Every year on November 19, International Men’s Day is celebrated to bring focus on the problems that men and boys confront and to promote awareness of their health and well-being. The day also honors the good contribution that men provide to the world and urges them to become excellent role models. For International Men’s Day 2024, the theme is “Changemaker” which serves as a reminder to acknowledge the achievements that create a difference in society.
Public spaces and buildings are becoming crucial in shaping both rural and urban landscapes across India. But are they celebrated enough? Simultaneously, interior design and luxury are gaining prominence and receiving the most praise on social media. This, International Men’s Day 2024, we at TAD are stepping in to recognize the architects who are the real changemakers of India. Through our platform, we aim to shine a light on those who are transforming our communities by featuring ‘The Changemakers of India in Large Scale Design.’
Founder Partner of Morphogenesis alongside Sonali Rastogi. He challenges limitations by redefining what contemporary architecture can be in the context of sustainability through social, environmental, and affordability. Working across all kinds of climate zones and terrains, the studio draws design inspiration from the regional history of building knowledge, achieving high standards of sustainability and livability. Furthermore, from residences to high-rise apartments, from institutional to commercial buildings, Morphogenesis has addressed sustainability, use of passive energy, and optimizing resources, strategically transforming its way in the global marketplace.
Bimal Patel is a Padma Shri recipient architect with over 35 years of experience in architecture, urban design, and urban planning. He is the President of CEPT University in Ahmedabad. He leads HCP Design, Planning, and Management Pvt. Ltd. Bimal also founded the Environmental Planning Collaborative, a not-for-profit organization focused on planning research and advocacy. His work also aims to improve urban design and planning practices in Indian cities. His research spans Land Use Planning, Real Estate Markets, Building Regulations, and Urban Planning History. Additionally, in 2019, he was honored with the Padma Shri Award for his contributions to Architecture and Planning.
Dikshu C. Kukreja, Managing Principal of CP Kukreja Architects, leads one of the “Top 100 Architecture and Planning Firms in the World” and the “Top 5 in Asia.” A Harvard-educated architect and urban planner, he is a noted environmentalist and author of Five Decades of India’s Built Environment. Kukreja has been named the “Face of 21st Century Architecture in India” and featured in Who’s Who of Asia. Furthermore, he hosted the acclaimed TV series Tale of Two Cities and led discussions on “liveable cities” for the G20’s Think20 group. Additionally, known for his sustainable designs, Kukreja has earned global recognition for his contributions to architecture and urban planning.
Sourabh, a CEPT University B.Arch graduate with a Master’s in Urban Design from TU Delft, is the Principal Architect of Archom, an interdisciplinary studio that has enhanced communities for over 15 years. He also specializes in innovative solutions for public, institutional, and infrastructure projects, blending design excellence with functionality. Furthermore, Sourabh actively mentors and leads initiatives like Design Village, Design Factory India, Archoforum, and Archohmeter, promoting design education and innovation. Recognized with numerous international and national accolades, he is passionate about “living life through design.” Additionally, Sourabh is an avid reader, enjoys badminton, and remains on a continuous design journey, seeking inspiration from diverse cultures and experiences.
An architect and author, founded his Mumbai-based practice in 2007 after graduating from Harvard’s GSD. Born in Chamba, Northern India, his work has earned prestigious awards, including the Wallpaper Design Award, Beazley Architecture Prize, Wienerberger Brick Award, and ArchDaily Building of the Year. He also leads sPare, a non-profit researching urbanization and affordable housing in India, with notable publications like In the Name of Housing and (de)Coding Mumbai. He has presented globally, including at the Seoul and Buenos Aires Biennales.
Influenced by his hometown Shimla, Kamal’s practice revolves around the creation of nature and sustainability. Blending his expertise in science and design, Kamal implements modern technology to develop a contemporary design in the Indian context, balancing the synthesis of ecology and spirit. At Malik Architecture, Kamal and his team also work closely towards the process of ‘Manthan’, where cultural, historical, and philosophical aspects of India blend to form a modern architectural idiom. Furthermore, over the past 46 years, his iconic projects include the American School of Bombay, the Lupin laboratory, and the Stone House in Jodhpur.
