Top 5 Female Architects in India 

India boasts of many famous female architects whose work is exemplary. In recent years, we have seen a rise in platforms that celebrate the achievements of famous female architects and designers. One such platform is WADE Asia, Women in Architecture & Design. This exhibition aims to bring together a community of designers across India to promote work done by women architects & designers.  

At IVS School of Art and Design, we encourage our students to learn about these eminent architects and learn from their works.

Some of the well-known female Architects & Designers are

1. Revathi Kamath (1955 – 2020) – \’My whole effort is to make mud a viable material\’, said Revathi Kamath. She is known as a pioneer of Mud Architecture in India. Revathi Kamath was an environmentally conscious architect & planner. 

After completing her education at the School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi she joined the prestigious SDB Consultants of Joseph Allen Stein, B.V. Doshi & Dr. J.R. Bhalla before joining GRUP, another well-known architectural & design firm.  In 1981, she opened her firm \’Revathi & Vasant Kamath\’ along with her husband Vasant Kamath, now known as Kamath Design Studio.  

Revathi strongly believed in sustainable & vernacular architecture which resonates in her works. Her own house, which is built on an illegal quarry land in Anangpur village in Faridabad stands as a testament to her ideologies. Fondly known as Revathi Kamath Mud House, was built in mud & available resources at the site itself. 

Revathi Kamath is known for her revolutionary work on the Anandgram project (near Shadipur Depot, Delhi), for the rehabilitation of slum dwellers & street performers. She consulted with 350 families to understand their needs and daily activities to provide them with their first home. She was known to connect deeply with the people & their culture to provide them socially & ecologically sustainable structures. 

Her iconic works not only cover Mud Architecture but she is also known for the tallest stainless steel structure of India. Her other works to learn from are The Mud House, NAAD – The Wellness Center,  Laxman Sagar Resort, Taal Chappar, Tribal Museum – Bhopal to name some.  

During my formative years as a designer, Revathi Kamath\’s works and ideologies resonated deeply with me, shaping my creative vision and guiding my approach to design. 

This is my humble tribute to the great architect who inspired so many.

2. Brinda Somaya –  Brinda Somaya of Somaya & Kalappa Consultants started her practice in 1978 in Mumbai after completing her education. She is an architect & a well-known urban conservationist having worked on many prestigious projects like the Louis Kahn building of IIM Ahmedabad. Some of her notable works include Bhadli Village of Bhuj, Nalanda International School & many more. 

 

All her projects are based on the philosophy of \”Architects being the guardians – he is the conscience of the built & unbuilt environment.\” 

The design process is propelled by extensive research, site and cultural context. It is inspired by innovative and vernacular methods of construction and use of indigenous local materials and arts and crafts, while evolving steadily within the parameters of sustainable design principles.

1. Chitra Vishwanath – Architect Chitra Vishwanath, principal architect & managing director, Biome Environmental Solutions, has worked extensively on projects encompassing ecology & rainwater harvesting technologies. Her design philosophy focuses on using eco-friendly resources & practicing sustainable

 

architecture. She uses mud as the compressed stabilized block & rammed earth for creating load-bearing structures,  arches, domes & vaultes. 

Stabilized mud blocks are made using the earth excavated during the foundation & basement to which a minimal amount of cement /lime is added. Such blocks can take care of heavy loads. 

Chitra advises using crushed building debris as a replacement for sand in mortar & plinths thereby, preventing the use of sand & its mining which is causing ecological destruction. She also believes in using construction site debris below the plinth for better waste management. 

She understands the importance of using the wisdom of both vernacular and modern methods of construction, locally available resources and considering the climate & geography of the site before designing the project. All her projects use passive cooling and lighting techniques along with wastewater management and rainwater harvesting. 

Her journey into eco-architecture started with building her own house as her very first project in 1995. Some of her notable works include Swastika Dance School, Buddhi School, Govardhan Eco Village, Sudipto Studio,  Biome Office 

4. Samira Rathod – is an alumnus of Sir. JJ College of Architecture, Mumbai. Later she completed her master\’s in Architecture from the University of Illinois. 

She established her practice in the year 2000 as Samira Rathod Design Atelier (SRDA). 

Samira is not only an architect but also designs furniture, founder & creator of SPADE India Research Cell & also teaches at Kamla Raheja Institute of Architecture, Mumbai. 

SRDA treats every building project as a thoughtful and responsible solution, carefully balancing structure, infrastructure, cost, and functionality.

She has carved a niche for herself by working on various projects residential, institutional, hospitality & others. Her nonconformist & free-spirited designs excite the mind. Her experimentation with different materials & shapes keeping climate & site requirements in focus has led to projects par excellence. 

One such project, the House of Concrete Experiments, for a couple in Alibag, is built in concrete in its various forms, textures and finishes. 

Her other project, the Cool House, based in Broacha has a series of outdoor rooms to welcome the cooling breeze thus, reducing the dependency on air conditioning. 

The project that I found exciting was the School of Dancing Arches. Located in Bhadran, Gujrat, Samira created magic with this project. The project rose out of freedom of expression letting children enjoy the complete site of four acres surrounded by orchards & fields. Born out of the scribbles and emulating the freedom children enjoy, Samira created a series of dancing arches. Navigating crevices, niches, projections, mezzanines, and boxes created a playful spirit reminder of childhood memories.  

Samira Rathod projects are sustainable and encased in modern methods and design.  BLIIRS – beautiful, local, Indigenous, recycle and small – is SRDA defining design philosophy.

5 – Anupama Kundoo – internationally recognized & award-winning architect Dr. Anupama Kundoo has changed the viewpoint of architecture. Her focus on materials research & experimentation has led to building designs having low environmental impact. She has worked extensively with local craftsmen.

I was privy to one such exhibition of hers, Samskara – Made in India, co-curated with Mr. Sunil Sethi. This exhibition seeped into Indian ethos and craftsmanship showcased a luxurious contemporary international concept

Dr. Anupama. worked extensively with the local stone cutters bringing stones to life & changing the perception of possibilities in stone. Created in the monochromatic color of hand-dressed granite, the stone stood out as art pieces themselves. No surface ornamentation was required!  

Dr. Anupama Kundoo, who is from Pune,  graduated from Mumbai. Starting her career at Auroville in India, her research, academia & work has taken her across the world. She has taught at various places like TU Berlin, AA London, Parsons New School of Design, New York, the University of Queensland, Brisbane to name a few. 

It is a small initiative by IVS to pay tribute through this article to the above-mentioned female architects and their works.

IVS School of Art & Design is one of the premier institutes for teaching interior architecture and design.

Author Bio

Arpita R Ranjan
Head of Department
Interior Architecture Design
IVS School of Art and Design

An accomplished educationist, Vastu expert, and Interior Architecture Design professional, she has been affiliated with numerous design institutes, mentoring faculty and students toward success for over 27 years.