My beautiful Office

My beautiful Office

The last time I started with a title like that would have been in 2^nd grade or thereabouts writing about ‘My Beautiful Family’ or ‘My Beautiful Home’ or something in those lines. 

I am sure I meant every line I wrote then and maybe it’s the title but I know the feeling will be the same even if it sounds narcissistic now.

Sandarbh is now truly what it means – in more ways than one in fact. The architecture and art is very context driven. And now the entire team is perfectly in context and beautifully so. Each one has his strengths and challenges. Each one is unique and has unique ways or approaching a design problem. Each one has their design quirks – everything from having all the wood grains in a piece of furniture to be aligned perfectly right to not having any hidden lines in the Sketchup model they are working on!

And each one is beautiful. We can be dead serious with dealines hounding us to partying every night for 4 nights in a row (it’s a big deal when you are working architects!). From being shouted at, to laughing at the silliest things in the loudest possible way. We celebrate everything with gusto be it birthdays or holi or interns leaving, salary hikes, new projects to the fact that it is a happy happy day and we are all happy J

It truly is a beautiful office and feeling.

A little of that will be changing. Five of our interns who have been with us through 2 semesters of theirs and one of our architects are bidding us farewell today.

Afreen, The workers will be breathing a sigh of relief today and hoping that the next person handling them will not be as tough a cookie as you! We are lamenting on where we will possibly find someone as gorgeous to be as effective! Who will organize all our outings and parties now?!!

Kiri, I still remember you starting off the internship saying that ‘elevations’ are your strength. That all your friends come to you to help them resolve elevations for all their buildings! We didn’t use your ‘strength’ (sorry, I am glad we didn’t!!) but you have uncovered other, better strengths of yours here and made every house we have under construction and complete look fantastic through the awesome angles you look at them through! Keep photographing away, keep dancing away, keep everyone happy the way you do and stay as awesome always!

Shaz, The charm! I would have fallen for it if it wasn’t for the ‘dengue’ episode!! You are one of the few architects I know who can be at site from morning to night and want more!! The only intern to get a bonus and blow it up before we could ask for a treat and get away with it! The charm I tell you – from aunties to their daughters and all of us at Sandarbh ;-)

Kavi, flutter away! The quiet little caterpillar has truly blossomed into the most amazing butterfly! From being the last to speak to keeping us in splits by ‘reaching for the popcorn’ on group chats, I am only sad that you havnt introduced us to your ‘cough syrup’ till now! Who will we now turn to churn out working drawings after working drawings?!!

Sid, What can I say?!! Who will I pick on now?!! Noone can say the things you do! I mean, tell me not to miss the lights of the boats out at sea at the Varkala Cliff?!! Who in their right minds will miss that?!! Though Banarahalli will miss you much, I am glad you took a stand. Who would have done such a good job designing Rajkumar’s otherwise?!! Oh and, sooooo glad you shaved off the beard and got a decent haircut! We will now recognize you next time we meet you some where on the roads!!

Akanksha, Such a quiet hard worker on all working days and such a transformation when we go out!! Powerhouse you are!! We will miss the quiet strength and the sweetest smiles, mostly the awesome laughs! Keep designing away and stunning us as you do J

Shine on people and keep coming back whenever you can! You know we love you, will miss you and will always have a special place for you in our hearts …. Even you Sid J

Farewell

An early blog today. (SURPRISE!!!)

It’s the last day of our beloved old interns. I don’t trust myself to blog later (will be overwhelmed by emotion and all) so finishing this off before we bid farewell to some of the interns the way only Sandarbh can!

It’s been short and sweet but the past 3 months have been so full of you all! From working and brain-storming together to partying and creating havoc together!
Can’t imagine how it would have been without the 5 of you!

This is the time where I will say “Best of Luck” as we part ways and veer off into parallel unknowns.
“Keep in touch” is something else I will say. Because even though the future is unknown I want you all to be a part of it with me, with us.
No matter how far you go or how long it had been since we talked, remember your beginning. And don’t be a stranger.

It’s a perfect world so goodbyes are a thing and that should be the perfect reason to keep in touch and try to catch up whenever we can.

Farewell Afreen, we know you will never lose your fighting spirit. Never do.

