india Archives

Architecture studio Wallmakers has repurposed approximately 6,200 discarded toys to construct the walls of Toy Storey, a circular home in Kerala, India.

The aptly named residence by Wallmakers uses toys discarded in the area, which are unsuitable for recycling, as structural components and decoration within the external walls.

“The main concept of Toy Storey revolves around the idea of using discarded toys and effectively conveying a message through this,” studio founder Vinu Daniel told Dezeen.

“By repurposing around 6,200 discarded toys, the residence in Kerala becomes a living monument to nostalgia and childhood, while addressing environmental concerns,” he added.

View of exterior wall of Toy Storey home — Approximately 6,200 discarded toys are used in the home’s walls

Toy Storey is wrapped by perforated, curved walls composed of compressed stabilised earth blocks, Mangalore tiles and toys, designed to draw in light and enable cross ventilation through the home. A ferrocement roof sits on top.

Four evenly-spaced entrances puncture the facade, which is wrapped by a cantilevered verandah offering outdoor space overlooking the surrounding greenery.

Living space within Kerala home — Perforated walls draw light and ventilation through the interior

Inside, the home’s first floor is divided into public and private segments. The public half is defined by a large living room while the private half contains an open-plan kitchen and dining area flanked by bedrooms.

“One of the things that the client mentioned was they often host their neighbours and members of the community, which means there are often many people in the house,” Daniel said.

“Hence we decided to make the area the people frequented separate from that of the client’s family’s personal spaces,” he continued.

Japanese-style shoji screens are used as partitions throughout the interior to enable light into each space and connectivity between the private and public areas.

Kitchen interior within Toy Storey home in India — An open-plan kitchen and dining area are flanked by bedrooms

The site’s topography enabled the addition of a secluded basement level containing a library and bedroom, accessed from the upper floor by a central staircase.

An internal courtyard topped with a glass ceiling slices through the building providing additional daylight for the interior.

Bedroom interior within Toy Storey in India — Japanese-style shoji screens are used as internal partitions

Wallmakers is an architecture studio established by Daniel in 2007. Elsewhere in India, Wallmakers has also recently completed an arts centre with rooftop seating and a house that resembles “snake curling up under a rock”.

Last year, Daniel faced criticism on social media for his studio’s use of unpaid internships, which he claims have an important educational benefit.

The photography is by Syam Sreesylam and Althaf Rasheed.

Reference

Archival Image in Tropical Modernism exhibition at the V&A London

Interior Design

Tropical Modernism exhibition explores “the politics behind the concrete”

By Zarkon Group,14/03/2024

London’s Victoria and Albert Museum has launched its Tropical Modernism exhibition, which highlights the architectural movement’s evolution from colonial import to a “tool of nation building”.

According to the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A), the exhibition aims to examine the complex context, power dynamics and post-colonial legacy of tropical modernism – an architectural style that developed in South Asia and West Africa in the late 1940s – while also centralising and celebrating its hidden figures.

“Tropical modernism is experiencing something of a modish revival as an exotic and escapist style popular in verdant luxury hotels, bars and concrete jungle houses,” the exhibition’s lead curator Christopher Turner told Dezeen.

“But it has a problematic history and, through an examination of the context of British imperialism and the de-colonial struggle, the exhibition seeks to look at the history of tropical modernism before and after Independence, and show something of the politics behind the concrete,” he continued.

Installation shot of Tropical Modernism exhibition at the V&A London — The exhibition traces the evolution of tropical modernism within a South Asian and West African context

The exhibition follows the V&A’s Tropical Modernism exhibition at the 2023 Venice Biennale, which revealed the team’s precursory research on tropical modernism in a West African setting.

For the in-house iteration of the exhibition, additional architectural models, drawings and archival imagery have been introduced to interrogate tropical modernism in India alongside the African perspective.

Exhibition materials line a series of rooms within the V&A’s Porter Gallery, divided by brightly coloured partitions and louvred walls referencing tropical modernist motifs.

The exhibition begins by tracing tropical modernism back to its early development by British architects Jane Drew and Maxwell Fry. Stationed together in Ghana from 1944, Drew and Fry adapted international modernism to the African climate, proposing functional over ornamental design.

