Claim your place as India's

NXT Wave of Young Architecture Visionaries

₹10,50,000

award pool

Eligibility:

B.Arch Graduates from 2021 to 2026

Submit by 15th January, 2027

Accepting academic, built & unbuilt work

Start your Entry arrow_forward

Stop drawing others' dreams.
Start winning your own.

We Know Your Pain

Established firms have their awards galore. Architects in their 40s have their "Emerging" awards. But, early-career architects? Mostly invisible.

You're doing the work that wins projects. Yet, your name is nowhere on the awards.

What NXT 100 Really Is

NXT 100 is India's first curated list for early-career architects (graduates from 2026 to 2021). By recognising winners across 50 zones nationwide, the awards ensure that design talent is celebrated from every corner of India.

You don't need:

closea famous firm, or

closea built project, or

closea polished career narrative.

check

You need one strong idea, designed well.

If you believe your work deserves to be seen, this is for you. Why wait till 40s to be recognised?

How recognition will actually work

Get your first professional award

Previous national awardees are from 23 different states and UTs.

12 Design Categories

50 Zones

1800 Zonal Awards

600 Zonal Winners

100 NXT Laureates

12 National Winners

Get your first professional award.

Previous national awardees are from
23 different states and UTs.

No new drawings.
No portfolio redesign.
No late nights.

Zero friction submission. Pick your category.
Submit your existing design.

Winner's Kit

Entries will be accepted in 12 design categories from each of the 50 zones across India. Each zone will have 36 awardees including 12 category winners.

From the 600 zonal category winners, 100 architects will be inducted as NXT 100 Laureates.

36 national category awardees to receive ₹10,50,000 cash pool. Out of them, 12 national category winners to get the iconic "Twist" Trophy.

Curated as "NXT 100 Laureate" expand_more

100 early-career architects: Lifetime credential

36 National Category Awardees expand_more

₹10,50,000 cash pool and "Twist" Trophy

1800 NXT Awardees expand_more

Zonal winners & runners-up across 12 categories

Press-ready Kit expand_more

Personalised kit for Instagram, Linkedin, etc.

What NXT 100 Unlocks

Recognition doesn't replace experience, but it is a leverage tool for better opportunities. You get early legitimacy.

Firms will value you more expand_more

Strengthens case for better pay & better roles

Clients will trust you sooner expand_more

Credibility with clients for solo run

Curated as "NXT 100 Laureate"

From the zonal category winners, 100 architects will be inducted as NXT 100 Laureate - a national list of early-career architects to watch. This is a lifetime credential you can carry across jobs, studios, and solo practice.

36 National Category Awardees + Prize

National Winner of each category will receive the iconic “Twist” Trophy and ₹50,000 cash prize. First runner-ups to get ₹25,000 cash prize. Second runner-ups to get ₹12,500 cash prize.

1800 NXT Awardees

Across the 50 zones, 1800 architects (winners and runner-ups) will receive zonal recognition, helping you build visibility and credibility within your city and region.

Press-ready Kit

Every recognised architect will receive a custom digital press kit, ready to be shared on LinkedIn, Instagram, portfolios, websites and client pitches. No extra work for you.

Winner's Kit

Entries will be accepted in 12 design categories from each of the 50 zones across India. Each zone will have 36 awardees including 12 category winners.

From the 600 zonal category winners, 100 architects will be inducted as NXT 100 Laureates.

36 national category awardees to receive ₹10,50,000 cash pool. Out of them, 12 national category winners to get the iconic "Twist" Trophy.

The NXT 100 Effect

Recognition doesn't replace experience, but it is a leverage tool for better opportunities. You get early legitimacy.

trending_up

Firms will value you more

Use your NXT 100 title to be promoted to higher salary brackets and leapfrog into lead design roles.

business_center

Clients will trust you sooner

Use your NXT 100 rank to win independent clients and build a reputation before you hit 30s.

Stop being a name on a payroll. Become a name in the industry.

Recognition changes how people introduce you.

Curation Team

expand_more

Curation Team

Some of the sharpest minds in design. Stay tuned.

Find your Category & Award Zone

expand_more

Find your Category & Zone

12 Categories

Entries will be accepted across 12 design categories from each of the 50 zones across India. Select the categories where your design will shine the best.

Designs for commerce, selling, browsing, work, and business operations.