Farewell Kavi, be as sweet as you are ... always.

Farewell Kiri, dance to your dreams with all the spunk you have!

Farewell Sid, we finally know what you look like! Keep it this way!

Farewell Shaz, Be the drama queen, the king of funtimes and as ambitious as ever (in all things :P)

Having said all that, you all will be missed! Thank you for adding so much to Sandarbh!

Best luck and lots of love!

Suhana Safar

 “You never really know somebody until you’ve spent hours in the car with them,” says Rachel DeAlto, a New York-based relationship and communication coach. Though this advice was originally given for those romantically involved, I believe this could be used in a plutonic sense as well.

Sai, Leena, Ritika and I went to four sites today. And though once in site we were working professionally. The real fun took place off site.

One of the greatest way to bond, I believe, would be to go for a long drive. Lucky for us in Bengaluru, by default every drive is a long drive. I don’t know what it is, maybe the fear of long awkward silence or the agonizing traffic that motivates us for such stimulating conversations. But I always end up with a better sense of the person I was in the car with.

Like in the beginning, Sai updated me on the latest political affairs, along with few hilarious Rahul Gandhi jokes (TBH everything that comes out of his mouth is a joke now days). Of-course Leena and Ritika got bored out of their minds and the beginning of the safar was more like suffer for them.

But then I think they caught up in the conversation once we started talking about Bellandur lake catching fire every now and then, (wait what!???!).

Half way through a day, and after a dreadfully long client meeting, somehow we ended up with the topic of marriage. Apparently Ritika fancied one of our projects so much that she would either marry or kill the client! Just to live in the house. Which once again proves, love and insanity can often be found in the same place.

We stopped for lunch at Bewskey, which apart from their interesting ambiance and a koi fish pond serve a mean whiskey cocktail called Matka Magic.

The whole day was like a trip, we would skip from site to site all huddled in a car, telling each other tall tales, one including what a psycho one of my flatmate is.

In the end of the day, when we were going back, this one guy cut Leena ahead. She was taking none of it and things became really furious really fast. However once we did catch up with this dude, he totally freaked and apologized immediately from his car. The whole thing was a cherry on the top of our safar as we laughed all the way back to office not because

I know this blog had nothing to do with architecture (much like most of the things I write). But it was a sneak peek into the lives of a Sandarbh Architect. And I know, I know, I am not an architect (yet). But in office I am a professional.

From the heart

Confession Time!

I joined Sandarbh with a yes sir attitude. When I say yes sir I don’t mean a bootlicker, I mean I would not say no to any kind of work. And believe me, it got me into a lot of trouble.

It was my personal belief, by saying no you will be limiting yourself from opportunities. And what idiot does that? Is what I thought.

Then I found out that the only thing worse than a person who says no is the one who says yes and doesn’t deliver. And as I constantly failed to deliver.  I learned pretty quickly (if you say one-fourth of my internship is pretty quickly) this new amazing word, NO. 

The advantage of working in a team is you don’t have to do everything. You work on your strengths and trust the others will work on theirs. That way symbiotically, your team will get amazing results, (As I mentioned earlier in my blog Lone Genius vs. Teamwork).

Life doesn’t need to be hard. You can either live like a miserable old downer, struggling to get what you aim for but settle for much less. 

Or! You chose to be happy. Do things that you find fun, something you are pretty good at and never settle.

The choice is yours!!

BTW. I am not in any trouble anymore. Actually, I am having a ball writing and studying architecture. And improving at the same time what do you all think? leave a comment below.

Mood for a Moodboard

If you are in design, chances are you are always searching for inspiration. You will notice the small things. From the nosing of a staircase to food packing. It might be that typography on that one billboard, (though let’s be serious for once, not one billboard ever has a decent typography). It might also be a bookmark or a pin.

Designers use several ways to aid their design process and presenting the clients. Making a mood board is what I find one of the best ways to have your creative juices flowing.

A mood board (in Wikipedia’s exact words) is a type of collage consisting of images, text, and samples of objects in a composition. It can be based upon a set topic or can be any material chosen at random. A mood board can be used to give a general idea of a topic, or to show how different something is from the modern day.

