A Thousand Splendid Suns

A school in a village in Andhra Pradesh, designed by AD100 firm Collective Project, is a beautiful consequence of intent and sustainability.

- RAJASHREE BALARAM

Some years ago, when Eliza Higgins and Cyrus Patell of Collective Project designed a Montessori in Bengaluru-an adaptive reuse of a watch factory-they were approached by many potential clients to design similar schools. "Somehow, none of it excited us as the conversation revolved more around money than about the impact of design on schooling." However, six years ago, when the Penna Foundation, associated with cement factories in rural Andhra Pradesh, approached the duo to re-envision the Penna Foundation School, attended by the children of their workers, they felt deeply inspired. The 15-year-old school was part of the company's CSR initiative, set up in close proximity to the factory located in Talaricheruvu, a tiny village where summers tend to be frustratingly hot and dry.