In collaboration with landscape architects Grant Associates and designers Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla (AJSK), international firm SOM recently designed the new terminal at Kempegowda International Airport in Bangalore, India, inspired by the city’s heritage and landscape.

Conceived as a space immersed in nature — in fact, it is referred to by the designers as a “terminal in a garden” — the architecture features a 90-meter-wide wooded area characterized by native flora, winding pathways and multi-level pavilions clad in bamboo. Passengers, both arriving and departing, cross a series of bridges and open-air paths within this green belt. The vegetation uses locally harvested water, while water features studied along the route, such as waterfalls, help cool the indoor environment.

To evoke the local landscape, the design also incorporates materials such as bamboo, locally sourced ivory-brown granite, burnt red brick, and traditionally woven rattan in finishes and furnishings.

The terminal’s structural design and rectangular shape prioritize efficiency and sustainability, with built-in flexibility to accommodate future changes, supporting the continued growth of air travel in Bangalore. “From the beginning, engineering focused on reducing embedded carbon and designing a structure that maximizes the use of locally sourced and manufactured materials, making it a beacon of the government’s ‘Make in India’ policy,” said Principal of Structural Engineering Preetam Biswas.