and corners smelling of fresh jalebis and quaint homes of the welcoming people was experienced and studied thoroughly by the class in a span of seven days...

HARSHAVARDHAN VARMA’S HOUSE

The house is home to Harshavardhan Varma, his younger brother, his mother and his grandmother. The man is a painter by passion, having a studio overlooking the main ridge. The house itself is an old structure and henceis made in the traditional style odf stone and timber, with a wooden facade. The house originally was connected to the neighbouring structure, but due to familial disputes, the door that connects the two is kept under lock and key.

R E T R A C I

N G T H E

M a h e s h w a r E x h i b i t i o n

F A B R I C

The historical town of Maheshwar located on the banks of the holy Narmada in Madhya Pradesh is well known for producing high quality fabric and beautiful garments made of the same. The town functions by the intricate connections amongst the townsfolk; connections that trace how their lives are interconnected in one way or another. The exhibition upheld these interactions in the form of a large broken down map of the spaces these people inhabit in their daily lives thus giving rise to a woven fabric like structure.

Drawing by entire batch

Semester : All Year : All

Type : Miscellaneous and Allied

Formative years of the curriculum are majorly the first two years where one still grasps the idea of space, the nuances of design exploration etc. I was fortunate enough to have been eposed to a wide variety of work during that period that made me push boundaries among other things. This section contains works from those years and other creative interests that I harbour in art and photography.

01 Allied Works

SCALES OF SEEING

Semester : IV , Year : III

Type : Documentation

Site : Charkop, Mumbai, India

Guide : Kaushik Mukhopadhyay, Sonal Sundararajan

Collaborators : Mahek Todi, Yash Shah, Keyur Shah, Soham Jamdar, Tvisha Ranpuria, Vruti Vora, Lalit Indrapure, Vaishnavi Gurav

The studio revolved around studying the relationship of nature and objects through the lens of scales and representation.

The site was on the edge of a waterbody with conglomerates of housing scattered around vegetation and a sewage treatment plant. Throughout the course of 22 weeks, we used different handmade objects to scale the biological softscape with all its rich flora and fauna in both macro and micro levels trying to understand the different layers of life that thrive on the ground.

BAMBOO ROOF

Semester : I , Year : I

Type : Building Technology

Collaborators : Raj Dhikle, Tvisha Ranpuria, Rohit

A studio dedicated to exploring and joineries.

CATENARY CURVES

Semester : III , Year : II

In collaboration with :

Technology

Dhikle, Rutuja Dhadiwal, Rashmi Gawari, Shivam Rana, Rathod, Sachi Saraf

exploring spans of different lengths using bamboo structures

JOINERIES (wood & concrete)

Semester : III , Year : II

In collaboration with : Shruti Rajmane

Exploration of co-working between different materials.

RCC PARKING LOT

Semester : III , Year : II

Shruti Rajmane, Manasi Patankar, Vaishnavi Gurav

A thin cloth was dipped in a mixture of PoP and hung in a desired shape until it dies. The strength of the curve is later measured by placing bricks.

In collaboration with : Komal Agarwal, Mohit Katke, Viraj Patil

A parking lot was designed. The scaffolding was made at a scale of 1:20 and concrete poured in it with thin steel wires acting as the reinforcement.

02 Earlier & Miscellaneous Works

A STUDY OF EARTH AS A BUILDING MATERIAL

Type : Elective , Sem : I, Year : I, Collaborative Work

FURNITURE DESIGN

Allied Design , Sem:IV, Year:II, Collaborative Work

The workshop focused on moulding and treating adobe mounds and making bricks out of them for conducting a strength test later.

MOULDING SPACES

The studio focused on designing furnitures with an existent space constraint.

TIMBER BUILDING CONSTRUCTION

Semester : II , Year : I , Collaborative Work

The elements of timber building construction were explored with the help of this model.

Semester: I , Year: I , Architectural Design Studio Guide : Soumya Raja

The poem was taken as inspiration and soap used to explore forms relevant to it.

Semester : II , Year Architectural Design Guide : Ameesha

Site: Maheshwar, THE AROMA

The project is the Narmada and exploration of the place. Several materials to explore forms from the phenomenon wafting through an engulfing everyone it encounters.

The project served for a character I had the study trip to Maheshwar.

PAPER- ROLL CHAIR

Semester : III, Year Collaborators : Devishi , Yash Newspaper rolls were used to make chair by tying those using cello-tape.

Semester : I , Year : I , Allied Design Guide : Manasi Bhatt, Apurva FRUIT

A pomegranate was sliced and broken down to a set of planes. Later those planes were morphed to create an object for a character in Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”.

ADOBE BRICKS SIDE VIEW FRONT VIEW

COLLAGE

located beside and deals with an the scent of the materials were used that might arise phenomenon of a scent an area and subtly everyone and everything served as a homestead had studied during Maheshwar.

Design Studio

Apurva Talpade

FRUIT MORPH

Collaboration with Yash Shah, Manasi Borade, Aakanksha Raina

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