Starting the design with a mood board is great for a few reasons,

1. It helps you to start with a visual aid for your design.

2. It helps the clients to get a better picture and avoids misunderstanding.

However no matter how inspiring the mood board might be, and how good the spaces might look on it. Use it just for that. Inspiration. One time I got so stuck in this one picture of a great courtyard that I started designing the whole house around it, and due to space constraints got meager room of 9’x8’… yeah not ideal.

These things in your moodboards might not directly be related to your design. So even though you make moodboard for initial inspiration don’t limit yourself!

Deconstructive Utopia Part 2.

Now, I understand my previous post might have been a little confusing and immensely vague. Not long ago, all of us in the office have been working on this really unconventional project which was simply called Banarhalli, after the name of the place it is located in. While brainstorming on the interior options of the Living quarters of our two unique clients Sai came up with this interesting term, Deconstructive Utopia. And that inspired me to start a series on something I have been very keen to write about. The Banarhalli farm!

When one thinks about it, the whole project is utopian in concept, man and nature living together in a certain harmony. But when we talk about the deconstructive part does this whole project really gets interesting.

As most of you might know, Deconstructivism is a postmodern architectural movement which appeared around 1980s. It gives the impression of fragmentation of buildings. It often manipulates the structure’s surface skin and creates non rectilinear and distorted shapes. However instead of manipulating the outer surface we took the idea of deconstructing a little further and applied it in our space planning.

I feel there is a general norm of constructing a house between four walls and a roof. We broke the different functions in this project and spilled it all over the site. Hence the hierarchy of spaces is distributed all over the site.

The clients are dog lovers and have rescued several dogs. Hence they wanted proper kennels for their children. The dog kennels and the office is the public space, however I feel public would not be an appropriate word for it so maybe semi-public spaces.

There is a huge kitchen clubbed with dining, utility and storage. Which would be the semi-private spaces.

And the living quarters or as we call it Private Suites which is a strictly private.

While working on this phenomenal project we kept in mind the positively eccentric nature of it and the amazing utopian feeling. It is not often when someone decides to embrace the rural for themselves. But I believe the ones who do must be the happiest.

Banarhalli Ground Floor Plan 

Deconstructive Utopia

The Banarhalli project is what we in office call, a Utopian Deconstructive House. There is an idea that has been applied to this project which questions the norm of a house which suggests it needs to be bound in the limits of four walls and a roof. It has defied that custom and come up beautifully with various spaces in a home spread throughout the site.
However once we come back to your individual units we have been looking it all wrong. Instead of treating the individual units as two different “homes” why don’t we use it as two private suits?
There are a lot of things we have been working on and several ideas being brainstormed in office. Over the course of a few days I will be going over the project and talk about it in detail.

I hope you are as excited about it as we are.

Till then

~Stay Inspired

Office Shenanigans

Coming up with amazing ideas isn’t always easy. And if your office requires you to churn them up on a daily basis eventually you will hit a wall.

In days like these, a good brainstorming sessions is all that you need.

Today office was  fun and super informative. All of us sat around Sai’s table and started discussing our designs. And while getting the designs sorted, we got distracted like a billion times.

Now don’t get me wrong, by getting distracted I mean we would stop discussing the design and start talking about costing, or structure, even music and movies. (Did I tell you the office has been freaking out about the brand new Marshall Woburn speaker we got and now there is music 24/7!)

Let me give you an example: We talked about veneer and how to be smart and reduce the  cost. (Pro Tip: Apparently the actual veneer is way cheaper but the cost increases because of mounting and shipping). That information has nothing to do with design we were working on, but helps a lot if you want to start your own practice someday or even if you are responsible for the overall project within a team.

And then, enter Leena with her camera, she took some really amazing pictures of the office, and the people working in it.

And of-course the two clumsy dogs, Atom and Coco (I have been accused of not writing anything about those two!) were also bumping into everyone seeking affection.

Basically it was a colorful day. We learnt a ton, struggled with the new cooler we got, discussed a lot and laughed even more. It was a chill day at office.

From the Old to the New

Being far from home makes you a romantic.

