Celebrated Indian architect, designer, author, and educator Samira Rathod is most renowned for being the founder and principal of Mumbai-based Samira Rathod Design Atelier (SRDA).
Education & Early Career
She earned her Bachelor of Architecture from Sir J. J. College of Architecture, Mumbai, followed by a Master’s in Architecture from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. After apprenticeships with Don Wald & Associates (USA) and India’s Ratan Batliboi, she co-founded RLC in 1995 before launching SRDA in 2000.
Practice & PhilosophyÂ
SRDA has completed more than 25 architecture projects, more than 50 interior projects, and more than 300 custom furniture items under Samira’s direction. The studio’s philosophy, which may be summed up as BLIRS (Beautiful, Local, Indigenous, Recycle & Reuse, Small), emphasizes sustainable material use, lyrical design, and contextual responsiveness.
Notable Projects
- The Shadow House in Mumbai is a sculpture-based home that uses courtyards and various materials to experiment with light and shadow.
- chill House (Gujarat): An inward-facing, climate-responsive house that uses natural cooling to chill its interior.
- School of Dancing Arches (Bhadran, Gujarat): A whimsical terracotta school made with repurposed shuttering and skylight arches that draws inspiration from children’s shapes.
- The House of Concrete Experiments (Alibag) is a monolithic concrete residence with cast walls made from recycled waste.
Writings, Research & Teaching
In 2008, she launched the critical architectural journal SPADE and founded the SPADE India Research Cell, promoting discourse and publications on architecture. As adjunct faculty at Mumbai’s KRVIA and CEPT Ahmedabad, she also delivers lectures at global venues such as Cornell and the Royal Academy of Arts.
Recognition & Awards
She has won numerous national honors, including the coveted Arc Vision Prize (Women and Architecture), Elle Deco International Design Award, and A+D Award. Her work has appeared in prestigious international design and architecture magazines and been shown at events including the London Biennale.
Her Own Words
According to Samira, “architecture is the unraveling of experiences,” combining materiality, light, memory, and context to create environments that arouse feelings and stimulate cognition.