Examples: shopping malls, department stores, markets, retail stores, showrooms, offices, corporate HQs, co-working spaces, call centres, business parks, factories, etc.

Designs for belief, rituals, remembrance, culture, display, and live experience.

Examples: religious buildings, pilgrimage complexes, memorials, cemeteries, museums, galleries, pavilions, libraries, cinemas, theatres, concert halls, performance spaces, etc.

Designs for learning, research, and skill development at all levels.

Examples: nurseries, primary schools, secondary schools, special needs schools, universities, colleges, research facilities, training centres, campuses, vocational institutes, etc.

Designs for treatment, care, and recovery.

Examples: hospitals, clinics, dental centres, nursing homes, medical facilities, etc.

Designs for stay, leisure, and escape.

Examples: hotels, resorts, restaurants, bars, spas, wellness centres, tourism centres, nightclubs, etc.

Designs for luxury, collective, social, or affordable mass housing, across low and high density.

Examples: apartment towers, housing complexes, mixed housing developments, plotted development, social housing, low-cost housing, cooperative housing, slum redevelopment, etc.

Interior designs for selling, work, collaboration, business, and experience.

Examples: retail interiors, showrooms, mall interiors, exhibition spaces, restaurants, hotels, office interiors, studios, meeting spaces, co-working spaces, etc.

Interior designs for living.

Examples: home interiors, apartments, villas, lofts, etc.

Designs that combine multiple functional programmes.

Examples: community centres, neighbourhood hubs, activity centres, rural hubs, tech parks, warehouses, logistics hubs, recycling centres, power stations, developments combining retail, offices, hotels, transit hubs, and public spaces, city centres, transport interchanges, etc.

Designs for governance, civic life, sport, and recreation, i.e., buildings built for everyone.

Examples: courts, town halls, parliament buildings, embassies, police stations, fire stations, libraries, community buildings, social centres, welfare buildings, cultural centres, stadiums, sports halls, gyms, swimming pools, recreation centres, theme parks, etc.

Open, shared spaces experienced by everyone, including urban design at all scales - spaces that shape environments.

Examples: parks, plazas, streetscapes, waterfronts, public realms, masterplans, neighbourhood plans, urban regeneration projects, etc.

Designs of single-unit dwellings and builder floor houses.

Examples: houses, villas (urban, rural, coastal), bungalows, builder floor houses upto 5 floors, etc.

50 Award Zones

We have divided the search for NXT 100 into 50 zones across India to ensure that local brilliance isn't overshadowed by national volume. The division of zones is guided by the density of young architects. Each zone will have winners in every design category.

Submit your design based on your current location, COA registered location, or the location of the project. Zonal information will be collected at the time of entry submission.

Claim your place in India's
NXT Wave of Young Architecture Visionaries.

No new drawings.
No portfolio redesign.
No late nights.

Zero friction submission. Pick your category. Submit your existing design.

Entry Format

No new drawings. No reformatting marathons. Use what you already have. Zero extra work.

We've designed the submission to be fast and light. You'll need:

Up to 3 sheets (max) - 1920 × 1080 px each,
1 cover image - 1080 x 1350 px, and
Design summary - Max 250 words.

Upload your entry via the Submit page from 1st December, 2026.

How We Will Curate

Pure ideas. Zero seniority bias.
A 2026 graduate competes on same footing with a 2021 graduate.

You can submit your academic design, unbuilt work, as well as built work. At NXT 100, we're interested in how you think, not how established you are.

We care about:

check Concept Clarity

check Design Quality & Efficiency

check Context Response

check Design Representation

We don't care about:

close Your Institution

close Your Firm

close Project's Built Status

close Your Experience

Take advantage of early access. We will send you reminder 2 weeks before the submission deadline.

Timeline & Entry Fee

Standard Access ends 30th Nov ₹1,799 ~~₹2,999~~ for an entry till 30th November 2026

Late Access ends 31st Dec ₹2,999 for an entry till 31st December 2026

Submission Deadline on 15th Jan 2027 23:59 hours of 15th January 2027

Additional entries come at a reduced fee of ₹499. For details, kindly go to FAQ page. Results will be declared on 31st January 2027.

Don't wait years to be "Emerging".

Be the NXT Wave today.

₹10,50,000 prize pool

100 Laureates. 1800 Awards.

12 Categories. 50 Zones.

Don't wait years to be "Emerging".
Be the NXT Wave Today.

Start your Entry arrow_forward