thought piece seven akshay khera Q&A
Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi
favourite place you have visited this year
New York: The energy of the city is palpable with so much to offer. Visited the Highline project- converting a disused railway track into an Urban Parkbrilliant. which city would you most like to live in?
Reykjavik- no preconceived reasons- just curiosity. most ingenious design
Traditional ‘kath khuni’ wall construction in Himachal Pradesh, India - a method of laying stone and timber in buildings so as to withstand earthquakes. Perfect blend of sustainability, technical detail and aesthetics. preferred creative tool
A Cretacolor Ergonomic pencil
Mallapuram in Kerala is a modest eight hour journey, comprising a Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur
four hour flight and a three or four hour taxi ride through coconut groves, to the site of our masterplan for the Edu-Health city that we
with a 5mm thick graphite lead. What building or place do you wish you had designed?
are completing for INKEL. This 243 acre project includes a cancer
Modern Art Museum,
wellness centre with agro-farming and research facilities. Spread
Fort Worth, Texas by
across a highly-contoured site, the project integrates pedestrian
Tadao Ando. Sublime
routes shaded by existing coconut plantations to create a sustainable
is the word that sums
township. The trip involves staying overnight so it is reasonably
it up.
comfortable and whilst enjoying the natural beauty of the backwaters
a hope for 2014
one has the feeling (almost) of being on holiday.
Getting more opportunities
to use the ‘preferred
we are doing three residential and retail projects. One of these, close to
creative tool.’
the airport, is a 10 acre residential complex comprising villas and high-
hospital, a speciality hospital, a Special Economic Zone, and a
The most hectic trips are undoubtedly the ones to Bangalore where
end residential towers facing a lake. Given the cool climate, the design evolves around providing outdoor decks with a pool on the top terrace of each villa. Rides to the airport in Bangalore are white-knuckle affairs as there is inevitably a traffic jam. Printed boarding passes via web check-in is probably the top innovation in air travel without which a lot of us would be spending nights in obscure airport hotels.
As for the trains – regrettably perhaps business travel is almost
entirely the preserve of the burgeoning air network but we are seeing more opportunities for TOD (Transit Oriented Development) around rail stations and with the recent setting up of the High Speed Rail Corporation in India we can hope for business trips by rail in the future. Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi
To sum it up, the travel experience is a great way of getting an
insight into the country. Before moving to India from the UK three Bangalore Villas concept
years ago many people said that there is a buzz about the place and I cannot agree more - Bordeaux or not.
43 twentyfourteen | diversity
twentyfourteen | diversity 44