Rahul Kadri is not only continuing the legacy of his father, I.M. Kadri but also embedding his benchmark in Indian architecture practice. His obsession with architecture flourished over the period by spending time with what he defines as ‘his first love’—nature. Inspired deeply by nature, Rahul and his team widen the realm of creating spaces, keeping sustainability at the forefront and weaving the spaces into the context. One can define Rahul’s practice as simple, rooted, and an echo of modern India. Focusing on the macro and micro level of planning, IMK Architects also continues to build jewels of various scales and functionality, shaping the nation.
Jayesh Hiriyani’s path to architecture is unique. Initially admitted as a medical student, he discovered a passion for creativity and transferred to CEPT. Now, the Chairman & Managing Director of INI Design Studio, alongside Bindu Hiriyani. Also accomplished Urban Planning at Syracuse University and an MBA from Katz School. He has led many gold and platinum-rated IGBC/LEED-certified green projects. His sustainable design and planning philosophy seeks to create communities that are energy-efficient and responsible. Furthermore, he strongly believes that through a high-quality design, we must provide better working and living environments that enrich our communities and contribute to healthy ecosystems.
Over the two decades of the Studio’s existence, he has overseen its Architecture & Master Planning initiatives, working extensively on large-scale developments for a diverse clientele, with a focus on Environmental Planning, and Sustainable and Modular Construction Methodologies. Sidhartha’s areas of expertise are space articulation, project description, and implementation. Among the notable projects are the LEED Platinum-rated Organic India facility in Lucknow, the Aga Khan Trust for Culture Museum complex in Hyderabad, and Krushi Bhawan in Bhubaneswar. Additionally, the eco-conscious community living in Jaipur is one of the ongoing projects.
Founder of Abin Design Studio, his love for architecture was sparked by the glimpse of Sen House designed by Charles Correa while traveling in a bus with his father. Later, after several career ups and downs, Abin went to attend Domus Academy in Milan and returned with gaining immense confidence and mastering the skill of thinking and approaching a problem. He immediately landed on a large-scale project, the IIM Kolkata, igniting growth in his new practice. Later shifting his paradigms to small-scale socially impactful practice, widening his spectra in public, institutional, social, and community-driven architecture. Now the studio stands firm, following the mantra, “To provide a soul in the shell.”
Mohe indulges his work with the elements of nature, respecting the five senses and attempting to use ‘light and air’ as building materials at his 14-year-old practice ‘Mindspace’ alongside his team. Making sustainability the core, the spaces are designed with light and activity with immense functionality and emotional quotients in each of his projects. Believing in creating spaces without boundaries, the architecture for Mindspace is about the soul and falling in love with an idea, making it come alive, but mostly about ‘Taking Care’. Care of nature, environment, functionality, and respecting the users.
Naresh Narasimhan plays the upfront part in changing the chaotic urban fabric of Bangalore to a people-friendly city space. Also as one of the founding members of the Bangalore Agenda Task Force (BATF), this futurist partakes in city planning by providing various design solutions to the government bodies. Ranging the studio’s wide spectrum not just in infrastructures but also in public transport, streetscapes, adaptive reuse, and overall enhancing the living environment in cities. Naresh has also taken several pro bono initiatives in Bangalore and emphasized his vision of adaptive reuse as the need in today’s development sectors.
At Edifice Consultants, Ravi has continued to lead and mentor his creative team for more than three decades now. Ravi is known for his command of diverse typology, the scope of master planning, and urban design. His efforts to approach each design with sensitivity and improvise the surroundings of user groups can be seen evidently in his practice, like corporate headquarters, hospitality facilities, institutes, and several landmark structures. Ravi Sarangan thrives on creating a better-built environment via his problem-solving design approach.