When you miss your family, you think of writing this amazing sensitive letter to your parents, sibling, friend or significant other. Like in the old times, exchange a letter or two and have the thrill of receiving one written just for you. Opening the envelope in anticipation of the words and the sentiment it carries.

It is a beautiful thought. But then the 21^st century hits.  And suddenly the post office is too far away. And let’s be serious for a second, you don’t really know how to post a letter.

The nostalgia of living far from home has finally managed to hit me and so I was getting these romantic ideas but I didn’t have the time to actually pick up a pen and form words.

So I thought up of something new, and easy. I wrote my sister a letter via an Instagram post.

And it made me thinking, just because we have a different life styles and priorities, we can still carry on the old sentiment via new technology.

I believe we can do the same in architecture. Remember our roots, or the roots of the place and build something that is not only true to the context but to us as well.

Technology is to enable, not disable us.

And so maybe we can come up with creative, and fun ideas to use it.

In case you were wondering. This was the instagram post I was talking about.

Lone Genius vs. Teamwork

The age old image of an architect is that of a lone genius, tormented by the perils of life but still sees beauty in the simple complexities of nature. Someone who will go into poetic whimsy and smooth talk a horse into buying a see saw.

This could not have been further from the truth. (Except the later might be debatable). Architecture, as I have learnt so far is all about teamwork and coordination. There is not only teamwork with colleagues, but teamwork with our clients and vendors as well.

In the office all of us have different roles and responsibilities.

Sulu takes on project management,

Harshita and Aafreen handle administration and the CRM,

Ananya is the marketing pro,

Rambo is the visualisation expert,

Akanksha and Drashti are the drawing wizards
Kavi makes the working drawings look like a breeze.
Shaz, Sid and jamsheed have taken on the site execution challenge as of now
Kiri is the photography and video expert
Ritika handles vendor qualification and research besides assisting Ananya in marketing
Meghana makes conceptual sketches look easy

Leena is on a whole different level when it comes to details and interiors,

And Sai is the Boss with his eye on every little detail.

Every project that’s going on is being handled by each one of us in different levels. And yet we all manage to work symbiotically, in sync.

It could be because we all really love doing what we do.

I think gone are the days when architects used to be the singular protagonists of an epic adventure to find the perfect form. Nowadays we need to be on a completely different level, working as a singular unit.

Based on a True story… sort of

Has it been a month already? Yes it has! In-fact it has been more than a month since I started the Project 365 and I have to say, it’s been a love/hate relationship till now.

Let me clarify, I love writing. However before this I had only ever written fiction. A closet writer is what one would have called me.

But then one month into Sandarbh, Sai made me take up the Project 365.

Boy was I in for a ride!

I was a strictly fiction writer. And so made half of the things up as I wrote. Took creative liberties… similar could really not be done for non-fiction. So I struggled there, (still struggling… it takes up all my will not to make this overly dramatic!)

Then there were times when after a long tiring day I just wanted to sleep. Just ditch everything and sleep. After all, who was keeping a score?

Ahem! My boss was. Be it 9 in the morning or 11:45 at night. Sai would want the blog to be up. It didn’t matter for the few first day what I wrote, as long as I wrote something.

And so I persisted. I wrote because I knew there is only one way I could get better. And that was practice. (Also because Sai didn’t let me take a break!)

You could be a doctor, you could be an artist or even an accountant. If you want to be better in your art, just do it every day.

Even the days you don’t want to.

Especially the days you don’t want to!

If you manage to get through that one tough day, every other day will be a breeze.

I promise.

Accepting Criticism

Recently I was given a design problem, i.e. something I have been waiting for ever since I joined Sandarbh! I had great ideas about it. But soon I realized there was a lot I needed to consider before execution these ideas of mine.

Getting a negative feedback can be hard. Even though you are willing you accept it negative feedbacks are hard to take, especially if it’s about something you created. You feel like a part of you is being criticized. You are emotionally invested. Your body tightens, it’s suddenly hot and there is a knot forming in your throat. And you can feel yourself get defensive. Once you get slammed it feels like a pile of bricks have fallen on your face. In such situations our first reaction is to either fight or flight. We get defensive and start to argue or we avoid the conversation all together and go in denial.

