Studio Lotus

Adapt and Reuse : Building with what exists.

Set within a world-class mixed-use development in a Mumbai suburb for (GPL), this project occupies legacy land where the Godrej Group first established its factories.

Before we began working on this project, we asked ourselves: How does an ordinary building with a 100-year-old legacy engage with the future while staying tethered to its roots?

The answer was to ground the development in the industrial heritage of the site, creating an authentic historic narrative, embedding references to memory as reflections on the site’s history, and forming a unifying thread across the space. Therefore, the project became an exercise in placemaking, preserving buildings as markers of memory that narrate the story of the site, while reimagining the built fabric as a new cultural hub to activate its proximal areas within the larger masterplan and beyond its boundaries.

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Design Team: Studio Lotus: , , , Arun Kullu, , Sanjay Kumar | : , Namrata Mehra, .sathe, Shraddha Dasgupta, Karan Sharma (Legacy Silos), (Urban Farm)

‘Treading Lightly’ is an intrinsic Studio Lotus value, metaphorically and physically.

A selection of projects that embody this approach in varied ways include the Villa in the Woods in Kumaon, where the idea of ‘building lightly’ is epitomised with the villas propped on stilts over three levels, reducing its footprint on the ground. This not only saved trees and maximised views, but more importantly, allowed for natural surface water runoff to flow unhindered into the swales below—thus, minimising the ecological impact.

At RAAS Chhatrasagar, perched atop a nearly 150-year-old check dam that formed a perennial rainwater lake, the sensitive ecological context made it imperative that all additions to the locale be erected with minimal environmental footprint. So, we designed a system of low-impact foundations and lightweight superstructures that blended harmoniously with the environment.

In the Mehrangarh Fort Visitor Centre in Jodhpur, we elevated 65% of the building above ground through a stilted structure, with an intention to respect the site’s ecological and geological integrity.

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Cousu d'Or was a celebration of Banarasi textiles and French bridal couture, a collaboration between Ekaya Banaras and La Fédération Française de la Création Couture Sur Mesure, envisioned as a surreal narrative.

Influenced by the eternal romance of flowers and weddings, it was an oasis of Victoria water lilies—their giant leaves cradling couture creations. Using paper as a medium and origami as its expression, we placed folded flower forms on mirrored surfaces, alluding to lily pads resting in fragmented pools of water—from within each, emerging a delicate bud in the form of an exquisite dress.

Circular mirrors suspended behind ensembles to highlight their intricate details, mimicking water droplets, and paper chandeliers hovering above like luminous clouds cast a soft, even glow. To contain the paradise garden, we wrapped the hall in sheaths of white fabric, transporting the visitor into a dreamy, timeless reverie.

Working within limited installation time, origami artist guided the paper-handling process, with members across teams coming together to cut, fold, and assemble the exhibition overnight.

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Design Team: , , , ,