In Conversation

Interview withf Ar. Puran Kumar, Principal Architect of Puran Kumar Architects Tell us something about the man behind the architect? The man behind the architect is a simple man with an aesthetic bend, and that reflects in the creative expression as well. While I am passionate about my work - travelling, art and music are some of the good things that I like to indulge in; and I love to observe people. Languages, sports and photography are some of my other interests. I believe that we have only one life and you should give every moment your best. It doesn’t pay to reminisce about what you did not achieve and neither putting too much expectation on the future bear any fruit. To me every day is important and that is how Puran Kumar likes to be. What is your approach to the projects? It is about giving your best in terms of the different approaches to a project. Your creativity for space utilization and functionality of the space; for design in terms of aesthetics, keeping it easy on the eye and simplistic; and commitment in terms of detail, to ensure that you are not leaving anything unattended. When all of these approaches to a project come together, the result is the kind of projects that we love to do. These hold good for any type of space to be designed. Which kind of projects do you enjoy the most? Projects that are minimalistic in terms of design and aesthetics, largely contemporary that have certain timelessness and a certain classicism that you can associate with a style are projects that I generally enjoy. Currently, I am enjoying working on architectural projects – particularly residences. I like to work with clients who trust my design aesthetics. Since I have been doing corporate spaces for a long time, there is a certain comfort level there. On the other hand, the private architectural projects that we are involved in now are very exciting because there is that much more scope to create something new. How do you weave in environmental sustainability into your projects? The simplest way is to stay as true to the organic form as possible. We try to minimise the electrical / mechanical load on the building to maintain the environmental balance. The use of local material is very important as we don’t believe in moving material from far off places. We keep the use of inorganic material to a minimum and use material like mud bricks, clay tiles, stone, wood, etc. and balance them with glass and steel. These simple practices bring sustainability in our projects. Source: Zingy Homes