An IIT Roorkee graduate, leads Salient Studio, which encompasses master planning, urban design, mixed-use development, leisure and hospitality, healthcare, commercial, and residential projects. His team includes Partner Anuradha Rathore, four senior associates, eight associates, and over 70 members, including artists and philosophers. The studio integrates various skills in architecture, landscape design, interior design, and environmental graphics to create holistic, sustainable design solutions. Furthermore, the interplay of ideas across different design disciplines enhances the studio’s capabilities, making it a well-rounded entity.
The Founding Partner of Arya Architects alongside Meghal Arya, Vijay ascends his expertise in structural fineness to bring spatial experiences to the best in the Indian context. Establishing practice in 2005, Arya Architects set up the finest examples of context-centric design while using traditional architectural methods. Expanding their realm in public architecture, redefining urban design, and commonplace by revving back the vibrancy in the cityscape. Arya Architects’ fondness for traditional Indian architecture is reflected in their restoration and research initiatives. Additionally, as a daily user of their urban facilities, I might dare say that they are truly reshaping the cities.
Drawing the spectra in computational design and sustainable practice, Amit has been leading Studio Symbiosis for over a decade now. Soon after establishing his firm in 2010, Amit has been honored by various awards. His design trajectory expands from urbanism to residential and commercial to master planning projects. Additionally, Apart from his architectural ventures and achievements, Amit has delivered TEDx talks and several lectures at institutes globally, motivating and inspiring young minds.
Architect, author, futurist, and urbanist Goonmeet Singh Chauhan is a champion of designing with a purpose that changes people’s lives. He promotes a “People First” approach to design as the Founding Partner of DFI, addressing topics including waste management, education, walkability, air and noise pollution, and safer cities. Furthermore, chauhan demonstrates dedication to nation-building and urban transformation through projects like Vanijya Bhawan, NIT Delhi, and Delhi Cycle Walk.
Akash Hingorani is an architect and urbanist focused on water and mobility challenges. He specializes in restoring urban water systems through placemaking, transforming challenges into sustainable public spaces. His designs emphasize walkable, cyclable cities integrated with mass transit and green-blue networks for ecological resilience. At OASIS, his projects showcase systems thinking to create sustainable mobility and nature-based solutions. By revitalizing urban spaces and restoring water systems, Hingorani’s work helps cities become more climate-resilient and livable, addressing both ecological and social needs.
He directs the architectural practice at Flying Elephant Studio with a sensitive design approach. Each project addresses challenges related to the program, context, material, and site through a whole-to-part design strategy, which spans from the urban scale to finer details and vice versa—from the smallest elements of a single unit to the overall functionality for the user. Flying Elephant blends industrial, institutional, urban, and residential design, emphasizing spatial experience and sustainable environments. For their boundless practice, Rajesh and another partner of the firm Iype are heavily recognized globally as well. Together as Flying Elephant, Rajesh, and Iype inspire us to look at social and health community spaces with different perspectives.
Rohan is an architect and designer who began his practice in Mumbai in 2015, focusing on public sanitation, urban design, affordable housing, and more. Now relocating to Bangalore in 2022, his designs continue to emphasize unique living patterns and bold spaces. He blends modern materials with vernacular styles, creating spaces rich in natural light and landscape. Rohan believes a home’s essence lies in timelessness, where architecture meets basic needs, and everything beyond is luxury. His first project, The Lightbox—Restroom for Women, redefines public infrastructure with sophisticated design, challenging traditional urban block models.
It is fitting to honor those who represent the attributes of determination, leadership, and commitment on International Men’s Day 2024, such as the architects discussed above. These trailblazers are influencing a brighter future, from Sameep Padora’s creative contributions to urban housing to Manit Rastogi’s sustainability-focused designs. They serve as an example that men’s contributions to the built environment and the well-being of our communities are just as important as their role in the fabric of society. Additionally, this International Men’s Day 2024, let’s renew our commitment to promoting the health and well-being of men and all.
Happy International Men’s Day 2024!
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