Brinda Chinnappa Somaya, Architect and Urban Conservationist completed her Masters Degree from Smith College, USA after graduating from the Sir J.J. College of Architecture, Mumbai. She always felt that an architectural education, to be effective, had to encompass the humanities and sciences- an opportunity unavailable to her during her undergraduate studies. At Smith she compensated, taking courses in anthropology, religion and history. Emphasizing the need for an interdisciplinary approach - “Indeed, if any profession does cross all disciplines- it is architecture” – she feels the experience made her recognize the true value of a broad education, invaluable in any profession.

On returning from the United States, Brinda started practising independently in the mid-‘70s. She and her sister Ranjini launched their company, Somaya & Kalappa in 1978, but Ranjini moved overseas in 1980, leaving Brinda to forge ahead on her own from their one-room office. A bold decision as two decades ago architectural firms headed by women were practically non-existent.

Almost Three decades on and Brinda heads a respected Architectural Practice. She has worked on projects across India from Gangotri in the Himalayas to the deep South and from the East coast to the Arabian Sea. Running through her offices in Mumbai and Bangalore is an atmosphere which encourages an evolution of ideas and responsibilities which is the core of the creative process. She believes that development and progress must proceed without straining the cultural and historic environment.

She continues to deliver analytical and critical talks in India and abroad on Conservation, Women in Architecture, ‘The Changing Role of Indian Architects’ and innumerable other subjects. She is a on the Committee of ‘Environmental Impact Assessment of New construction Projects and New Industrial Estates’ for the ‘Ministry of Environment and Forests’, Government of India and is a committee member of the Urban Heritage Conservation Committee, Mumbai. She has served on many juries and served as an examiner for universities in India and Sri Lanka. She was on the IAWA board of Advisors (International Archive of Women in Architecture) and is also a founder trustee of the HECAR Foundation that has chaired conferences and exhibitions on the work of women architects with a focus on South Asia.

There must be very few countries in the world where architects have such varied challenges as we have in South Asia today. Our involvement ranges from upgradation of slums to large corporate and public buildings, from low income housing to the restoration of magnificent vernacular and colonial buildings. Wonderful, exciting and fulfilling tasks that span our
careers take us from being hi-tech professionals to barefoot architects.

The architectural legacy of the Indian subcontinent is immeasurable. The subcontinent has inherited an incredibly rich architectural legacy and it has also inherited a large number of“ordinary” buildings, which form the bulk of our urban landscape. We cannot afford to build everything anew. However there can only be a future for buildings from the past if the conservation movement works in tandem with planning and development strategies. Only then can deterioration be prevented leading to the final steps of restoration and rehabilitation.

Living and working as an architect in the India of the eighties, nineties and now the twenty- first century has involved challenges much more varied in nature than conventional architectural projects in most parts of the world. In the olden days we thought of man when cities were being built. odaywe think of floor space index, building codes, budgets and so on but often leave out the protagonist of the space- Man.

As Architects our practice tells the world who we are and what we value. It is not a single building we designed which may have won awards, it is not something that only the stars in our profession have, it is something all of us Architects have, our practice. Through my practice of almost thirty years I believe that an inclusive practice that spans our diverse population, be it economic or cultural, provides us with great satisfaction. The Architect’s role
is that of guardian- he or she is the conscience of the built and un-built environment.

Brinda Somaya
Mumbai-2008