India's sustainable architecture firms and architects are redefining how buildings are designed, built, and experienced. From Mumbai-based studios to firms across Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Ahmedabad, these famous sustainable architects in India are leading the green building movement with innovative, eco-conscious design solutions that go far beyond putting a solar panel on a roof.
The shift is real, and it is accelerating. Buildings account for roughly 35% of India's total energy consumption, and with hundreds of millions of square feet of new construction expected before 2030, the choices being made right now by sustainable architects in India will shape how Indian cities perform for the next 50 years. The practices profiled here are making those choices well.
Importance of Sustainable Design
Sustainable design principles play a pivotal role in modern architecture, serving as a guiding framework for creating built environments that minimise environmental impact while maximising efficiency and liveability. Integrating principles such as passive solar design, rainwater harvesting, and the use of locally sourced materials, sustainable architects in India are redefining the way buildings are conceived and constructed.
Profiles and Works of Prominent Sustainable Architects
1. Ar. Anupama Kundoo
Background and Education: Ar. Anupama Kundoo is a renowned architect known for her innovative approach to sustainable design. With a background in architecture from the University of Mumbai and the Technical University of Berlin, Kundoo's work is characterised by a deep commitment to environmental sustainability and social responsibility. Her practice is frequently cited among the most notable sustainable architecture firms working in India today, with projects spanning Auroville, Tamil Nadu and internationally.
Notable Projects: Kundoo's portfolio includes groundbreaking projects such as the Wall House in Auroville, which showcases her signature blend of traditional building techniques and contemporary design principles. The use of locally-sourced materials and passive cooling strategies exemplifies her dedication to sustainable practices.
Approach to Sustainable Design: Kundoo's approach to sustainable design emphasises the importance of community engagement and cultural context. By actively involving local communities in the design process and drawing inspiration from vernacular architecture, she creates spaces that are not only environmentally sustainable but also culturally relevant and socially inclusive.
The Auroville Earth Institute
Location and Description: Located in Auroville, Tamil Nadu, the Auroville Earth Institute is dedicated to promoting sustainable building practices through research, training, and outreach programs. The institute's campus showcases various earth construction techniques, including rammed earth and stabilised mud blocks.
Sustainable Features: The institute's buildings are constructed using locally-sourced materials such as soil, sand, and stone, minimising the embodied energy associated with construction. Passive design strategies such as natural ventilation and shading reduce the need for artificial cooling, further enhancing energy efficiency.
Impact on Community: The Auroville Earth Institute has had a profound impact on the local community by providing training and employment opportunities in sustainable construction techniques. Through its outreach programs, the institute aims to empower individuals and communities to embrace sustainable building practices.
Matri Mandir at Auroville
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2. Ar. Bijoy Jain
Background and Education: Ar. Bijoy Jain is the founder of Studio Mumbai, a renowned architectural firm based in Mumbai. Trained at the University of Washington and the University of Mumbai, Jain's work is deeply rooted in the principles of sustainability and craftsmanship. Studio Mumbai, his Mumbai-based architecture firm, is widely regarded as one of the top sustainable architecture firms in Mumbai, known for combining handicraft traditions with environmental sensitivity that most contemporary practices struggle to match.
Notable Projects: Jain's projects, such as the Palmyra House in Maharashtra, reflect his meticulous attention to detail and reverence for traditional building techniques. Through the use of locally-sourced materials and artisanal craftsmanship, Jain creates timeless structures that seamlessly blend with their natural surroundings.
Approach to Sustainable Design: Jain's approach to sustainable design is characterised by a deep respect for nature and a commitment to preserving local traditions. By prioritising handcrafted elements and sustainable materials, he creates architecture that celebrates the intrinsic beauty of natural materials while minimizing environmental impact.
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The Palmyra House by Bijoy Jain
Location and Description: Bijoy Jain's Palmyra House in Nandgaon, Maharashtra, epitomises sustainable architecture. Built with local materials like reclaimed wood and stone, it blends seamlessly with nature. Passive cooling techniques ensure comfort without relying on mechanical systems.
Sustainable Features: The Palmyra House integrates passive cooling and local materials, minimising its environmental impact. Sustainable design choices prioritise resource efficiency and harmony with the surrounding ecosystem.
Impact on Community: The Palmyra House inspires sustainable living and architectural appreciation. Through tours and education, it fosters awareness and dialogue, influencing the wider community towards eco-conscious practices.

Image Source - Helene Binet via ArchDaily
3. Ar. Brinda Somaya
Background and Education: Ar. Brinda Somaya is the founder of Somaya and Kalappa Consultants, one of India's leading architectural firms. With a degree in architecture from the Sir J.J. College of Architecture, Mumbai, Somaya's career spans over four decades and encompasses a diverse range of projects. Somaya and Kalappa Consultants is one of India's leading sustainable architecture companies, with a portfolio spanning over four decades of environmentally responsible institutional and corporate design.
