Architecture: Designing Dream Habitats

She grew up in picturesque Gangtok, day dreaming about creating beautiful structures which would stand tall before her, braving the chiaroscuro of sun and light. In her free time, she would observe her architect neighbour's nimble fingers sketching on the drawing board for hours. Maps, T scale, compass and precision tools were her friends.

Today, Debashree Pal, 25, is an architect with a leading architect firm. A plot of land for her is the canvas onto which she pours her imagination, a drawing board which comes alive with a dream habitat for the less fortunate. She loves to design sustainable buildings that don't take kindly to high-end materials. Bamboo and sun-dried bricks are her favourites. And her dream project is to construct a sustainable orphanage in a far-flung village....

Pal studied at Gangtok's Tashi Nangyal Academy (one of its famous alumni being football player Baichung Bhutia). In Class 11, she took up science with chemistry and physics as her mains and geometrical and building drawing as her elective.

As luck would have it, she topped the All India Engineering Entrance Examination (AIEEE) in her state. That brought her to Delhi for the five-year BArch programme at School of Planning and Architecture. She did her internship at the Centre for Science and Technologies for Rural Development led by legendary architect Laurie Baker where she got a chance to work on a low-cost housing project in Tamil Nadu.

Ask her about skill sets prospective architects should possess and she says: They should excel in day dreaming.

And how is the work? "An architect is the central figure for any construction project. He/she has to design a building keeping in mind the local ecology and keep an eye on aesthetics," she says, and goes on to add, "Every project is different. It's the variety that I love," says Pal.

Agrees Vidur Bharadwaj, director, 3C Company, "Architecture is more of a passion than a career. It's not only about designing habitats but an individual's effort to create a balance between his dreams and reality."

You may also like to read: Career As An Architect and The Work Of An Architect Is All-Consuming

Author: Vandana Ramnani (HT Horizons)

Date: 5th February, 2011

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