New Delhi

The architecture firm that designed the master plan of the spruced-up Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh is soon going to be part of two special events in the UK and Albania.

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But before its Managing Principal Dikshu C Kukreja flew out, he sat down with WION’s Akul Baiju to answer some tough questions, about Ayodhya, Delhi’s Airport Express Line, and much more. 

Here is the interview:

What do you think about monopolies in the architecture world? 

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I do not certainly believe in any monopolistic actions. Still, I believe that projects of different natures which are built around the world and are being built in India require different levels of expertise. If it is a large complex project then it certainly requires the hands of a large experienced firm which has the knowledge sitting within them and the capabilities to deliver that project.

When the Ayodhya redevelopment project went through, there were reports that some shops and homes were demolished for road widening. How do you address that?

I think that is a very serious concern to me and I'm disappointed to read reports about that because, if you go back and see the vision plan which we created for the city of Ayodhya, [it] was centred around sustainability and it was also about being universally accessible and equitable.

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When I talk about making an equitable design, it means that it has to be able to work for everybody and therefore I am disappointed when certain visionary aspects get diluted in the rush or maybe in the ignorance of how they must be implemented. 

Who was ignorant in this process?

I think that's something I would not comment on. 

A lot of my sources have approached your firm to join as a prospective employee and they told me that CP Kukreja pays its architects very little. Is that true?

I am surprised to hear your observation because my understanding of this subject tells me that we are amongst the highest-paying. 

I'm not even yet talking about permanent employees but we are one of the few architecture firms in India who are paying interns and I probably think we are paying our interns the highest in the country than any other architecture firm at all.

It is unfortunate that many firms, perhaps to my understanding, do not pay anything to the interns and some pay ludicrously.

Also read | Ram Mandir | 30 years, 300 columns, 3D structural analysis: Architect narrates journey of temple designing

CP Kukreja developed Delhi’s Airport Express Metro line. It is beautiful, however, a report by the Research Designs and Standard Organization said that 11,000 tension clamps that were used either snapped or cracked.

I will have to clarify here very clearly which is of course in government records, and I would imagine in public knowledge, that CP Kukreja architects in the case of the Airport Express Line were engaged in that project specifically only for electrical and mechanical engineering.

We were not the structural engineers. What you are referring to is a structural civil engineering issue.

Where does the architect's role stop and the implementation process begin?

So here incidentally we were not even the architects, so that's what I'm clarifying. Our role at the Airport Express Line was strictly limited to our contract and was only for E&M services electrical and mechanical services, architecture, and no civil and structural engineering.

Which exhibit are you most excited about?

There are two exhibitions. One is happening in London at the Nehru Center and the other one is happening in Tirana, Albania.

I would also say that what enthuses me the most from the exhibit is the Yashobhoomi project. 

The exhibition halls are the size of four soccer fields each. 

It is the largest pan structure ever done in India.

[Yashobhoomi Convention Center is the largest in Asia by area. It is located in Sector 25, Dwarka, Delhi ]

If I was a young architect who was just beginning his career, what advice would you give me?

I would say that you have a very bright future ahead. You have a lot of learning that you can take from what has been done in the past by people who have walked this planet in your profession in the same shoes and wearing the same hat so there's a lot of learning but I would just say please tread with caution, tread with a sense of responsibility on your shoulders and also be passionate about what you do.

The Re-imagining Architectural Transformations in Post-Independent India exhibition is on display at the Nehru Centre in London from September 30th to October 4th, 2024.