About CCBA

CCBA Designs (formerly known as Christopher Charles Benninger Architects) is a world-renowned award-winning multi-disciplinary design firm providing comprehensive architecture, urban design and master planning services.

CCBA Designs is mentored by Harvard and MIT educated Master Architect Prof. Christopher Charles Benninger; one of India’s great modernists and the firm stands on the immense body of experience spanning nearly half a century. CCBA has a portfolio ranging from master planning of international cities and new towns to housing developments and complexes, hotels, resorts, educational and institutional campuses, corporate headquarters, healthcare, and books, with projects located pan India and abroad. CCBA is the recipient of over a hundred National, State and International awards and is the only firm to have received 6 Excellence in Architecture awards from the Indian Institute of Architects.

As an intellectual ‘design house’, CCBA operates from its iconic office ‘India House’ in Pune, India and is supported by an extremely talented and experienced team led by its Principal Architect Christopher Benninger, Managing Director Ramprasad Akkisetti, Directors Rahul Sathe and Ar. Daraius Choksi along with long time associates and senior architects Ar. Shivaji Karekar, Ar. Noel Jerald, Ar. Rahul Deshmukh, Ar. Sundar Bommaji and Ar. Mandar Mhaskar.

Apart from just utilitarian goals, we seek to bring out the poetry in the place, the lyricism in the built forms, and the vibrancy in the inhabitants’ lives. We endeavour to create environments, ambiences, and milieus that enrich our clients’ lives and make living a meaningful experience. CCBA is one of the most awarded design firms in India, having brought timeless architecture to the sub-continent over decades. With its unique designs and concepts, a talented team of architects and investments in latest technologies, CCBA is focused on becoming a partner in realizing your vision.

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Prof. Christopher Benninger

M. Arch (Harvard, USA), M. CP (MIT, USA)

Hon. PhD (CEPT University, Ahmedabad)

Prof. Christopher Benninger is an internationally known distinguished architect, planner, teacher and an institution builder. With A Master's in Architecture from Harvard and Masters in City Planning from MIT he's has been associated with CEPT University since 1968. He resigned his tenured professorship from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University to found the School of Planning in 1971 and thereafter he founded the Centre for Development Studies and Activities in Pune in 1976. A recipient of the coveted Great Master Architect Award in India and several other lifetime achievement awards, he has won the Indian Institute of Architects’ National award six times, more than any other architect. Having an expansive practice in both architecture and planning, he is perhaps the only person today with a multi-faceted career spanning over fifty years. His architectural practice has produced hundreds projects located in about cities in India as well as Bhutan, China and Africa. He has designed campuses and buildings for over twenty universities including IIT Hyderabad; IIM Calcutta; Azim Premji University; CEPT University; Bajaj Institute of Technology that focus on sustainability and human scale. He has designed award winning manufacturing plants; a clinic for mentally challenged children; and Suzlon One Earth Corporate office that became globally known for its zero energy consumption being certified as platinum LEED certified as well as Griha five star green certified building. He has worked closely with the Buddhist community designing the Mahavihara in Pune and Nagaloka in Nagpur. He has designed the Supreme court of Bhutan and several ministry buildings along with the Thimphu National Capital region paving a path for the Himalayan kingdom to move from monarch to democracy.He is presently designing the National Parliament complex in Burundi, Central Africa and a Brain Research Centre in Shanghai, besides landmark institutions like the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and 23 Metro stations for metro line 3 in Pune. His work has had an immense impact on affordable housing, leading to the construction of India’s first EWS housing scheme by HUDCO at Jamnagar [1972]; 15,000 Site and Services housing units in Chennai funded by the World Bank [1973-8], and the EWS Yousufguda township for 2,000 families [1976-80]. He wrote the theme paper for the 7th Session of the UNCHS and the ADB’s Board Paper on urban infrastructure investments [1986], bringing ADB funds to cities for the first time. He has acted as a planner in India, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, Kenya and Zambia for the World Bank, UNCHS, UNFAO, UNICEF and ADB. His books, ‘Letters to A Young Architect’ has been reprinted 6 editions and was in the top 10 non fiction books by the Hindu newspaper, perhap the only architecture book to be inthe list till date. This book has been translated into Gujarati, Bangla in Dhaka and into Chinese. A monograph ‘Christopher Benninger: Architecture for a Modern India’ has been published by Skira in Italy and Rizzoli in USA in 2016. He authored the chapter on built heritage in ‘Connecting Through Culture’ published for the Ministry of External Affairs and many chapters in books both in India and outside along with over a hundred articles.