The Architecture of Place: In Conversation with Manvendra Singh Shekhawat

The Architecture of Place: In Conversation with... is series of interviews between design practitioners, scholars, and educators. The latest iteration of the series, from December 2025, features conversations with three designers and place-makers from different backgrounds and points of view: Manvendra Singh Shekhawat, Felicity Cain, and Soraya Hosni.

In this three-part series, each speaker alternately serves as interviewer and interviewee, discussing the influences, experiences, and projects that have shaped their approach to the architecture of place.

The Architecture of Place series is a collaboration between the ICAA, INTBAU, and The King's Foundation.

In this installment of the winter 2025-2026 Architecture of Place series, Soraya Hosni will interview Manvendra Singh Shekhawat.

Manvendra is a systems thinker and regenerative developer reimagining growth at the intersection of culture, ecology, and economy. He leads Dhun, a 500-acre regenerative town project in Jaipur; the Suryagarh Collection, which transforms historic forts into boutique hotels and cultural districts; and The I Love Foundation, dedicated to strengthening civic capacity and cultural preservation.

His work fuses ancestral knowledge with modern tools to prototype scalable models of regenerative development for the Global South. Recognized by The King’s Foundation (HM King Charles III) and the Qatar Foundation, he is a fellow of the Aspen Institute, the Unreasonable Group, Summit Impact, INK and the Frontier Technology Laboratory at the University of Cambridge. Manvendra also writes poetry, makes short films, and explores how imagination can transform scarcity into abundance.

Presented as part of The Richard H. Driehaus Curricula for the Built Environment at the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art. The ICAA is very grateful to The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation for its generous support of this program.

Tags: architecture of place, recorded event, architecture of place in conversation with, world of classicism, sustainability