You not only learn through your mistakes but by someone pointing out your mistakes and telling you where you went wrong. So when I failed to design a simple house, something I learnt in the first year of my architectural education. It made me realize, just how important those long discussions with my teachers and jurors were! Those blatant criticism and brainstorming.

It is important to know in our line of field (or any other for that matter) it is very important we get critical feedback over and over again. That is the only way to look at your design with new eyes and gain a new perspective all together.

The best ones are able to process and work past any negative feelings and look at the whole situation critically. Implore your work and evaluate the moment instead of feeling bad about it. Get the maximum value. 

The Rains

Finally the sky had shown us mercy and poured through the piercing sun cooling down the heat. Though March is supposed to be the spring season it seems global warming has taken its toll and the sun is harsher than ever! Ironically the untimely rain (another phenomena of global warming?) has provided some relief from the heat and refreshed our mind.

However this untimely rain has also moved me to a terrible thought.

The monsoon is such a prevalent and most awaited season of India. And yet most of the cities designed lack the basic means to drain out the storm water, or even have proper roads to stop the water from collecting at a place.

Our ancestors knew the importance of drainage and built such efficient drainage systems in the ancient cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-daro. Then why don’t we build cities that help with the same cause. Stop water from collecting unnecessarily and use it in innovative ways to overcome water shortage.

The rain is a beautiful phenomenon, it is truly a gift from the heavens. So why waste it in potholes and clogged drains?

The Red Herring Fallacy

Sometimes there comes a chance when you get this perfect idea in your head and that is the answer to all your problems and guess what! It looks good as well. It is the well rounded, gift wrapped in a perfect bow.

But once you start applying the idea… Horror! No matter what you do it just won’t fit. First you try to make small changes to your design, then slowly but believe me, surely you start changing the whole design itself and finally end up with a half-baked design with the room size of a kennel.

The idea ruined your whole design and ended you in a road block!

Of course I speak by experience. Today I was given something I had been trying to do since I came here. Designing a whole house from scratch but by the end of the day I was not able to come up with anything substantial.

What was the problem? I wondered. It should be easy! Right? I worked hard! According to usual norms, I should have succeeded but meh!

It was later I realized it wasn’t that I didn’t work hard, or I was out of ideas. On the contrary I had an idea. Of a beautiful water body and an inner courtyard. But that was it. I was too stuck in the idea that my vision funneled and I cared less about the requirements.

The phenomena is called Red Herring. The saying ‘red herring' is used to describe something that provides a false or misleading clue.

You get trapped in your own thinking. You are so engrossed in one idea you fail to see other much better options.

If you are stuck in such a pickle. Worry not. There are a few things you could do. Change your mind. Move on. Ask questions to yourself “What if…?”, and adopt a different perspective. Pause. Breath. 

Don’t be too stuck in a thought. Discuss with your colleagues and ask for their opinions. Maybe you will end up with a better idea! If an idea is posing more of a problem than a solution then it is probably not worth it. So go on search for other avenues.

Stay Inspire~

The Hangout

The mural we are planning to paint up on the wall!

Remember the post Breaking the Monotony where I talked about refurbishing the office. As promised I am back with updates. As I am happy to tell you all the space is coming up pretty damn amazing.

We have installed P.V.C. strip curtains (or as we like to call it murder curtains.) at the entrance of our office. Which allows us to keep the collapsing doors open hence breaking the barrier of outdoor and indoor. + The yellow tinted light also provides us with a nice ambient light for selfies!

The speakers now have a designated space and so does Ananya. Her desk is fixed and all is left is the polishing.

That brings me to the Diwan a.k.a. The most awesome place ever!

As we all predicted the Diwan is soon to become the heart of the office. Because let's be serious for a moment here. Why sit on those weird office chairs when you can stretch your legs on the Diwan! 

And that is exactly what happened.

All that is left now is wall murals! And the ceiling ofcoures! In the olden days people used to look up and be awed by the magnificent ceilings and murals. Now it is sadly one of the most neglected part of the interiors. And so we have decided to put the soul back to the ceiling.

Switching up Chores!

In case you are one of those few amazing people who are regularly reading my blogs, you must know I am writing about daily inspiration I get around my office. So today to beat the boredom and jazz things up Drashti and I switched jobs.

