Inside the Finnish Embassy in New Delhi: A landmark of Nordic architecture

“This is without doubt Finland’s finest overseas mission,” says the country’s ambassador to India, Kimmo Lähdevirta, of the building in New Delhi’s Chanakyapuri neighbourhood where he now lives and works. He might be biased but when you learn that Lähdevirta has previously served in New York, London, Beijing, Hanoi and Belgrade, you’ll agree that his opinion carries weight. Chanakyapuri, the Indian capital’s diplomatic zone, is a tree-lined oasis in a clamorous megacity. But even among its tastefully designed mansions, the Finnish embassy stands out as a mission statement for Nordic modernism.

It’s the result of a design competition won by husband and wife duo Raili and Reima Pietilä in 1963. Finally constructed in 1986, the building’s low, white, rippling roof was intended to evoke the snowy peaks of the Himalayas and the icy hills that surround Lake Kitkajärvi in Finland. In the 20 years between its conception and fruition, the original design, which featured one roof, was altered, breaking the single white expanse up into six lateral buildings, evoking the collegial atmosphere of an Indian ashram.

Finnish art and design fill the space, including ceramics by Rut Bryk and a winter landscape painted by Pekka Halonen. There are Indian touches too, such as sliding wooden doors. Home to about 40 staff, it’s now one of Finland’s largest overseas missions – reflecting its increasing importance as India has grown to become the world’s fifth-largest economy.

As well as those seeking visa renewals, there are many visitors who are interested in the building. “For them, it’s an experience,” says Lähdevirta – one that often leads to conversations about Finnish aesthetic experimentation. In this way, the structure is the perfect advertisement for qualities that the nation wants to project abroad.