After the pandemic, returning to work is no less than a miracle for most of us. But Microsoft has stepped up the game with their new Taj Mahal themed office located in New Delhi. Spread across the top three floors of a six-story building in Noida, a satellite town of India’s capital New Delhi, this is the newest Microsoft India Development Center (IDC).
This space is set apart from regular corporate workspaces by its historical context. Bathed in ivory white and punctuated with jaali work, arches, and domed ceilings, the IDC Noida campus’ architectural reference points, inspired by one of the world’s biggest architectural wonders, the Taj Mahal, are hard to miss.
The first IDC campus opened in Hyderabad in 1998, followed by another in Bengaluru. The Noida story is set to start a significant chapter in IDC’s vision. The workspace will see engineering talent in the areas of business and productivity tools, artificial intelligence, cloud and enterprise, core services, and the new gaming division coexist.
The Taj Mahal’s marble domes, minarets, arched entrances, jaali work, and even a visual reference to the Char Bagh Gardens, are translated seamlessly in this Noida space. In the core area of the office space, archways and marble cladding create a very sublime effect, while lattice perforations of the jaali screens — in marble or modified for the ceilings — render the space’s texture and depth. The subtle domes, at the same time, add volume. They drew heavily from the Taj Mahal’s aesthetic materials including white marble sourced from Jaipur, along with inlay work with semi-precious stones.
One of the crucial processes in the creation of space was sustainability. The base building is LEED platinum rated, which means it caters to the highest sustainability standards of construction and operation. The campus also includes recycled products and locally sourced materials including the marble, plus energy-saving light and water installations.
So, on one hand, the space is a visual ode to a bygone era. Yet it’s also a modern-day workplace like no other. The architects interpreted the Mughal architecture’s symmetrical and decorative aspects into a functional unit.
Project: Mircosoft
Location: Noida
Size : 90,000 square feet
Built: Anj
Architect: RSP Design Consultants
