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‘Good design builds upon history and has an eye on the future’

Lifestyle‘Good design builds upon history and has an eye on the future’

Pradeep Sachdeva is an architect and urban designer, who is involved in several renovation projects across the country, including the overhaul of the famous Chandni Chowk market. He spoke to Guardian 20 about this project and the importance of sustainability in designs and architecture.

 

Q. You were a part of the session “Old Meets New in Design and Architecture”. So what according to you is the key to a fruitful amalgamation of the past and present?

A. It’s a continuity of tradition that happens and we tend to forget that. We as designers tend to think that we are the masters of the universe. We forget the history and the future, and we do things in a whimsical manner. And this, in my view, is not the right thing to do. The key is to build on to what has been happening, learn, develop and evolve.

Q. How would you like to define your design sensibility?

A. Some people call us traditionalists but we are not. We are very contemporary but contextual. We are rooted to wherever we are working, be it in Srinagar or Nagaland. We try and understand the local culture, materials, context and we work around that. We try and be sensitive, which everyone should be. We are not just working for ourselves but for the people—whether it is a community or an individual.

Q. How can one make sustainability an intrinsic part of one’s life?

A. I think what we all need to learn to do is consume less. Minimalism is important and we should not be wasteful. If something is not necessary, cut it out from the design. We need to learn from the Sufis, Zen masters and from our society, where we traditionally never wasted anything. We have suddenly become a society that is wasting resources and where everything is over-packaged. We need to rethink the way we live. If you live frugally and sustainably, then whatever you do will be sustainable.

Q, How did your journey in design and architecture begin?

A. I studied design from IIT-Roorkee and then it came down to my individual choices. A lot depends on whom you choose as a mentor and whom you want to work with. It is all about what books you read, your perception and what you absorb. And you are responsible for these things and can’t blame others if you choose to not take inspiration from the right people and books. How you grow up depends on the values you choose, and it is the same journey professionally as well.

Q. You are currently working on a project of renovating Chandni Chowk. Tell us about it.

A. It is a major urban renewal project. There are a lot of stakeholders here, from the Delhi High Court, Delhi government to other municipal bodies. There is a lot of coordination work. Because this is a public project. There is also a lot of criticism of some of the work we are doing. And this criticism is bound to be but I think this is healthy, as long as it doesn’t become negative or starts stalling work… We need to move ahead and I don’t say that we shouldn’t be sensitive but we should also be ready to accept positive changes. No one is bulldozing their way through and so we need to be slightly more cooperative.

What we are doing is challenging but we have tremendous support from the Delhi government and other stakeholders. We have an amazing team and the kind of teamwork I am getting to see this time is something I have never witnessed before. We want to, hopefully, turn this project into perhaps the most beautiful street in the world.

 

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