VR Chennai

How do you carry the treasures of the past & hand them down to the present and the future in a manner that they inherit it gladly?

VR Chennai, a curator of engaging platforms for immersive experiences, promoting locally relevant programmes related to retail, food, music, art and entertainment, is one of Virtuous Retail Group's flagship centers. IdeaSpice worked as consultants to deliver a comprehensive wayfinding and place-making program across their centres. The project allowed the team to craft a unique experience across their centre and also paved the way for future centre developments.

LOCATION

Chennai, “First city of modern India” is the biggest industrial and commercial center in South India, and a major cultural, economic and educational centre.

VR Chennai is strategically positioned in Anna Nagar which is part of the prime growth corridor of the city. The primary catchment area comprises the upscale residential neighbourhoods of Kilpauk, Mogappair and Nungambakkam.

One can find a unique blend of culture from traditional foods to fast foods, from ancient temple architecture to modern high-rises and from classical music and dance to the growing nightlife in the city.

THE APPROACH

The idea of the old and new living together in harmony (and sometimes in conflict) was the core focus.

A 2000 year old dance tradition exists in the form of schools, festivals and performances at the same time as manufacturing for some of the most sophisticated machines ever made.

The VR Chennai brand is built around this central premise – the co-existence of TRADITIONAL AND CONTEMPORARY that creates something new.

This was visible across the center, right from the architecture to the culture and behaviour of the visitors in it. Derived from the idea that the temple complex was also traditionally the cultural and civic centre of a city, VR Chennai is envisioned as the civic locus of today’s Chennai.

Sections

The project was divided into placemaking and wayfinding, with sub categories under each.

Signage and Wayfinding branched into multiple subcategories including Internal Signs, External Signs, Facade Signs, Branding, Mandatory Signs, Destination Signs, Informative Signs (Alongside the installations) to list a few.

Placemaking split into three main sections:
The Dashavatar
The VR destinations
The VR installations

As with all VR projects – the starting point of the project becomes the social and cultural map of the city that identifies and defines the language.

The centre mapping for VRC covered not just the various destinations but also a central theme of the Dashavataars of Vishnu that was spread across the entire centre.

DESIGN DETAILS

GRAPHIC LANGUAGE

SIGNAGE

The external signs use the madras checks and the internal ones use the mandala patterns. The center was split into three parts, with different colours helping you to locate which section you’re in. Graphic plans and 3D representations of the center were developed so customers could better orient themselves when looking at the signs.

DASHAVATAR

The Dashavataarams (ten avatars) of Lord Vishnu was one of the central narratives running through the space. The representations were in multiple media and scattered across the centre encouraging the audience to explore the space in the form of a guided tour.

Each avatar was placed at a point that was relevant to the story behind it
1. Matsya (the fish) is laser cut fish placed in a waterbody
2. Kurma (the turtle) depicted in the samuthramanthan at an entrance
3. Varaha (the boar) is part of a fountain on the facade of the building
4. Narasimah (part lion part human) is a mural at a doorway as per the tale
5. Vamana (dwarf) as a mural on the facade
6. Parshurama (human male) as a mural throwing his axe, which is a 3D sculpture lying a few feet away
7. Rama (human male) represented by the door of the Ramaswami temple
8. Krishna (human male) represented by his poems carved on an entrance
9 Buddha (human male) as a sculpture in the Madras House Lobby
1o. Kalki (form yet to be revealed) as a sculpture on the facade

INSTALLATIONS

NANDI

This replica of the Nandi Bull statue at Shiva Temple of Gangaikonda Cholapuram weighs about 350kg.
Considered to be the guardian of VR Chennai's entire premise, this statue is made entirely by local artisans.

THE TIMELINE

The timeline was developed after sifting through centuries of the cities history. It features illustrations of the defining moments and monuments that have shaped Chennai to be the city that we know today, along with a key to decipher everything.

THE DIYA PORTAL

A nod to the culture of the region, the portal is inspired by the walls of temples in Southern India, that have rows and rows of diyas lighting them up.

THE DOORS

Each of the main entrances to the center had traditional wooden doors. Once very popular feature, they are now scarcely found at temples and a few heritage sites.

The bells that tinkle with the breeze make these doors more than just visual treats!

THE BELLS

Different bells adorn the entrances, each of them has a unique story. The terracotta bells symbolise the significance of the material in the region, and the large brass bell at the East Entrance shows all the dashavatar

DESTINATIONS

CONCIERGE DESK

A concierge desk was created as a standard to be followed across future VR Centres

FOODBOX

The foodbox logo was modified to add more non-vegetarian elements to it, making it more representative of the food eaten in Chennai. A 3D version was placed on site

THE ENTRANCES

The entrances represent the Pallava, Pandya, Chola and Chera dynasties that once ruled over Southern India.
Their researched history and way of life is depicted in the form of a mural, and the coins used by various other dynasties are shown here too.

MINI GOPURAMS

Maps of dynasties that governed Southern India over periods in history are shown here.
They range from the Pandyas and Pallavas to the British empire.

CHENN<3I

Following the declaration of love in every VR center so far, VR Chennai isn’t one to be left behind!

ROLE + COMPETENCIES

RESEARCH • NARRATIVE DEVELOPMENT • STAKEHOLDER PRESENTATIONS • SPATIAL + SIGNAGE DESIGN • EXPERIENCE DESIGN • WAYFINDING • INSTALLATION DESIGN

The work created for this project was by a team of multi-disciplinary design specialists at Idea Spice with each person of the team contributing their expertise and skill set to develop the complete project.

Design conceptualisation is done by the Virtuous Retail team