Drew and Fry would also become part of the Department of Tropical Studies at the Architectural Association (AA), which exported British architects to the colonies from 1954 in a bid to neutralise calls for independence.

The exhibition continues by spotlighting local Ghanaian figures who worked with Fry and Drew, noting the power shifts that were taking place behind the scenes to reappropriate the architectural style for an emerging era of colonial freedom.

Influential political leaders Jawaharlal Nehru in India and Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana are the exhibition’s key personas, framing the evolution of tropical modernism from conception to regionalisation.

“The heroes of our exhibition are Nehru and Nkrumah, the first prime ministers of India and Ghana,” Turner explained. “Tropical modernism, a colonial invention, survived the transition to Independence and was appropriated and adapted by Nehru and Nkrumah as a tool of nation building.”

“Nkrumah, who sometimes sketched designs for the buildings he wanted on napkins, created the first architecture school in sub-Saharan Africa to train a new generation of African architects, and this institution has partnered with us on a five-year research project into tropical modernism.”

Archival image of University College Ibadan used in Tropical Modernism exhibition at the V&A London — According to the V&A’s research, tropical modernism shifted from its western Bauhaus roots towards a localised vernacular styles

Through a host of physical models and artefacts, the city of Chandigarh becomes the exhibition’s narrative focal point for tropical modernism in India.

Under prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Chandigarh was the first large-scale modernist project, recruiting Drew and Fry along with French architect Le Corbusier to plan the ideal utopian urban centre.

As with Nkrumah – who saw how the Africanisation of architecture could become a symbol of progress and change – the exhibition also aims to highlight Nehru’s ambitions for a localised modernism drawing from the Indian vernacular, rather than the Western Bauhaus style.

The display culminates in a video featuring 16 key tropical modernist structures, interspersed with interviews and footage explaining the social and political context behind each building’s realisation.

“We made a three-screen 28-minute film, shot in Ghana and featuring panoramic portraits of over a dozen buildings, cut with archive footage from the time and interviews with architects like John Owusu Addo and Henry Wellington, and Nkrumah’s daughter, the politician Samia Nkrumah,” said Turner.

Archival image of Maxwell Fry and John Noah used in Tropical Modernism exhibition at the V&A London — The exhibition aims to address gaps in the museum’s African and South Asian studies

According to Turner, the exhibition begins to address gaps in the V&A’s collections and archives pertaining to architecture and design in the global south.

“Archives are themselves instruments of power, and West African and Indian architects are not as prominent in established archives, which many institutions have now realised and are working to address,” Turner explained.

“Tropical modernism was very much a co-creation with local architects who we have sought to name – all of whom should be much better known, but are excluded from established canons.”

Bringing tropical modernism back into contemporary discourse was also important to the V&A as a timely investigation of low-tech and passive design strategies.

“Tropical modernism was a climate responsive architecture – it sought to work with rather than against climate,” Turner said.

“As we face an era of climate change, it is important that tropical modernism’s scientifically informed principles of passive cooling are reexamined and reinvented for our age,” he added.

“I hope that people will be interested to learn more about these moments of post-colonial excitement and opportunity, and the struggle by which these hard-earned freedoms were won.”

Image of video used in the Tropical Modernism exhibition at the V&A London — A 28-minute video captures footage of remaining tropical modernist structures at the end of the exhibition

The V&A museum in South Kensington houses permanent national collections alongside a series of temporary activations and exhibitions.

As part of London Design Festival 2023, the museum hosted a furniture display crafted from an Alfa Romeo car by Andu Masebo and earlier in the year, architect Shahed Saleem created a pavilion in the shape of a mosque at the V&A as part of 2023’s Ramadan Festival.

The photography is courtesy of the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Tropical Modernism: Architecture and Independence will run from 2 March to 22 September 2024 at the V&A Museum in London. For more events, exhibitions and talks in architecture and design visit the Dezeen Events Guide.

Reference

Architecture

NÄlukettu, Ettukettu and Pathinarukettu: The Architectural Heritage of Kerala, India

By Zarkon Group,07/03/2024

The latest edition of âArchitizer: The Worldâs Best Architectureâ â a stunning, hardbound book celebrating the most inspiring contemporary architecture from around the globe â is now available. Order your copy today.Â Â

Uniquely positioned on the Malabar Coast in the southwest of India sits the diverse state of Kerala. Bordered by the lush Sahyadri mountain range and dappled with extensive backwaters, this tropical region has been shaped by the land’s immense fertility that has supported a rich agricultural tradition for centuries. Thanks to its strategic location along ancient trade routes, with spices like pepper and cardamom being significant exports, Kerala has always been a melting pot of cultures.

The thriving coastal area is somewhat unique in India, topping various human development indices for its commitment to social welfare, healthcare accessibility and education. By prioritizing people over profits, Kerala often serves as a model for other areas of India and various developing countries.

House of Generations by City Futures Design Collaborative, Edappally, Kochi, India.

Like much of India, the traditional joint family system, known as Tarawad, played a central role in Kerala’s social fabric. This arrangement of extended families living together under one roof, often with several generations cohabiting, is not unique to India but was historically the custom of the matrilineal communities that were common to the area.

As a result of the various influences shaping Kerala’s identity, architecture tailored to the region’s climatic conditions, familial dynamics, and societal traditions emerged, swiftly establishing itself as the standard. Three distinct types of built structures, known as Nālukettu, Ettukettu, and Pathinarukettu, became the norm throughout the area. While many architects outside of this region may be unfamiliar with these terms, the ideas of social cohesion that the buildings put forth merit consideration in their own right.

1. Nālukettu

Niraamaya Retreats Backwaters & Beyond by Edifice Consultants Pvt. Ltd, KL, India

Nālukettu, the simplest of the three styles, was the traditional homestead of upper-class families. Featured sloping tiled roofs, thick walls and verandas, which were designed to protect against heavy rains and hot summers, these homes were constructed under the principles of Vastu Shastra.

Rooted in Vedic knowledge, Vastu Shastra aims to balance the five fundamental elements — earth, water, air, fire and space — within the built environment as a way to promote the well-being, happiness, and prosperity of its inhabitants. The philosophy is based in science but goes beyond typical construction methods to create spaces with specific qualities and energies. These beliefs influence the design and positioning of rooms, doors and windows to optimize the flow of positive energy. It is a design philosophy still practiced in India today, although more loosely, that respects natural resources and ecological balance. It guides everything from site selection to building orientation to ensure sunlight is harnessed in the best possible way.

The term “Nālukettu” means “four blocks” and refers to the four halls or buildings that surround the central open courtyard, which is the feature characteristic of this type of residential dwelling. A symmetrical layout with a nadumuttam (central courtyard) — the focal point of the household is typical of a Nālukettu home. The nadumuttam is an essential addition as it ensures ample light and ventilation, creating a microclimate perfect for the humid tropical weather of Kerala. As the name suggests, ‘four blocks’ — the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western wings, known respectively as Vadakkini, Thekkini, Kizhakkini, and Padinjattini — are designed according to their functions, such as sleeping quarters, kitchen, storage and ceremonial spaces. Of the three residential styles, Nālukettu were the most common and were typically the least ornate.

2. Ettukettu

Niraamaya Retreats Backwaters & Beyond by Edifice Consultants Pvt. Ltd, KL, India

Ettukettu takes the concept of Nālukettu further with an additional four halls, making it an eight-hall structure with two central courtyards. The term “Ettukettu” literally means “eight blocks.” The larger form was developed to accommodate larger joint families or to signify wealth and social status, and the addition of the second courtyard was believed to enhance the socio-cultural and environmental aspects of the traditional Kerala homes. They provided more light, better ventilation, and increased space for communal activities.

Ettukettu houses are less common due to the complexity of their construction and the higher costs involved in building them. These detailed structures required precise planning and skilled craftsmanship to ensure balance and symmetry, as well as to maintain the environmental integrity of the design that was essential in the practice of Vastu Shastra.

3. Pathinarukettu

Estate Plavu by Earthitects, Wayanad, KL, India

Estate Plavu by Earthitects, Wayanad, KL, India

The largest of the three styles, Pathinarukettu, is the most elaborate form of traditional Kerala architecture, consisting of a mammoth sixteen blocks arranged around two central courtyards. The term “Pathinarukettu” unsurprisingly translates to “sixteen blocks.” These buildings were rare in Kerala and were usually reserved for the wealthiest families and local rulers. It is the pinnacle of traditional architectural sophistication, accommodating large families and facilitating grandiose social gatherings and ceremonies.

