UTOPIAN THINKING IN ARCHITECTURE: ACRUX REALCON PVT. LTD.

Rahul Swain, Director Acrux; the enigmatic son of Architect Ramesh Swain (Managing Director, Acrux), is an architect in his own right.

Ar. Rahul Swain completed his Bachelors in Architecture before going on to receive a Post Graduate Studies in Management.

In a chance meeting with Architect Rahul Swain, Indian Express tried to find out the relationship between him and the subject of Architecture in an exclusive conversation

How did you get into architectural profession? My dad is an architect and was instrumental in me becoming an architect. The pleasure of seeing my father working on projects like Fortune Tower, BDA etc. inspired me to take up architecture as a career.

Do you feel that Indian architecture has been successful in responding to changes in the social, technical, political, intellectual and economic scenario?

Of course I do feel that way. The changes happened in recent years in metropolitan cities, even in Bhubaneswar and to some extend these changes can be attributed to changing lifestyles of people living in these cities. In the last few years many shopping malls have cropped up. In earlier times we used to go for shopping to mini markets at our neighborhood. So this new concept of Mall Culture has really brought a huge change in our lifestyle.

The green concern and sustainability-related issues are primarily discussed in the realm of architecture. How do you see the future of architecture in an overall green agenda?

Yes the green concern is an important aspect during the design process of a building. Its very important that we should think about green aspects while designing any project. We plan to take the environmental aspects of all projects very seriously. They will certainly induce better living conditions and cleaner environment. I would advise all the architects and developers to follow green norms seriously so that we will able to create greener and cleaner spaces for our future generation. Which of your companies project do you consider as a complete one where you have been able to transmute all your beliefs and ideas into built form? Every project, whatever we do we do it with all the respect. Both I and my father give priorities to environmental issues, sustainability, the end-user who is going to actually use the product, although we know profitability is a key factor for everybody but as architects and builders we are responsible for the building, for the public and for the environment. So we never compromise on that Could you please share with us about some of your future projects?

Any information you would like to share. We are into all sorts of projects like residential or commercial. Acrux is currently working on a new upcoming development, a premium residential apartment at Rudrapur, across an expanse of over 1.96 acres and another premiere township at Raghunathpur, with area spread over 35 acres. This township is planned to have International style Architecture As a young architect how you would describe Indian architecture 20 years from now? The interesting thing about Indian architecture is for different places, climates and cultures there has been different ideas behind it. Every city has its own history of construction which has been the strength of Indian architecture. One thing that will certainly become more dominant is climate-sensitive and energy-efficient buildings. The Utopian mode of thinking in Architecture may be one form that might come in.