The Zebun Nessa Mosque in Gazirchat, Ashulia, Bangladesh, designed by Saiqa Iqbal Meghna of Dhaka-based Studio Morphogenesis, is a monolithic structure that abstractly emulates the core principle of monotheism that Islam is pivoted upon. Its unencumbered monolithic mass, characterised by the usage of a mono-material and monohue, casts a spiritually emblematic presence in the city of Gazirchat (located on the outskirts of Dhaka city), otherwise festooned with mid-rise buildings and industrial structures in disparate colours and styles. Its shallow thin shell dome, which levitates over the perforated curved walls of the mosque, unsupported, further elevates the singular unbridled expanse of the interior prayer hall. Elevated on a high plinth and washed in a permanent pink hue, the Zebun Nessa Mosque stands out within the city despite its low height.

The mosque’s location at the brink of the Lake of Dorga and amid a fast-growing industrial area helps create a spiritual space within the compound whilst also serving as a breathing space for the employees and residents in the area. This morphology and the ascription of the mosque as a spiritual and social compound built to enhance mutual care and trust between the owner and workers as well as amongst the workers sits in line with the client’s desire to commemorate the memory of his late mother by infusing the harsh industrial area with a slight softness. The client, also the owner of the industries in the vicinity, further honoured his mother’s memory by naming the Zebun Nessa Mosque after her.

Keeping in line with the client’s desire and Meghna’s vision of a breathing pavilion, the mosque design includes elements that permit the inward flow of natural light and facilitate easy ventilation. For instance, the walls of the structure are perforated with small rectangular niches that permit the infusion of diffused light and air within the space. Since the mosque is located in a hot and humid region, the architect designed the space in a manner such that it can remain naturally ventilated, without the usage of artificial air conditioning. The structure is designed in a manner such that air, passing over the vicinal water body and the constructed water pool within the mosque compound, can flow through the several openings and jaalis and into the interior prayer hall and further over the outdoor elevated plinth surface, as a cool breeze. Even the doors and other fenestrations in the mosque are made using perforated metal sheets to ensure the filtered flow of wind during heavy monsoons. “All these features establish the very idea of a ‘breathing pavilion’, a deeply rooted architectural form of this tropical climate,” the architecture studio exerts.

Additionally, the mass of the mosque, circular in shape when viewed from above, is enclosed within a sinuous square shell, such that it consequently creates four enclosed offcuts that function as gardens and serve as light courts for the indoor spaces. The bents and curves integrated onto the east and west faces of the outer square volume are designed in response to the shape of the site. Utilising these curves, the Bangladesh architecture practice placed the entrance to the mosque on the northeast hanging corner of the curved wall. This end also faces the existing node of the two main internal roads of the industrial compound.

As for the qibla facing wall within the mosque, it is defined via a wide arched opening on the western wall, as opposed to the conventional mihrab niches within the mosque architecture that situates the direction of prayer. In the Zebun Nessa Mosque, this mihrab is instead a translucent glass panel—hand-crafted using locally sourced glass pieces—installed on the shallow water body configured within the mosque. “A reflective waterbody connects the turquoise mosaiced interior through the arched opening to the existing pond, allowing the prayer space to flow seamlessly towards a light-filled infinity,” reads an excerpt from the press release.

Within the south-eastern courtyard of the mosque stands a perforated metal staircase that leads to the crescent-shaped upper floor, planned for the female workers of the industrial complex. This space serves as both the praying quarter and a meeting space for women. A Chhatim tree is planted near the staircase to make the space fragrant. The ablution area, partially covered, is designed by Studio Morphogenesis to induce a sense of spirituality during the act of cleaning and purifying oneself for prayers. Demarcated by turquoise flooring which represents tranquillity, the water from the ablution area is oriented towards the garden, creating a replenishable closed-loop cycle with no wastage.

The thick pigmented concrete walls of the mosque are double layered, hence creating a microclimate within the space that ensures thermal comfort. Sourced locally, the usage of concrete in this humid region ensures the eschewal of dampness within the structure, hence ensuring longevity. The rusted pink hue, with its warm tonality, sits in contrast against the cooler turquoise-hued mosaic floor. “The outside broken brick mosaic work is an innovative take on the age-old terrazzo and mosaic flooring where broken brick pieces are used instead of marble pieces,” the architect shares. Another aspect of the mosque design that bears inspiration from archaic practices is the situation of the mosque on a high plinth, which is reminiscent of the vernacular house forms built on bhiti or mounds in the deltaic landform of Bangladesh.

The aforementioned combination of broken bricks and traditional terrazzo used on the floor surfaces of the exterior portions of the structure, helps add friction and makes it safe and easy to move across the expanse of the mosque. This usage of a variety of local materials in an innovative manner, within the mosque, encourages local craftsmanship as opposed to utilising ready-to-use building materials. In addition to the locally sourced terrazzo, bricks and perforated as-cast pigmented concrete surfaces, nearly 40 per cent of the shuttering material used during the construction of the mosque was acquired from the old shuttering material used in the adjacent washing hub building. 

The concrete architecture of Zebun Nessa Mosque is not only a visual and experiential treat for both visitors and far-off viewers alike but also an excellent example of conscientious design practices. From the usage of a thin shell dome that is cost-effective, an excellent and efficient means to cover large spans and a way to optimise material usage, to the innovative configuration of the mosaic floors and the integration of water bodies and jaalis to regulate the microclimate, the makers have utilised local knowledge and skills as well as wracked their minds for novel ways of integrating the structure with facilities and aesthetics that are both aesthetically pleasing and helpful in allaying the impact of the climate in the region.

Project Details

Name: Zebun Nessa Mosque
Location: Ashulia, Bangladesh
Area: 6060 square feet.
Year of completion: 2023
Architecture Consultant Office Name: Studio Morphogenesis Ltd.
Lead Architect: Saiqa Iqbal Meghna
Design team: Suvro Sovon Chowdhury, Muntasir Hakim, Shahla Karim Kabir, Minhaz Bin Gaffar
Structural Consultant: TDM
Construction: IDS Address Maker
Metal Stair Structural Consultant: Faysal Anwar
Electrical Consultant: Eyashin Ahamad
Plumbing Consultant: Md. Shafiqul Bari, Shah Newaz Kabir
Glass Mihrab: Collaboration with Artist Wakilur Rahman
Client: Idris Shakur