Pathinarukettu houses are architectural marvels, and today, some have been retained as museums and heritage sites or public buildings. More so than Ettukettu and Nālukettu, Pathinarukettu homes are full of intricate woodwork and detailed carvings, expansive outdoor spaces, and elaborate gabled roofs. They are the pinnacle of Indian craftsmanship and the architectural ingenuity of the time.

Estate Plavu by Earthitects, Wayanad, KL, India

The traditional architectural forms of Nālukettu, Ettukettu, and Pathinarukettu hold deep cultural and social significance in Kerala. These structures, with their unique design, have been pivotal in hosting a variety of cultural festivities, family life events and social gatherings, and they reflect the communal ethos of Keralite society. The open courtyards, spacious verandas and interconnected rooms allowed for not only the flow of natural elements like air and light but also nurtured the flow of social interactions and intergenerational communal living.

Festivals such as Onam and Vishu, as well as family ceremonies, were celebrated with grandeur in these homes. These traditional buildings underscored the importance of social cohesion, with spaces that encouraged gatherings and collective living, reinforcing the bonds within families and the wider community, something deeply sought after in today’s architecture.

Driven by a blend of nostalgia for heritage, an understanding of the ecological benefits of traditional architectural wisdom, and the unmistakable allure of these beautiful structures, there has been a resurgence of interest in Nālukettu, Ettukettu, and Pathinarukettu recently. The people of Kerala are expressing a desire to reconnect with their cultural roots, sustainable living practices, and the aesthetic richness that was inherent in these traditional designs.

Reference

Architecture

maayaa retreat in south india reflects tropical modern aesthetic

By Zarkon Group,26/08/2023

MAAYAA tropical retreat draws from Balinese architecture

Architectural studio aslam sham architects constructs MAAYAA, a Balinese-themed getaway nestled within a lush palm plantation. Located just an hour’s drive from Coimbatore, at the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, the retreat showcases earthy tones and textures, instilling a sense of calm. The spaces are designed to evoke an eye-soothing serenity, as pathways adorned with verdant foliage exude tranquility and elegance.

Aiming to encapsulate Bali’s essence, MAAYAA’s design forms around tropical modernism. Perched in Anakkatti and embraced by the converging Siruvani and Bhavani Rivers, the building is set atop a cliff with river vistas. The resort’s core design objective is to amplify and preserve the surrounding scenery.

all images by Ishi Sitwala

fluid transition between the built and the land

With most of the construction situated below the entrance level, visitors descend to these spaces, greeted by shallow, expansive water bodies integrated into the roof slabs. This fluid transition through the entrance passage leads to the restaurant, where panoramic views of the river and distant mountains unfold.

The lower floors house banquet halls, conference rooms, and offices, while the lowest level boasts an infinity pool seamlessly blending with the landscape. The design team achieves a harmonious fusion between architecture and nature, creating an environment where boundaries blur between built and natural elements. The resort consists of two types of accommodations; standard rooms with river-view balconies, and independent cottages featuring plunge pools that overlook both the river and the hinterland. These structures follow the natural contours of the land, interconnected by passages and bridges at various levels, conveniently linked to the clubhouse and communal amenities. Drawing from Balinese architecture, the chosen materials and design vocabulary mirror the tropical retreat concept, paying homage to the region’s aesthetic.

the Balinese-themed getaway nestled within a lush palm plantation

MAAYAA’s design forms around the concept of tropical modernism

Reference

Interior Design

India Mahdavi enlivens Rome’s Villa Medici with bold geometric furnishings

By Zarkon Group,06/06/2023

Architect India Mahdavi has updated six rooms within Rome’s 16th-century Villa Medici to feature an array of contemporary and colourful furniture.

The intervention comes as part of a three-year project called Re-enchanting Villa Medici, which was launched in 2022 to amplify the presence of contemporary design and craft within the Renaissance palace.

While the first phase of the project saw fashion brand Fendi revamp Villa Medici’s salons, Mahdavi was asked to freshen up rooms on the building’s piano nobile or “noble level”, where the main reception and the bedrooms are housed.