Notable Projects: Somaya's portfolio includes iconic projects such as the Vikram Sarabhai Library in Ahmedabad, which exemplifies her commitment to sustainable design principles. Through the use of passive cooling techniques and energy-efficient systems, Somaya creates buildings that prioritise user comfort and environmental responsibility.
Approach to Sustainable Design: Somaya's approach to sustainable design is rooted in a deep understanding of local climate and context. Integrating passive design strategies and innovative technologies, she creates buildings that respond sensitively to their surroundings while minimising energy consumption and environmental impact.
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TCS Indore Campus by Brinda Somaya
Location and Description: Brinda Somaya's TCS Indore Campus in Madhya Pradesh seamlessly integrates modern design with traditional Indian architectural elements, reflecting the region's rich cultural heritage. Situated amidst lush greenery, the campus provides a serene and conducive environment for work and collaboration.
Sustainable Features: The TCS Indore Campus incorporates a range of sustainable features like passive solar design principles, orientation optimisation, and daylight harvesting. It reduces the building's reliance on artificial lighting and HVAC systems. Additionally, rainwater harvesting systems and wastewater treatment plants ensure efficient water management, further enhancing the campus's sustainability credentials.
Impact on Community: The TCS Indore Campus, through its innovative design and commitment to sustainability, enhances the quality of life for its occupants. It contributes to the broader community by promoting eco-conscious practices and fostering a culture of environmental responsibility.
Image Source- www.snkindia.com
Challenges and Opportunities
Despite the progress made in promoting sustainable architecture in India, several challenges remain, including limited awareness and understanding of green building practices, inadequate policy support, and economic constraints. However, these challenges also present opportunities for innovation and collaboration, as architects, policymakers, and industry sectors work together to overcome barriers and accelerate the transition to a more sustainable built environment.
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Top Sustainable Architecture Firms in India
India's sustainable architecture scene has moved well beyond individual practitioners. A new generation of firms, and several deeply established ones , are building entire practices around climate-responsive, ecologically intelligent design. These are the sustainable architecture firms in India consistently delivering on that promise.
Morphogenesis, New Delhi
Founded by Sonali and Manit Rastogi, Morphogenesis is arguably India's most internationally recognised sustainable architecture practice. Their approach, which they call bioclimatic design, starts with rigorous climate, sun path, and wind analysis before any design decision is made. Their Pearl Academy campus in Jaipur is a benchmark: a building that achieves 45% energy savings over a conventional structure through passive cooling, a perforated skin that allows airflow, and a central courtyard that functions as a thermal buffer. More than 50 million square feet of Morphogenesis-designed space has been green-certified under their S.O.U.L. design philosophy. For architects interested in sustainable architecture firms in India at a serious institutional scale, this is the most important practice to understand.
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Biome Environmental Solutions, Bengaluru
Founded in 2008 by Chitra Vishwanath, Biome is in a category of its own. This is not a firm that does sustainability as one of several services; it is their entire reason for existing. Biome's work centres on earth architecture, passive cooling, decentralised water management, and locally sourced materials. Over 500 completed projects spanning schools, residences, community centres, and commercial buildings, all built around environmental practicality rather than visual statement. If you are a student or fresher interested in green architecture firms that take the ecological question completely seriously, Biome Environmental Solutions is the most important Bengaluru practice to research and target.
Architecture Brio, Mumbai and Maharashtra
Architecture Brio works primarily along the Konkan coast, designing projects that respond specifically to the ecology of their site. Coastal topography, monsoon rainfall, and local vegetation are treated as design inputs, not obstacles. Their sustainable residential and hospitality projects have won recognition at Indian and international architecture awards. As one of the leading sustainable architecture firms in Mumbai with a genuinely regional and ecological approach, Architecture Brio demonstrates what it looks like when sustainability is rooted in a specific place rather than applied as a standard.
Hundredhands, Bengaluru
One of Bengaluru's most respected mid-size practices, Hundredhands works across residential, institutional, and public buildings with a design approach rooted in biophilic principles, natural ventilation, and material sensitivity. Their projects consistently demonstrate that sustainability at the residential scale does not mean compromise; it means better, more liveable buildings. For students interested in design-led sustainable practice, Hundredhands is worth studying closely.
Studio Lotus, New Delhi
Studio Lotus has built a national reputation for what they call conscious design, placing local craft traditions, cultural context, and material honesty at the centre of every project. Their work on Krushi Bhawan in Bhubaneswar, an agricultural ministry building that integrates 1,400 tribal artworks into its architecture, is one of the most remarkable sustainable institutional commissions completed in India in recent years. Multiple LEED-certified projects across hospitality, cultural, and commercial typologies make Studio Lotus one of the leading sustainable practices operating from Delhi.
