The 25^th Kurula Varkey Design Forum (KVDF 2026) at CEPT

An introduction to Prof. Kurula Varkey was delivered by Prof. Neelkanth Chhaya, followed by a keynote lecture by Architect Gurjit Singh Matharoo. The forum hosted 150+ students from different architectural colleges across Southeast Asia. 

20 students presented their projects in an open exhibition on the first day. Five teams comprising four invited participants, one mentor, and three CEPT students each participated in the workshop. Each team presented their process to a set of panellists, which included Prof. Shubhra Raje, Prof. Vishwanath Kashikar, Prof Meghal Arya, and Prof. Sachin Soni, and led to interesting conversations and questions.

This year, the forum has taken the shape of a collaborative design workshop, where students and mentors come together to create a tangible outcome of shared design inquiries. Mentors brought their own unique interpretations of the keyword ​‘Time,’ and students brought their final-year thesis projects. The goal was to help students detach from their own work by looking at their projects through the mentor’s lens. This process allowed for a re-interpretation and possible amalgamation of the work, driving forward a new way of thinking.