She worked on a total of six spaces including the Chamber of the Elements, Chamber of the Muses and Chamber of the Lovers of Jupiter, which once served as an apartment to Cardinal Ferdinando de Medici.

The three other rooms – titled Debussy, Galileo and Lili Boulanger – were formerly used as guest quarters.

In the Chamber of the Muses, which is topped with a dramatic coffered ceiling, Mahdavi inserted sea-green editions of her Bishop stool alongside an enormous hand-tufted rug by French workshop Manufacture d’Aubusson Robert Four.

Its geometric design features green, purple, red, and rosy pink shapes, recalling the flowerbeds that appear across the villa’s sprawling gardens.

Only subtle alterations were made to the Chamber of the Elements and Chamber of the Lovers of Jupiter, where Mahdavi has repositioned an existing bed to sit against an expansive wall tapestry.

Some of the chairs here were also reupholstered in raspberry-hued velvet.

A cluster of bright yellow sofas and armchairs sourced from the French conservation agency Mobilier National was incorporated into the Lili Boulanger room, named after the first female composer to take up residence at the villa.

The furnishings sit on top of a blush-pink rug by French manufacturer La Manufacture Coglin and are accompanied by octagonal tables designed by Mahdavi.

A Renaissance-style four-poster bed was added to the room named after astronomer Galileo Galilei, who reportedly visited Villa Medici twice in his lifetime.

The bed’s tiered wooden base and headboard were inlaid with graphic, berry-toned marquetry by cabinetmaker Craman Lagarde. The pattern, which also appears on the curtains that enclose the bed, takes cues from the design of the villa’s flooring.

A similar bed can be seen in the room named after French composer Claude Debussy. But this time, the marquetry done by French furnituremaker Pascal Michalon is executed in more “acidulous” colours that Mahdavi said reminded her of Debussy’s piano piece Clair de lune.

Mahdavi has lent her distinctive colour-rich aesthetic to a number of significant venues. Recent examples include the lavish London restaurant Sketch, to which she added sunshine-yellow and golden furnishings.

The photography is by François Halard.

Reference

Architecture

Design Ni Dukaan builds “citadel-like” concrete house in India

By Zarkon Group,08/04/2023

Multidisciplinary studio Design ni Dukaan has completed a house in Gujarat, India, with a board-formed concrete exterior walls that wrap the home and define courtyard spaces.

Located on a remote site in the municipality of Himmatnagar, the studio designed the undulating enclosing walls as a “second skin” informed by the spaces within.

“Situated on a mound, the citadel-like compound is bound by peripheral walls comprising two curved and two straight surfaces that are disjointed at their intersections to create points of entry or subtle exits into the adjacent landscape,” said Design ni Dukaan.

“In the absence of a strong context, we relied on the client’s brief to inspire the design, but his complete disinterest in how the house would look from the outside prompted us to question the very basis of built forms,” it continued. “This caused a shift in our perception that resulted in an inside-out approach to the design, wherein the experience of space from within took precedence over the external form.”

Wide shot of the exterior of the Enclosure concrete house complex by Design Ni Dukaan — The enclosing wall curves towards the main entrance

Two concrete walls curve towards a main entrance that is covered by a concrete canopy and leads to a central courtyard space.

The kitchen, formal living and dining room, secondary kitchen and dining room, two main bedroom suites and three additional bedroom suites are arranged around this central open space.

Set back from the courtyard are two additional bedroom suites, a gym and a lounge room next to an outdoor swimming pool.

Covered concrete walkway with a swing seat in front of an opening the the wall that overlooks a courtyard — A covered walkway separates interior spaces from the outdoor courtyard

A covered walkway creates a buffer between the outdoor courtyard and indoor spaces, protecting the interior from the harsh tropical sun and hot winds while letting in natural light and ventilation.

Design ni Dukaan added “frames” throughout the home, including a swing seat placed by a large opening that overlooks the courtyard.

At three points in the home, volumes rise above the height of the enclosing wall to second-floor level and accommodate an artist’s loft, attic room for the family’s grandson and a water tank.

“We imagined them as three sentinels in conversation, floating above a seamless sea of green once the vegetation had reclaimed the concrete,” said Design ni Dukaan.

