The design situates itself within the larger modernist traditions that define the IIT Kanpur campus identity. The architecture for the new facility further extrapolates and celebrates the pioneering experiments carried out at the campus in contextualizing the modern within the harsh summer sun in the North Indian plains.

The enclosed spaces of the programmed common room and related spaces levitate, thus vacating the grounds for a shaded social underbelly, as an unprogrammed common room, unencumbered, free, and at the crossroads of both, movements and ideas. This interactive commons modulates to create stepped levels and sunken hollows for a range of groupings, dialogues, events, and idleness. The shops and a cafeteria help anchor informal interaction and animate the social space. The indoor areas have walls with heavy thermal mass, with north light and minimal external windows for maximizing environmental comfort.

The roof as an element extends and unifies the range of shaded spaces across multiple levels within a singular envelope. Solar panels on top will generate 60KW to help reduce the carbon footprint of the facility.