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Most of these firms actively look for architects who understand sustainable design principles alongside BIM and Revit workflows. Building these technical skills significantly improves your chances of getting hired at top sustainable architecture firms in India.
Sustainable Architecture Firms in Mumbai
Mumbai has one of the most internationally recognised sustainable architecture scenes in India, driven by a combination of exceptional individual practices, a density of serious clients, and a built context that makes climate-responsive design not optional but necessary.
As mentioned earlier, Studio Mumbai remains one of the most internationally recognised sustainable architecture firms in Mumbai. Bijoy Jain's practice treats sustainability not as a technical checklist but as a philosophical commitment to slowness, hand-craft, and materials that grow from the land. Their buildings, built from local timber, bamboo, stone, lime plaster, and clay, produce almost no embodied carbon and require very little mechanical intervention.
Architecture Brio, with offices in both Mumbai and Rotterdam, brings sustainability together with a deeply site-specific design sensibility. Their work along the Maharashtra coast is among the most ecologically intelligent residential and hospitality architecture being produced in India right now.
Rahul Mehrotra Associates (RMA Architects) is a Mumbai-based practice known for sustainable urbanism, temporary architecture research, and a body of work that spans from the formal to the improvised city. Their academic and built contributions to thinking about how cities absorb climate change have made RMA one of the most respected sustainable architecture voices in India.
Another prominent Mumbai firm, Somaya and Kalappa Consultants, brings four decades of sustainable design experience to institutional and corporate projects. Their consistent integration of passive design strategies, energy-efficient systems, and climate-responsive planning across a wide range of typologies has made them one of the most trusted practices for clients who take sustainability seriously.
Mumbai's sustainable architecture scene is growing rapidly, with firms increasingly adopting BIM documentation alongside green design practices. Architects who combine sustainability knowledge with Revit and BIM skills are highly valued across these Mumbai firms.
Conclusion
India's sustainable architecture movement is no longer a niche; it is the future of the entire AEC industry. The firms and architects profiled here are not making compromises for the sake of sustainability; they are producing genuinely better buildings. Buildings that stay cooler without running air conditioning constantly. Buildings that manage water without external dependence. Buildings that hold their cultural and material identity across decades.
Firms across Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, and Delhi are actively hiring architects who combine sustainable design knowledge with BIM and Revit technical skills. Whether you are a fresh architecture graduate targeting your first job at a sustainable firm or an experienced architect looking to upskill, the window to build these capabilities is now, before they become even more baseline than they already are.
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Frequently Asked Questions
1Q: Which are the top sustainable architecture firms in India?
Several firms stand out consistently when discussing the best sustainable architecture firms in India. Morphogenesis in New Delhi has green-certified over 50 million square feet through their bioclimatic design approach and S.O.U.L. framework. Biome Environmental Solutions in Bengaluru is the most focused ecological practice in the country, 100% committed to earth architecture, water management, and locally sourced materials.
2Q: Are there sustainable architecture firms in Mumbai?
Yes, Mumbai has a strong and internationally recognised sustainable architecture scene. Studio Mumbai is widely regarded as one of the most celebrated sustainable practices globally, not just in India. Architecture Brio operates from both Mumbai and Rotterdam with a strong sustainable residential and hospitality portfolio. Somaya and Kalappa Consultants bring four decades of environmentally responsible institutional design from their Mumbai base.
3Q: Who are the most famous sustainable architects in India?
India has produced several famous sustainable architects whose work has defined the country's ecological design movement. Anupama Kundoo is celebrated internationally for earth construction techniques and community-centred sustainable design rooted in Auroville. Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai is one of the most globally recognised names in sustainable architecture, known for handcrafted, low-carbon buildings built from local materials. Brinda Somaya has spent over four decades producing environmentally responsible institutional and corporate architecture through Somaya and Kalappa Consultants.
4Q: What skills do sustainable architecture firms look for when hiring?
Sustainable architecture firms in India look for a combination of design knowledge and technical capability. On the design side: understanding of passive design principles, climate-responsive planning, biophilic design strategies, and familiarity with LEED and GRIHA certification frameworks. On the technical side: BIM and Revit proficiency is increasingly expected across most serious sustainable practices, both for design coordination and for producing the construction documentation that these firms deliver. Energy modelling basics and an understanding of low-carbon material choices round out the profile of what firms are looking for.
5Q: How do I get a job at a sustainable architecture firm in India?
Start by building a portfolio that includes at least one project with a demonstrable sustainable design focus, passive cooling strategy, material research, site analysis, or energy-efficient planning. Learn BIM tools like Revit. Most serious sustainable practices in India now use BIM for documentation and coordination, and candidates who come prepared immediately stand out. Familiarise yourself with LEED and GRIHA green building standards; even a basic understanding of these frameworks signals a genuine commitment to the field.
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