A grass lawn and trees surrounded by a concrete home — Greenery was added to complement the concrete

The studio merged indoor and outdoor spaces using a material palette of textured concrete, white-plastered walls, Kota stone and greenery.

“When the vegetation eventually grows over this backdrop of grey, the boundaries between inside and outside will further dissolve and diminish any notion of form,” said Design ni Dukaan.

Double-height living space with concrete walls, wooden-framed windows and and opening leading to a courtyard lawn — The central courtyard lets natural light into the home

The texture of the concrete walls was created by unbolted wooden formwork and the imperfections in its finish informed material choices elsewhere in the house.

“The unpredictable but beautiful texture caused by the shifting and warping of unbolted wooden formwork was fascinating,” said the studio.

“We decided to embrace these ‘anticipated imperfections’ as part of the construction process, even extending this choice to the use of other materials such as the flooring in the corridors, which utilises strips of leftover stone from the interiors to mimic the pattern of the concrete walls.”

A living room with polished concrete floors, wood-panelled walls and a grey L-shaped sofa — The home was designed to entertain guests

The neutral colours of the concrete, stone and white walls are punctuated by terracotta-coloured accents, including swimming pool tiles, seating and sculptural objects.

More playful colours were used in some of the bathrooms, which have monochrome green, blue or golden finishes.

Swimming pool with red pool tiles and timber decking in front of a white house — The studio added terracotta-coloured accents

The home was designed for the residents to entertain guests, with a formal lounge opening onto a lawn and a movie theatre in the basement. The house also has a mandir with a depiction of the deity Shreenathji engraved in black granite.

Other examples of concrete homes in India that use central courtyards to keep interior spaces cool in the hot summers include a house in Bharuch designed by Samira Rathod Design Atelier and a home in Chennai by Matharoo Associates.

The photography is by Ishita Sitwala, The Fishy Project.

Project credits:

Principal architect: Ar Veeram Shah
HVAC consultants: Anjaria associates
Structural consultants: Saunrachna Strucon Pvt
Contractor: Vastu Engineers

Reference

Architecture

Sloping roof shelters House of Noufal in India by 3dor Concepts

By Zarkon Group,15/10/2022

Architecture studio 3dor Concepts used a giant sloping roof to cover all three levels of this house in Kerala, India, which features an internal courtyard garden that can be opened up to the outdoors.

Named House of Noufal, the dwelling was designed by Kanpur-based studio 3dor Concepts for a client who is an avid traveller and wanted his family home to reflect his open mindset and curiosity.

The project is located in the Kannur district in the north of India, which has a wet maritime climate with heavy rain during the monsoon season and hot summer days.

While striving to be unique, the House of Noufal’s design also incorporates features evoking the region’s vernacular buildings to ensure it is suited to the climate.

Indian home by 3dor Concepts with sloped roof — It was designed by 3dor Concepts for a site in Kannur district

“One notable requirement was that the house should be unique and weird at the same time, and full of surprises,” said the studio.

“We started with an idea to design the house by stirring modern architecture with traditional Kerala architecture, a proper climatically responsive tropical house.”

Interior of Indian residence by 3dor Concepts — The floors of House of Noufal follow the slope of its roof

The roof of the House of Noufal slopes down to touch the ground on the front elevation, sheltering it from heavy rain and strong sunlight while giving it a distinctive appearance.

Its tiled surface is interrupted by a full-width opening that allows daylight to pour into a double-height courtyard inside containing large boulders, pebbles and plants.

The courtyard separates the main living spaces at the front of the house from more private areas including the bedrooms and a kitchen towards the rear.

Large openings on the ground floor, including full-height operable glass walls at either end of the courtyard, connect the interior with the garden and allow breezes to naturally ventilate it.

Interior courtyard of House of Noufal — An internal courtyard garden forms a focal point of the home

Across the pebble garden, a path links the kitchen with a dining area and lounge featuring a bench suspended between two columns. Seating areas face the courtyard, making it the focal point of the home.

A set of minimal metal stairs with open treads connects the house’s three levels, which follow the slope of the roof. Open balustrades and screens maintain a visual connection between the spaces on each floor.

