Khazana- or treasure, in English is used by us to describe a concept of human potential which manifests in cultural, social and intellectual values. We have rehabilitated an ages old landhi traditional building in Khairpur, Sindh, and transformed it into a treasure house of imagination, learning and enterprise.

The landhi itself has a very interesting history. Built around 180 years ago, it was once used as a rest house by the Talpur royal family whenever they visited the city from their nearby castle of ‘Kot-Deji’ Earlier, a swimming pool, a bazaar and a park were built here but after the construction of the Faiz Mahal as their residential place, it was used for storage only.

The building was handed over to us by Prince Mir Mehdi Reza Khan Talpur (son of former ruler of Khairpur State) as a gift. It is a place where children come to read, learn and play, adults come to meet, talk and feast on traditional food, and many come to buy a diverse range of household and gift items, including local handicrafts. The mission of Khazana is to propagate all forms of knowledge and facilitate access to progressive ideas. It aims to stimulate the innate creativity of ordinary citizens and build an atmosphere conducive to learning and interacting in a community.

It is L shaped and semi-circles around the old building, drawing attention to its historical value. It is smaller in height and carries a simple expression, with the intention of visually signifying the older structure and respecting the 180-year-old work’s dominance. Except for a similar color-tone, there is no imitation of the older building in the new. Both buildings carry their own separate identities and the new one can be considered a passage to experience the old.The beginning of the L shape new building is from a hall constructed behind the rear end of Landhi. This space is used as a bazaar.

A fiberglass sheet has been placed on the new building’s roof connecting it with the old. It is shaped as a slope to drain rainwater and it brightens the new hall with sunlight during the day. 

Since the ceiling of this hall was not as high as the old building, it exposed large girders and the supporting beams of the old building. A prefabricated construction process was used to revitalize this place. They now not only serve as mobile spotlights to illuminate specific sections of the cultural center but also as changeable murals on the ceiling.

This cultural outlet room leads to a hallway with an office, a storeroom, toilets and a kitchen. This hallway leads to the end of the L shape, where the dining room is located.

In front of the food court building, a rectangular modern arch of reinforced concrete has been created. Its lower half is a bench for visitors to Khazana and when there’s a lack of space due to crowding in the food court, people can enjoy their meals and the weather there.