(Don’t tell Sai!).

Remember Drashti? The drawing master? Yeah! Imagine doing her job! I ended up with drafting sections for the new project we are doing as of yet. And she got to make the presentation. (You should have seen the happiness on her face when she finally got to use Photoshop!)

Anyway. I believe I did a good job myself. Regardless, this blog is not about my amazing skills of doing virtually everything. It’s about finding inspiration.

Remember me talking about Breaking the Monotony? Yeah so one other way to do so and be productive at the same time is to give your work a little spice. Switch work with a friend. Try doing something new. Stretch your skills and be useful!

Repeating the same thing may constrict your field of vision and you may lose touch with the rest of the aspects of your profession. So shake things up and do something else for a change.

Of-course you wouldn’t want to switch responsibilities unless your boss is cool about it. Lucky for us. That’s not really a problem.

See you next time!

Till then,

Stay inspired!

Find your Tribe

In general terms inspiration is thought of this mystic force that hits you from time to time and just all the problems in your life gets sorted. It’s something that “comes along”, something you have no control over. Of course you can always wait for inspiration to strike and just work on other things, however what happens in case of a deadline? Or you need to get a project started? You can’t just sit around for this mystic force to strike! You have to go and make things happen.

You can find inspiration in almost everyone and everything.

Here is what I propose.

Surround yourself with people who share your passion.

At Sandarbh, believe me when I say, no two people are the same. Everyone is different, with different talents and hobbies.

Drashti makes amazing drawings.

Meghna is the sketcher.

Rambo wants to start with this carpentry hobby.

Ananya is the well read one.

Aafreen is the hustler.

And the list goes on and on and on.

However no matter how different we all may be we share the same love and passion for architecture. And so working in a symbiosis we not only achieve our goals but also have fun while at it.

We inspire and motivate each other constantly. And that is what keeps us moving forward.

So find yourself a group of crazy people who share your passion. 

Find your tribe. 

No matter how colorful they maybe, it will be worth it!

Breaking the Monotony

Unless you are one of those few lucky people who don’t know what the day holds for them you are probably held hostage by the inescapable reality called routine. Waking up the same hour, walking to the same office and sitting on the same desk. After a while it seem like a mundane activity.

Here at Sandarbh everyday we try to escape the mundane and open our minds with new and exciting activities.

Sometimes it’s a nice long site visits which gives us an excuse for the change of scenery. Others, we sit to have long chats about life and architecture.

Today, we finally kick started the long discussed project of revamping our office space. Breaking the routine of coming to the same space. Being architects of course the whole conversation of redecorating our office was a different ballgame all together.

Apart from rearranging the furniture there were long discussions of having a pantry stocked to the neck with food! Have a proper rack for our speakers, green sit out spaces, library and a diwan!

The walls and the ceiling are to be doodled and our workspace is to cut the barrier of outdoor and indoors.

It would be a multifunctional space. Office by day and party space by night!

If this doesn’t open’s anyone’s creative block. I don’t know what will.

I am excited already to see what it will finally turn out to be. I will be sure to keep you guys updated!

Till then!

Stay Inspired~

Mukti! Part 2

This blog post is is a part of a series on one of our ongoing projects – The Banarahalli Farmhouse. You can read the previous post here.

We were pleasantly surprised seeing the number of people who enjoyed reading about Mukti and her escape tactics! We are glad everybody liked her.

And since you guys liked her so much, I thought that you would be interested to see more of her.

Meet Mukti! 

And the guava tree she jumped out of!

Women who Inspire me

In lieu to the last blog where I talked about being inspired, it turned out to be happy coincidence that the first blog in the series is about women!

Happy International Women’s day ladies!

 If you look around the world, women have been making their voices heard, putting points across and taking the lead in some of the most influential circles. The role of a women in any profession is no more a supporting role but a leading one. 

So when you set out in search of a strong woman you don’t have to look far away. 

She is right there -

In the form of our mothers who can juggle the most difficult tasks and make it looks like a breeze.

In our sisters who gives you half of their cookie,

In a friend, the one who gives you a shoulder when your are heartbroken. 

It is You and it is Me.

