The aspiration of an NGO to create a ‘green mall’, to promote a sustainable ‘green’ lifestyle in the dense urban environment of Kochi, stems into this project, ‘Ente Bhoomi’.
The leased land of 850 sqm was to become a womb in the community to nurture various activities such as the sales of organic vegetables and other sustainable products, training and resources for rooftop gardening, waste management, training courses for yoga and other martial arts, other sustainable lifestyle workshops, and an Organic food cafe.
The site being located amidst the city bustle of various institutions, small markets and residences, acts to the advantage of the projects and helps to conceive and to practice the same as an oasis of cultural activities in the city.
In order to promote the value systems of a ‘green’ life, the structure was designed to be identified as a green patch in the otherwise concrete jungle and advocates the use of bamboo as a viable building alternative. Built with bamboo and other recycled building materials, ‘Ente Bhoomi’ stands as a low cost and cost effective temporary structure, with comfortable non-air conditioned spaces.
The pavilion is envisaged to function as a ‘kilithattu’ – the side way resting places work and occasionally like a ‘Koothambalam’ to host cultural festivities. With a minimum number of bamboo poles making the framework, structurally tied with coir ropes and covered with a coir geotextile membrane to hold an insulating green roof, the pavilion worked well as a temporary structure.
Today, after being dismantled, the structure has been re-installed at the SEED college for Architecture as their workshop space.