Meet 7 Iconic Women Architects of Modern India & their Most Impactful Work

By: WE staff

Abha Narain Lambah - Abha Narain Lambah Associates

Born in 1970, Abha Narain Lambah is the principal at Abha Narain Lambah Associates. She is India's most experienced conservation architect, known for her sensitive engagement with heritage buildings, cultural icons, and historic neighborhoods.

Abha has over thirty years of experience and is the leader of the architectural heritage revival in India. Abha Narain Lambah Associates focuses on history and culture, involving adaptive reuse and urban renewal.

Impactful Work

Restoring Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in Mumbai—a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of India's most complex Gothic Revival buildings—was one of her most prestigious projects.

Another landmark project of Abha’s is the Royal Opera House, Mumbai, a theatre in the Edwardian Baroque style in a state of severe disrepair. Lambah closely oversaw the eight-year restoration project to bring the theatre back to its former glory.

She modernized the facilities for a contemporary performing arts program, which won her the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation.

From the Kenilworth Palace in Kolkata to the Ajanta Caves Visitor Centre in Maharashtra, Abha’s projects fit spatially at multiple scales. Her other projects include projects such as restoration of the 19th century Byculla Zoo Clock Tower, Flora Fountain, and multiple municipal buildings from the Colonial-era in Mumbai.