A purposeful resurrection

By Rutvi Ashar

Photography: Courtesy Suryan// dang, Creative Designer Architects [CDA]

Read Time: 2 mins

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Following the concept of morphosis i.e. the development characterized by structural change, Creative Designer Architects add to their portfolio a former dwelling converted into a men’s fertility clinic.

Creative Designer Architects (CDA) have resurrected a 40-year-old, derelict South Delhi home into a flagship clinic that houses several function-oriented spaces viz. patient areas on the ground floor, staff areas and clinical support utilities on the first and the highly sterile OT department on the top floor. 

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The exterior moves away from the once-warm homeliness to conventional masculine features indicative of a more rough and edgy demeanour. The colour palette creates a harmony through play of mild grey dominated by orange-brown – again bordering on the warm and robust. The modulation on the exterior façade is a rationale of the indoor functions. The building’s orientation is towards the south-west; hence, the highly-sterile zones are designed towards the front to screen them from the heat gain. Similarly, the first-floor slab is recessed to limit the direct southern sun and make the interior more habitable.

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Development sketches

The architect’s approach to this project is laudable. It is not uncommon for an old building to be torn down and replaced; but surprisingly, here, the architects choose to work with the existing load-bearing walls by effecting some major structural challenges. Since the walls were without any RCC members in the design, new walls were constructed for every load-bearing wall that was knocked off and new ones built were augmented with careful attention to strengthening and retrofitting with structural steel, injection grouting etc. at multiple locations – a process that has added another 2-3 decades to the life of the building.

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Building down the compound wall that may have separated the corner plot home from the busy road has opened up the interiors significantly. A small atrium with a sky-light near the entrance lobby exemplifies the amount of daylight seeping in.  The closely-knit wooden battens in a confined colour palette of beige and browns breathes warmth and care which almost reminisces of the home that it sits in. Inorganic seating forms and strong curves that dominate the walls, floor and ceiling make for the final organic touch that completes the picture. 

Fact File:

Client:  Diyos Men's Health Center Pvt Ltd. [Dr. Vineet Malhotra]

Architect Firm: Creative Designer Architects [CDA]

Lead Architects: Ravideep Singh, Maninder Kaur, Mohanbir Singh

Project Team: Ravideep Singh, Maninder Kaur, Sanju Nim, Gaurav Khanna

Built-up Area: 1161 square metres (12,500 sq. ft)

Location: Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi