In this episode, Ar. Akshay Heranjal, the founder of The Purple Ink Studio, discusses contextual storytelling in architectural design. In 2011, The Purple Ink Studio was founded in Bangalore, along with co-founder and landscape architect Aditi Pai Heranjal. Akshay, along with his team, consistently explores art, in all its forms, following a non-linear approach towards design. The Purple Ink Studio works on different typologies of projects across various cities, with architecture, landscape, and sustainability as the primary goals.

1. I would like to understand your journey through architecture, from the initial embrace of this field to being one of the innovative leaders in the architecture and design industry today, it must have been filled with rich experiences. Could you share some of the key moments that have shaped this journey?

A: One thing I think of now is we will be completing 14 years now. We started in 2011, and it took us about 12 to 13 years to have one major realization—the idea of roots and a sense of belonging. I come from a small city called Hubli. But if I start tracing my roots, I was born in Bangalore but my family has always lived in Bombay. But when they were a part of the Kashmir Brahmins, we spoke Konkani. So we came from Kashmir about 300 years ago.

We traveled down to Goa and then Coastal Karnataka and then moved to Bombay and places around for work. This realization came to me about a year back, when I was trying to find meaning in our work. I was trying to understand where we come from and where our sense of belonging is. I think that one of the most important realizations that I had is that our roots are adapted. It has always been adapted because I realized that, as people, and as a community, we’ve never been born and brought up or studied in the same place. I’ve done this in many many different places. So that’s when I realized that our works don’t belong to a particular place. 

We find a way to discover ourselves in this conditioning of what the context holds. I’m a true Bangalorean but at the same time, I’ve adapted myself to it. It’s the same with our work as well. We find ourselves in that whole idea of context trying to understand how to situate ourselves in the particular project. Then we adapt ourselves and start finding ways to open our arms. That’s how we are, as people, as we come with incredible stories. Because we are not from the same place, there are a lot of stories that I would have carried. There are a lot of memories that I carry. It’s the same with our work, every work comes with a very strong narrative. We’re also trying to constantly find strong narratives that we can go back and connect to memories and ideas.

Now, I can talk to you about where I come from. In terms of where I did my architecture, how we started, etc. But I think for us this is a defining moment. For us, as a studio and for me, on a very personal level of understanding the idea of roots. Even if it’s not a part of us we have adapted our roots. Now we’re looking to open our arms. So, in a way, I feel this has become a very important moment for us.

Also to add a little more thought on this, Aditi who’s my partner, Nishita and Arpita who are also now our partners, four of us run the whole studio together. All four of us have the same line of thought and the same upbringing. We all are from very different cities and different places. So that is a very strong realization now. Does that change the way we think? I am not sure. But yes, it adds a lot of meaning. Now we also realize that the works have been subconsciously always trying to find themselves in that particular place—with the culture and the context. So, it took us 300 years to reach here and that’s possibly the answer I can give you.

2. When looking at your designs, your strong belief in embracing the nonlinear approach toward design is evident. Could you explain what you mean by a nonlinear approach and how it helps you better your design?

A: I think I’m going to use this podcast, our discussion, as a means to assess our work at The Purple Ink Studio. It’s interesting to use this opportunity to also think about how someone like you is looking at us. Over time, we realized that we wanted to look at projects that come with interesting briefs in one way or the other. We realize that we were always inching toward the idea that if you have an interesting brief we will have an eccentric or extraordinary storytelling ability. Every project that we do has to have a strong narrative, and a strong story to tell. An important part of that whole process of how we envision our work. So, when we take a very nonlinear approach, it’s talking about multiple influences that come together to define the way.

There is a very strong influence of books that we read, works that we see, cinema, and music as well. For us, books, cinema, and music have been a very important part of who we are. I think these influences, in a way, have also shaped the way we think. For example, the work of a director called Park Chan-wook, who’s a Korean director has been a very important influence on my life in terms of the kind of movies he makes. Or even, Anurag Kashyap. We realize that the narratives they have had are so local Indian but there is this disruption that you see in the way they put things out.

The idea of the process itself is so interesting. Even with Park Chan-wook, some of the movies, Old Boy. I’ve seen so many other movies and we are obsessed with the kind of movies that world cinema has. We use these as tools to understand and dissect architecture as well. Music, particularly rock music culture has been so influential for us. The kind of narratives that an album has the growth, or the thought process of a band that they have also has created an interesting influence on us, and all these are very nonlinear. These are very disruptive in the way they push you to think.

We believe that architecture is not about finding meaning in a drawing and putting something out. I think an understanding of the context, the culture of the city, and so many other things is crucial. Then we dissect the brief in a way where we start finding a narrative that becomes a part of it. Then slowly star adapting itself as a part of the whole culture of that project. I think that’s the whole nonlinear thinking, where multiple influences start defining how we look at each project. This is how we approach our work.

3. Considering the diverse typology of projects that you have worked on, which is the one project that has had an impact on you? Could you tell us about that project?

A: The first 10 years of our journey as a studio, a lot of our effort went into exploration, understanding, and testing ourselves out and saying yes to a lot of things. The next 5 years we always thought that should be with this idea of awareness. Awareness of who we are and what we believe in. At this moment we realize that we like to work from a place of happiness. I mean that we want to do projects that more and more are a part of us or an extension of us or how we think. This essentially means that if you are aware that this is what you like or this is how we look at things then you start attracting those kinds of projects.

It becomes an important extension of who you are and that’s why the first 10 years went into exploration. We were obsessed with looking at multiple thought processes, narratives, typologies, etc. But again, the idea is to have a strong narrative that holds everything that we do. We were testing ourselves because, both Adti and I come from this whole background of not having any architects in our family. We started from scratch coming from a different city to a place here and having worked with extraordinary people, the idea of finding the right narrative also needs to become an important way of how we explore. So even when we were exploring in the first 10 years there was a very important idea of being able to tell a story. We didn’t let go of that during that transition between the first 10 years and where we are right now. 

In these 3 to 4 years, The Purple Ink Studio did a project called “The Brick House.” There are moments when a lot of projects have made a strong impact on us and our thoughts. But I think the brick house is extremely close to our hearts. That’s a very small project that we did in Mangalore. I think we push our limits a lot and that was one moment we realized the importance of having the right client. It allowed us to be who we are and told us the kind of value that people can bring in. From the client, who lives in Saudi but wanted to create this home for himself and his family in a place where he belonged. There were a lot of memories that were associated with his upbringing, then came the idea of execution. This was during the COVID. 

The entire house has only brick, concrete, and layers of plaster that were experimented as craft. There’s no paint in the whole house and there’s a consistency of material. Extremely monochromatic and monolithic. The idea of executing something as complex as the brick house, you look up and realize the complexity. In the way it was conceived, it’s planned as a section, the whole house opens upwards. The house doesn’t look like it has anything to look at outside. It doesn’t have windows that open outside. It has only the sky and the earth. It’s in an urban setting. Although the client could afford and have a beautiful site near the beach or close to the sea in Mangalore, he chose to take a place in an area that was close to his heart and he wanted to come back to that area.

There are a lot of attachments or memories that the client had and for us, the idea of people and memories became a very important point. Because the project was so complex at the same time, we were very clear to work with local people from that area and establish that we could do it. Complex projects, where the idea of just the structure and the brick, needs to be perfect. and distributed to people in a way where it becomes a part of their process where they realize that they can make it happen. That allows this whole idea of passion to come into the picture, where they were driven to make it happen. 

4. Looking at your work, the relationship between landscape and built form appears central to most of your designs. How do you navigate this delicate balance between the natural environment and the architectural spaces to create this seamless integration?

A: Adti, my partner at The Purple Ink Studio is a landscape architect. A lot of our projects are initiated from this idea, like I said, finding a place of belonging which essentially in its truest form talks about nature. Even in urban settings, we realize that there has to be a strong connection with the idea of the outside and it just doesn’t mean landscape in terms of greens or the trees that you see around. I think it’s a deeper connection that we’re talking about.

The idea of a transition between architecture and landscape has to be seamless and has always been a part of how we look at things. I think we are extremely simple people who always realize that nature is the biggest source of inspiration for a lot of things. At the same time, we are eccentric in the way we think. So we’ve found ways to abstract architecture.

For example, we at The Purple Ink Studio did this project called “Project 58,” which is a home in Mangalore. The idea of architecture and nature converges to a point where nature is now literally taken over and the building is less seen. We’ve always liked to push the boundaries in both cases. One of the things we realize is that we don’t want our architecture to stand out too much, although there’s a very strong narrative and a very clear approach in terms of the vocabulary that’s set in. It’s still coming from an important thought process of many workings to have reached there. It’s not about making something just look good but we realize that we like our projects to merge or blend or start finding its meaning.

We’ve realized that we enjoy projects where we feel that the building and the landscape always existed or coexisted. I think that’s our approach in most cases. Although it’s difficult to pull this off in urban projects, especially in Bangalore, where the sites are getting tighter, it’s still important for us to find a new meaning in it rather than looking at just simple planter beds, etc. I think we are pushing a lot on productive greens. We believe that you should be able to grow your food. There’s a lot that we want to do in terms of giving back to the city as well. 

So there’s a lot of work and thought happening back end which may not be in direct relation with any of our projects. But there is a lot of work that’s happening in terms of giving back to the city and giving back to the nation. This is where the idea of architecture, that’s contextual, and landscape that coexists with it, becomes a very strong force of coming together and that’s how most of our works are.

When we were in this state of exploration of taking on most of the projects that we could just say yes to, we realized that we were not enjoying this process of just greenwashing. Where you just put some plants. It’s honestly not as simple as that. We also worked on a project called “Vanam” which was one of our experiments on looking at housing at an urban level where we felt that it has to become the greenest project in the city. Each user has 30 to 35% of open space although these units were just 1000 sq.ft each. 2 BHKs on five floors, about 20 to 25 families coming together. 

One of the things that we were trying to experiment with was to give a large space for landscape, where it becomes a part of your home and you start taking care of it. We went to this extent of defining how each home can respond to productive greens and detail everything out in terms of the structure. In terms of how the whole build becomes an important part of the structure itself. So you’re not compelled to worry about leakages, maintenance, etc., and unfortunately it didn’t turn out the way we thought.

We bought a flat there only to be a part of that whole process for life, saying let us also experiment and see how green can it be and unfortunately, we realized that the architecture of it and the idea of it got a lot of people who probably did not realize what Vanam meant because it was a developer project. It looked nice in terms of how it was designed, conceptualized, and built. People didn’t realize the responsibility that came with what it meant. The balconies were meant to be green, with large green pockets or large green terraces. That’s when you realize that a lot of times the responsibilities that come with greens or the way you look at architecture and landscape, need to be a stronger commitment from everyone rather than just looking at it as planter beds.

We realize more and more that the responsibility actually lies with everyone who’s living there. It’s like maintaining your home, like how you clean and wash. Landscape also requires that push and that project for us was a big learning. When we realized that, we thought that everybody would be aligned to the idea of having a fantastic landscape as a part of your floor at every level. We realized that people were not so committed and so the greens went out in the first couple of months itself. Only a few flats, including the one that we have, possess green landscapes. It feels like a forest but we realize that you need committed people or people who are super excited to be a part of that whole process and then it works better.

5. Architecture is all about experiences. We strive to create experiential spaces for people. How do you view the importance of experiential design elements in the projects that you work on?

A: I’ve realized over time that if I look back on buildings that I remember or buildings that have made an impact, it has always been about experiences. Not just about seeing or being in a place. It talks about experiences that the architect has also gone through to make that happen. Because we read a lot and understand what a building is by reading more about it. We also realize that there are a lot of things that are an extension of many other parts. These are moments when you realize that it starts making a difference in the actual work. The experience is not just our own experience. It’s also about the experience of so many people and their souls coming into that place. You start realizing this when you look at architecture from the past.

Even in temples or forts or so many other places, you realize that the experience that you’re talking about is a culmination of many things and it’s interesting to dissect that through each project even the newer buildings that you see. You realize it’s not about just how you feel it’s also about how that space starts to impact you on a very personal level. That feeling is extraordinary. It tells you the power of architecture and how deep the idea of a building is. Especially, when you’re doing it right. If there is a strong narrative then there’s so much to take back or to give back from that experience.

6. With the advancements and the rapidly evolving ways technology is working these days, how do you leverage the power of technology to enhance your design process at The Purple Ink Studio while still maintaining this organic and human- centered quality that defines your work?

A: I’ll put it differently and not talk about AI because it’s there in every single forum. One of the things that became a very important realization for us was the idea of the complexity. The complexity that our buildings or most buildings have and how we have not cracked that idea of making it happen seamlessly.

Meaning, that if there’s a great idea that you have worked on and you have a brilliant design team or a studio that’s super focused on that idea of the design, story, or narrative, we realize that the next set of things that happen in terms of detailed drawings, or in terms of breaking down that idea, you would have for each project. I feel that is the moment that needs a lot of technique and technology and that’s where our focus is. The initial part of a process in every project is driven by a lot of other things other than technology. 

To be honest, the idea of crafting a narrative, being able to think, being able to come together as a studio and brainstorm, or push yourself into the past of India for example. All these have never been a problem for us. That’s a strong point, people come to us for that. That’s why we don’t look at the idea of technology.

We look at more human interventions, in that stage where crafting narratives. I think that’s a very important phase for us. The next part is where we use technology. We’re looking at software, to simplify how architecture is going. Right from the idea of a design stage to where you’re starting to look at getting it built. So for us, technology comes in the second phase. Where we break a project down into a kit of parts, simplify it, and use multiple things to understand it. 

And then, the last phase where it goes into execution or getting it built. This is also the time when we are tracking things using software. Making things a lot more seamless now. We realize that a lot of the projects that we do are mid to large-scale. They have their own set of complexities. I think we’re trying to cut down on human intervention, in tracking the project, tracking drawing, and understanding where we are in the timeline. So that’s where technology is being used by us at this moment. Not in the initial part which people get excited about. As humans I think we enjoy the process of storying, that’s something that we are very attached to.

7. Speaking about your projects at The Purple Ink Studio, your design development, or how you derive designs, how do you find a sense of fulfillment and purpose in your work as an architect beyond just the completion of projects?

A: I think architecture is a calling. I can’t say it’s not for everyone. But, when you’re in it, you have to be obsessed with the idea. The idea of being able to be there and do so many things. You would never have this question, let’s say AR Rahman or someone who’s in a creative field. That sense of continuity that we have like how most of the creative studios have, is extraordinary. Being able to live life and living in this continuum as an artist or as an architect kicks us. That’s what we live for. All other things are a byproduct of that thought process.

So, I think the idea of fulfillment in whichever way you would want to coin it. Architecture as a calling, is an extraordinary expression of fulfillment. Everything else is an add-on or sometimes a byproduct. It’s an extraordinary moment for us, also in terms of where and how we are living, and we respect that. I know there’s a lot that we can give back to the nation, in terms of design. Being able to craft extraordinary narratives and look back at the other influences like I said, music, books, and cinema, are also our outlets. Those are also things that allow us to push in slow and different directions. I think there’s a lot that architecture has and you can never let go of that thought.

We all live one life and I think it’s important to understand what your true calling is. And if you get that right, it changes your life, it changes the way you think. Then I don’t think anything can be as fulfilling as having realized that or being in that awareness, of that idea of living with your true sense of quality.

8. With your career on the rise, what are your next steps? Where do you envision yourself and your practice at The Purple Ink Studio in the coming years?

A: I realize that a lot of our time in these last few years has gone into analyzing things. Rather than setting a goal and saying, this is what we want to do in life. We’ve always been working throughout. Even when we started The Purple Ink Studio, it was just Aditi and me. To a point now, where we are about 35 to 40 people, as a studio, we’re still constantly working. The idea of taking some time to pause and be aware of where we are right now has always been a consistent process in these last couple of months or a year. During this process, we started writing down a lot of things. Because all these years we were going with the flow.

Although there were a lot of realizations that were happening during our first 10 years and even later now, we realized that once we started writing a lot of things down rather than saying we want to do this or we want to give back to the fraternity, etc, we realize we wanted to understand ourselves first. I think we are in that process right now, where there’s a lot of awareness and understanding of ourselves. Where do we head from here is something that will be an extension of what we’re writing— meaning there’s so much that’s going on in our minds right now. 

Even as a studio, The Purple Ink Studio is trying to collate all this together to reach a point where I will have an answer for that. What it means is I don’t think we can define who we are or where we are heading, what it essentially means is that we are enjoying the whole journey. I think this journey, with its share of ups and downs, is fantastic. The kind of kick that we get out of being in this whole idea of doing so many things, we always feel we are living multiple lives in a day. It also tells you how busy we are as people and as a studio. But at the same time, we are always looking for this dark humor sometimes, to set itself in.

Are we living with a sense of purpose? Yes, of course. Are we living with a sense of understanding of where we are heading? To an extent, yes. Do we have a plan for the future? A lot of things that we want to give back. Although we are still very young, there’s so much more to do. We’ve only been in a studio for 13 to 14 years. So it’s just the beginning of many people’s lives and it tells you the process of being able to do so many things also comes back to this idea of the studio where the people, who are a part of the studio matter a lot. This is also one thing that I want to push more and more— the idea of people and the idea of practice. 

One of the goals that I’ve set for myself is to build an extraordinary practice with a great sense of commitment, to having great human beings in the practice, as a part of The Purple Ink Studio. That’s one of the things that we always set for ourselves. The first thing that you need to be a part of our studio is to be a great human being and everything else is secondary. Everything else will follow. Your commitment, to work, to thoughts, being intellectual, being able to have fun, and also being able to let yourself lose when required.

So all these are an extension of most of us. That’s one of the things that we want to do—to build a stronger practice and give back to people, both through our practice in The Purple Ink Studio and outside through our work. I think that’s probably the goal that has always been a part of us. We realize that it took us many years to understand this idea of what the culture of the office is. So we built something called the “Culture Code.” We made a small book out of it which is of course within ourselves. It is for people to understand how we started, who we are, how we think, and so many other things that were all combined.

9. What would be your one piece of advice, related to life, architecture, design, or anything, to all our young readers?

A: I think one of the very important parts of our process of having someone with us is to be a great human being first and I think everything else will follow. The second thing that we’ve always talked about in the studio is this idea to give back. A lot of people when they come to us or when we meet, they say, I want to learn like. Everyone says I’m joining you and we like your work and I’m here to learn.

My answer has always been to believe that you can give back. It’s not about just taking, it’s about being able to give back. The moment you start having this realization that I want to give back, learning becomes a part of that whole process. So I think the moment you come out with this thought that I want to be a student for life or I want to keep learning, it should be about giving back first and everything else becomes a part of that whole process. Because then you learn, then you fail, then you fall, then you get up, and you’re still able to do so much. 

Believing in this idea of being able to give back builds a fantastic sense of confidence. A sense of commitment for you as a human being. Nothing can beat that. Along with being a great human being, first, this is one important aspect that you always focus on. Telling people that no matter who you are, even if you’re an intern, there’s a lot that you can give back. The more you believe in yourself, the more you will realize that there’s so much more in being able to do than just take. I think that probably sums up the way we think, as people, and as a student.

Conclusion

In conclusion, in this episode of TADPod, Ar. Akshay Heranjal has shared his journey throughout his career in architecture. The studio’s multidisciplinary approach and commitment to storytelling, art, and design principles are vivid. Ultimately, they continue to shape unique spaces across diverse projects, inspiring the architectural community to think beyond conventional boundaries.