One such example who stands out for me is right here in my office - Leena. 

A partner at Sandarbh Design Studio, she is a pro multi-tasker. Intelligent, energetic and beautiful - Leena is constantly persuing new fields to excel in. She's been a model and a VJ, she now focuses her energies on Architecture, Photography and Classical Dance. 

Besides breathing life into every interior design projects she works on, She also brings to life memories as a professional photographer at Red Max Images – a firm that she co founded (you can check out her photography skills here).

But more than all this, she is a great mother to all her kids - 2 and 4 legged :-)

And if you think that this wasn’t enough, she bakes some of the yummiest goodies for all of us at the office! 

Leena is a great example of a woman who truly believes that the sky is absolutely no limit and lives by it! A woman can have a social life, a family life and be kickass in her job.

Leena, thank you for being such an inspiration.

Happy International Women’s day!

Color me Inspired

I often wonder of those moments where inspiration struck people and it completely changed their lives.

The Eureka! Moment.

Imagine the utter joy they must have felt. The extreme sense of awe and amazement. The vision of inspiration may look different to everyone. But I am sure this is something we wait for in life. The sheer happiness of a simple idea forming in your head. That moment of Eureka! That will finally move you forward.

However, often feel like we are stuck in a loop, or end up doing something generic or something that might not give us the satisfaction we expected. Let me tell you, inspiration is not hard to find.

Hence, for the next few days I am going to write about these little moments of inspiration or things, moments and or people in the office who inspire me each day and push me to move forward.

Maybe, Dear Reader, it may help you in your endeavor. And if not that, you may end up with a sweet story.

So ending it on an inspiring note.

Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.

-Roald Dhal

I hope you believe in magic.

Intern or Architect?

It has been two months since I joined the office. At this point, I don’t even feel like an intern anymore. When someone says, experience is the real teacher, know that they are the wise ones.

Only in the office have I realized architecture is so much more than Neufert’s and Time Savers. It may hold different meanings for every architect.

In Sandarbh, I am getting to learn the very same. The kind of architect I want to be. Like a render it’s getting clearer by passing time. As of yet it is around 40% done and things are taking form.

So for now, architecture is about molding space according to a client’s personality, needs and habits.

Imagine a space, made just for you. Doesn’t it makes you feel just so darn special?

However recently I have had a wakeup call from the college. Once again they are trying to reinforce their ideas, requirements and deadlines, expecting me to comply from 2000kms afar.
Till now, I had forgotten I was even a student, trying to get 25 credits by the end of my training and finally passing my semester.

I was an architect at Sandarbh, working with other skilled architects, getting things done. I got to apply every skill I have learnt in college and expand on things I am good at! And though the consequences are real while working in the office, so is the work I do and the people I meet.

If you love architecture then you must know, as fun as college maybe. Working as an architect is so much more!

Mukti!

Out of all the clients we currently are designing for , one has a very different set of requirements which is less related to their professional needs and more with their breed. Two human parents with 20+ dogs - they warned us and gave us multiple hints that their kids could turn out to be a little tricky to deal with.

"A family of dogs - how hard would it possibly be to design for them?" we assumed when the project began.

So we designed beautiful large kennels , with ample space for our clients to play around and sleep and finally invited them in.

Little did we know that canine clients are extremely different from human ones?

One of them turned out to be an escape artist. Swift and athletic, she would sneak out of the enclosure - ready to explore the surroundings. So, in an effort to curb her fleeing instincts, we began to bring in design changes into their home. After multiple brainstorming sessions and discussion with her human parents, we tried one technique after the other. 

Since the wire mesh that acted as the gate was the perfect surface for her to insert her paws and climb out, this was changed into FRP sheets.

Did that work?  Well, mischievous as she was, she still found her way out of her home - again. But this time she jumped over a 6ft wall that enclosed her wall. 

We wouldn't give up.

An additional 2ft was added to the wall to make it a high 8ft wall. "This one would definitely work", we hoped.

So what does she do? Taking it as a challenge, she found a guava tree within the compound, cleverly climbed it - and with a bark that said," No way you are stopping me" - happily jumped out of the wall.

How could we stop her? She was Mukti - the dog who was named freedom.

