On a typical summer afternoon in India, when the sun scorches the streets and the heat clings to your skin, you step indoors hoping for respite. But instead, the walls seem to radiate the warmth right back at you. The fan spins faster, the air-conditioner hums louder — and still, the space feels heavy.

It’s a familiar discomfort, and yet one we rarely question. Most modern homes, sleek in concrete and glass, were never built for comfort. They were built to rise quickly, to look polished, to impress. But at what cost? To the earth beneath them, and to the people living inside?

That question stayed with Krithika Venkatesh, a young architect from Chennai. Years ago, standing at a mining site stripped raw for construction materials, she felt the disconnect between design and nature and knew she had to choose a different path.

Her venture, ‘Studio for Earthen Architecture’, isn’t just about building houses; it’s about crafting homes that breathe, age gracefully, and tread lightly on our planet. She builds structures that breathe with the land — cooler in summer, cleaner to live in, and far gentler on the planet.

Her tools? Mud, lime, reclaimed wood, and centuries of forgotten wisdom. Her mission? To show that comfort and sustainability don’t have to be at odds — and that beauty can rise from the soil itself.

“During my studies, we had the chance to explore various fields — and I gradually realised that contemporary architecture just didn’t resonate with me.”

Finding inspiration in a master’s footsteps

The fog of standard architectural practice began to clear when Krithika encountered the inspiring work of Laurie Baker, a name synonymous with sustainable and humane building in India.

“In the third year of architecture at Mohammed Sarthak AG Academy of Architecture, Chennai, I was introduced to Laurie Baker, an architect from Kerala, where we had opportunities to go to his institute, stay there, and understand his techniques,” shares Krithika.

“He was a Gandhian, deeply committed to using local materials and low-cost techniques, especially for government projects like slum boards and housing units. I knew immediately that this was where I wanted to begin,” she adds.

This was a lightbulb moment for Krithika. “I was trying to incorporate all his techniques in my project. I was studying and researching more. And then I found it very fascinating how good it was to use local materials and artisans.”

What lies beneath: mining the truth about modern construction

Further down the line, practical stints with like-minded architects and a deep dive into earthen materials cemented her resolve. But it wasn’t just the charm of traditional methods that drew Krithika in. A hard-hitting look at the dark side of conventional construction materials truly solidified her path.

“One more important point for me to get into vernacular architecture was that we did a dissertation on construction materials and where they came from. So, I visited various mining sites in Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and Jharkhand,” Krithika explains.

What Krithika saw at those mining sites........

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