Confluence of modern expressions through artistic mediums

With the BPCL office, SNK shows us that there is more to architecture that goes farther than just creating functional spaces – architecture that understands the ethos of a work culture, and its vision for the future

- RASHMI NAICKER

How many lives can architecture have? Have we ever thought of conservation or restoration as an act beyond the material and as a manipulation of architecture and design itself? If a construction is structurally sound, and has an intelligence that might prove useful with time, it takes nothing more than a well devised road-map to rescue it from oblivion and reassemble it to create a space that continues to crafts stories. This also means the transformation of something that already exists into something purposefully intended and consequently appreciated.

Now, the existence of architecture and its conservation cannot be reduced to a mere building or a set of drawings, but encompasses the ideas, routine sentiments, legacy and practical constraints of the ones associated with it. The recently revamped Bharat Bhavan II, housing the headquarters of one of India’s ‘best-performing’ public-sector entities, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), by Somaya & Kalappa allows these dissimilar domains to effortlessly coalesce into a single satisfactory stream.

PROJECT INFORMATION

Project: Bharat Bhavan II

Location: Ballard Estate, Fort, Mumbai

Client: Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL)

Architect: Somaya & Kalappa Consultants (SNK), Mumbai

Design team: Brinda Somaya, Nandini Somaya Sampat, Homeyar Goiporia, Ameya Welling, Prashant Phatak, Ishita Parikh, Saiprasad Mestri, Sunisha Jalvi, Madhukar Warang, Mehek Jain, Nikita Asrani.

Project Area (Built-up): 66000 sq.ft.

Conservation/Restoration Contractor: Savani Heritage Conservation Pvt. Ltd.