Things they don’t tell you about Client Meetings.

As an intern, I have a few preconceived ideas about professionalism and the corporate world. Of-course recently (Ahem! Today) most of them were proven wrong and a few were validated.

And so, here are a few things that you will never learn in college about client meetings.

Professionalism is a bore

Sure sounding like a professional is necessary however if you overdo it you might just turn out to be a bore. In a first client meeting, it is not only important to establish the fact you are competent enough to do the job however it is also important to be a person they would want to work with. Project yourself as someone they want to hire just for the person you are, even before seeing your work.

Be firm yet funny, sound professional yet peppy.

Have a clear Vision

Sure, a firm handshake is necessary when you meet the client. However it is also necessary to remember that a single handshake is not how you judge the person!

It is necessary to have a clear vision of what you are pitching. Know what you know thoroughly but since it is a first meeting be malleable to the client’s inputs.

Always assume your clients are smarter and they will chew you up if you slip.

Don’t make excuses

It is also necessary to know your strong points. If you are by chance caught off guard by something you were unaware of don’t try to act smart. Your clients are not stupid. Just admit you were uninformed and you will look upon it.

Don’t make excuses!

Have ample of photographs

You work in a very visual field. Have several mood boards ready just for pitching ideas, even if they are quite vague.

By showing enough pictures you will somewhere arrive with at least one picture with the client’s tastes and their needs. For the next meeting build on that.

Be clear with the timing!

I cannot stress enough on this point. When scheduling people often underestimate the total time required for designing.

Make your clients aware of the way you work, and the kind of timeline they should be expecting. It is very important to make them aware of the process, and that it may take time to come up with their dream project.

This way even though they might have underestimated and made errors they would still have time to update their schedule on time.

Holi Hai!!!

Team Sandarbh wishes you a very Happy Holi! May this festival not only bring prosper and happiness but all the colour you need in your life!!!

Pictures By: Jamsheed

Starry Night

Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh

“It often seems to me that the night is even more richly colored than the day, colored with the most intense violets, blues and greens. If you look carefully, you'll see that some stars are lemony, others have a pink, green, forget-me-not blue glow. And without laboring the point, it's clear to paint a starry sky it's not nearly enough to put white spots on blue-black.” (678, 14 September 1888)

These were the words by the infamous artist Vincent Van Gogh to his brother Theo, describing his now widely appreciated Starry Night. Enigmatic and one of the most famous work of expressionism is now housed in the Museum of Modern Art, New York City since 1941.

While watching the painting there are various thoughts and emotions that come to mind of the observer. There is a constant feeling of movement. The widely perceived silent night sky seems to be bustling with movement in the artist’s eyes. Moreover, while there is movement in the sky the village below seems unaffected and rather stagnant.

The duality of this motion and rest is what gives the painting a balance. Such turbulent movement in the painting also depicts the inner turmoil and the tempestuous nature of the artist’s mind.

After a breakdown resulting in self-mutilation of his left ear, Vincent Van Gogh voluntarily admitted himself to the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole lunatic asylum on 8th May 1889. The year that follows, the artist produced some of the greatest works including the Irises in May 1889, the blue self-portrait, etc. The starry night was painted around mid of June. He wrote to his brother, Theo, to state he had a new study of the Starry night.

He spent a great deal of time studying the view from his ground floor studio in the hospital and depicted it at different times of day under various weather conditions. “These are exaggerations from the point of view of the arrangement, their lines are contorted like those of ancient woodcuts” (805, c. 20 September 1889) he said to his brother in one of his letters which told that he was aware that these paintings were an exercise for developing a style.

The Starry Night is his extensive observation of the night sky, he left Paris and moved for a more rural areas in south France. He could now spend hours contemplating the stars without the interference of gas or electric street lights.

“ This morning I saw the countryside from my window a long time before sunrise, with nothing but the morning star which looked very big” (777, c. 31 May 6 June 1889) He wrote to his sister Willemien van Gogh from Arles.

What one might observe is the striking contrast on the canvas. The starry night and the swirling galaxies along with the small lights in the village are brightening the rather dark theme. It gives the feeling of hope. The theme of redemption or the idea of a happy ending.