Community Market Hub
Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
- Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
- 2023
- Completed
- Community Market
- 3,800 sq.m
- 1,150 sq.m
- Local vendors' cooperative
Community Market Hub replaces an open stretch of street vending that flooded in the monsoon and baked in summer. The brief asked for a covered market that vendors could own and maintain, with stalls that could be reconfigured for produce, flowers and cooked food as the week turns.
The roof is a series of shallow concrete shells on exposed brick piers, spaced so that the trading floor stays shaded through the day. Ridge gaps run the length of the roof to vent hot air, and a band of terracotta jaali sits low along the perimeter, keeping the stalls ventilated while screening dust from the road.
Public seating, a water point and a small play area are built into the plinth, so the hall works as a neighbourhood square outside trading hours. Stall fronts are teak-faced shutters that lock down at night, which the vendors' committee asked for in place of metal grilles.
“Shade is the first public amenity a market needs.”
Seen in photographs
The ideas that shape the building
- 01
Shell roofs on brick piers
Thin concrete shells give a column-free trading floor and keep the roof light enough to build with local crews.
- 02
Permanent shade, open sides
Ridge gaps vent hot air while the shells hold shade over the stalls through the afternoon.
- 03
Jaali perimeter
A low terracotta screen filters road dust and noise but keeps sightlines open between stalls and the street.
- 04
A square after trading hours
Seating, a water point and a play area sit in the plinth, so the hall doubles as a public square.
Exposed Brick
Board-marked Concrete
Terracotta Jaali
Teak
Kota Stone
- Ar. [Founder Name]
- [Team Member 2]
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