House of Noufal has a steel framework that supports the roof made of locally sourced tiles. Openings with wooden louvres on the external and internal walls are in the traditional Kerala style.

3dor Concepts was founded in 2013 by architects Muhammed Jiyad CP, Ahmed Thaneem Abdul Majeed and Muhammed Naseem M. Its previous projects include a house in the town of Taliparamba that features walls, windows and furniture with curved edges.

The photography is by SyamSreesylam.

Reference

Sustainable News

Global innovation spotlight: India – Springwise

By Zarkon Group,15/08/2022

Global innovation spotlight: India

Global Innovation Spotlight

Reflecting our global Springwise readership, we explore the innovation landscape and freshest thinking from a new country each week. Ahead of independence day, we are celebrating three exciting innovations from India…

India innovation facts

Global Innovation Index ranking: 46th

Climate targets: A 45 per cent reduction in emissions intensity from the 2005 level by 2030, net zero by 2070

Sustainability issues:

Coal use – Only the US and China have higher greenhouse gas emissions than India, and the country is the world’s second-largest producer, consumer, and importer of coal. India is particularly reliant on coal for power generation, with the fossil fuel accounting for 75 per cent of annual electricity generation.

Cooking fuels – Despite government initiatives to promote the use of liquified petroleum gas, many rural Indian’s lack access to modern, clean cooking fuels, relying instead on solid fuels. The smoke created by burning solid fuels for cooking and other household activities is the largest source of ambient air pollution in India, contributing to ill-health and early death.

Water pollution – As India’s population grows and the country becomes increasingly urban, waterways are being put under unprecedented strain. And the situation is becoming critical with estimates suggesting that 70 per cent of the country’s surface water is not fit for human consumption.

Sector specialisms

E-commerce
Fintech
Mobility

Source: Startup Universal

Three exciting innovations from India

CHARCOAL-FREE INCENSE MADE FROM WASTE FLOWERS

Each year, millions of tonnes of flowers are left as offerings at Indian temples. For religious reasons, these offerings can’t be thrown into landfills, so they end up in rivers. The flowers are often covered in pesticides, toxic metals, and insecticides, and once they reach the water, the chemicals wash off, creating toxic compounds that suppress oxygen levels and threaten marine life. Startup Phool is addressing this problem by turning the discarded temple flowers into incense and other products, providing hundreds of jobs for local women. Read more

ECO-FRIENDLY SOUND-PROOFING MADE FROM SEAWEED

Most of the acoustic materials that can cancel out sound are made from plastic foams that aren’t easily recycled. Moreover, current alternative options are made from plant fibres that don’t effectively dampen noise in the most useful range of sound frequencies, or are too thick or unwieldy to fabricate. Now, researchers have created a biodegradable seaweed-derived film that effectively absorbs sounds. Read more

URBAN FLYOVER CONVERTED INTO PLAYFUL COMMUNITY GATHERING SPACE

Unlit, unused, dirty, and often unsafe locations are almost always easy to find in a city. Imagine, instead, how much beauty could be brought into the world if those underutilised spaces were multi-use community hubs. Mumbai architects StudioPOD, along with Dutch designers MVRDV, turned that idea into reality with the One Green Mile development directly below the Senapati Bapat Marg flyover in Mumbai. Read more

Words: Matthew Hempstead

To keep up with the latest innovations, sign up to our free newsletters or email info@springwise.com to get in touch.

12th August 2022

Reference

india

Wallmakers uses discarded toys to construct Toy Storey home in Kerala

Tropical Modernism exhibition explores “the politics behind the concrete”

NÄlukettu, Ettukettu and Pathinarukettu: The Architectural Heritage of Kerala, India

1. Nālukettu

2. Ettukettu

3. Pathinarukettu

maayaa retreat in south india reflects tropical modern aesthetic

MAAYAA tropical retreat draws from Balinese architecture

fluid transition between the built and the land

India Mahdavi enlivens Rome’s Villa Medici with bold geometric furnishings

Design Ni Dukaan builds “citadel-like” concrete house in India

Sloping roof shelters House of Noufal in India by 3dor Concepts

Global innovation spotlight: India – Springwise

Global innovation spotlight: India

India innovation facts

Three exciting innovations from India

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