Since 2004, Studio Saransh has designed camps for the Prabhu Premi Sangh Charitable Trust at successive Kumbh Melas. The 2025 Prayagraj Mahakumbh marks the eighth consecutive commission — a 22-acre temporary settlement on the floodplains of the Ganga River, erected within only 35 days due to perpetually shifting site conditions dictated by the changing river course.
The camp functions as a fully operational city-within-a-city: residential clusters, congregation spaces, kitchens, dining halls, administrative facilities, and a round-the-clock healthcare centre, with a total built-up area of 4.75 lakh sq.ft. Its planning resolves the layered movement of pilgrims, ascetics, international visitors, and resident communities — one of the most complex circulation challenges in contemporary public architecture — while maintaining operational efficiency, public safety, and ease of maintenance across the Mela’s duration.
The architectural language draws from the craft heritage of Gujarat. Handcrafted installations, regional motifs, and temporary façades were realised in collaboration with nearly 150 artisans from across India, grounding a modern logistical enterprise in material tradition. Public spaces host spiritual discourses, Vedic Yagyas, cultural performances, and interfaith gatherings — architecture calibrated for collective participation across social and regional differences.
At its peak, approximately 800 workers occupied the construction site simultaneously. Infrastructure included a full underground water supply and drainage network, 1,000 sanitation units, and dining facilities serving nearly 20,000 meals daily.
The 2025 camp extends Studio Saransh’s sustained inquiry into temporary urbanism and architecture as an instrument of collective, civic service.
