- Can you give us a brief insight into your design journey?
Architecture is a profession which is sustained not just by design skills; It actually takes a huge group of people to make every space come together, which requires a lot of project management, team work and coordination. Even after 15 years of practice, being a female architect you still encounter the initial barriers with site supervisors & people working on site. It takes a little while for people on site to gain confidence on my skills and experience to take technical instructions. It has been imperative for me to be assertive, place my opinion with clarity and reason in order to establish a sense of authority. I guess the women in the field have to work a little bit harder to get to that same point, but we all knew it’s not going to be easy. As famously quoted by Zaha Hadid –“If you want an easy life, don’t be an architect”.
- How did you get your first projects?
I started off back in 2005 with renovating a small Garment store in Meerut, to be executed at a fast pace. At the same time I bagged my second project which was a branch of Kids wear store at the lower floor in the same building. Later in the same year I got my first break when the owner of the store approached us to build his residence. The journey that began with a small retail project transformed into large houses. A lot of it was because of our strong work ethics and a personal relation that we develop with our clients.
- From design school to a full-fledged professional, what were your high points and low points in this field? Any one turning point in your career that you wish to highlight?
As a young practice we did not have a large body of work to show. When we proposed something new, people questioned us. If it is possible to achieve, will it be worth the expenditure or have we done it before. Moreover, it was difficult to engineer a product. It was always challenging to optimise it with the consultant, find the right contractor, who can ensure the quality of the product and convince the client that this is the right solution. That conviction of achieving the right solution despite the hurdles to achieve it, has today, enabled us to create a large portfolio of work. With multiple trials and errors, we have created a large network of consultants and contractors who have made it easier to achieve non – pretested solutions.
As younger architects, we engaged a lot in the wimps of the clients. We took every feedback seriously to give them what they want, despite it being the right solution. Over the years we learned, that the clients themselves might not have clarity as to what they want. Now, rather than submitting to the client’s wimp we identify a right solution and convince them.
Engineering a product with multiple execution agency was challenging. For instance, Putting together façade, with sharp cutting edge designs, high quality finish, structure stability and sleekness, was a huge challenge. Engineering the edges, the process of installation at the same time maintenance and smooth finishing of all components was quite challenging. Over time, we have developed processes to proceed with work stage wise and safe guard our clients in case of damage.
We continue to face challenges in exploring new materials palate. These limitations can be due to budget, availability in India, technology and systems. The constant fear of lack of performance, durability and cost constrains have made exploring new materials a little challenging. Clients want tried and tested solutions for their projects. Therefore, it still limits our experiments to smaller areas and we do not end up discovering the full potential of a newly launched product.
Back in 2012 when we had our first kid, Motherhood challenged my professional journey. It becomes a juggling act-work commitment and family responsibilities. Initially it was quite taxing to achieve the right balance between working hours while raising new borns. He came up with the idea of having a kid’s nursery in our office. So instead of stepping back in my career, he helped me balance both together. Having my kids around in office, actually made me concentrate better at work. I was stress-free and knew I could monitor them anytime.
- What is the one mistake in your career that you’d like to go back and change if you could?
My professional journey has always been a learning. You make mistakes, you discover new aspects and you learn. That is what builds you. I think every mistake made is a lesson learn. So there is nothing I would want to go back and change. - The industry is still largely male-dominated – why do you think that is?
Architecture as a fraternity is driven by sites and instructing a large bunch of people. The authoritative attitude of men, make them more preferred on-site. It is assumed that the sensitive nature of women hinder them from making on-the-spot decisions. And the architecture industry demands quick confrontation. - With changing times, what would be your advice to upcoming architects on how to navigate the architecture world?
My advice to young profession women is not to be reserved rather experimental. Be bold in choice of work. Moreover, they should invest their formative years in gathering as much knowledge in terms of technical details, execution strategies and management strategies. They must work tirelessly to create a strong ground work for their professional journey ahead.