Working at Mehrauli-based architectural design consultancy firm Stephane Paumier Architects, might have been the beginning of Swati Janu’s architectural career. However, the mainstream profession that only catered to the few elite citizens of Delhi, made her start questioning her relevance in society. “Most people don’t have access to the services of a designer or an architect, so what role did I play in the society?,” shares the South Delhi resident. Janu realised that to create a positive change, she needed to engage with socio-economic and political environment of the society that she was part of. With that in mind, she founded Social Design Collaborative (SDC) in 2017. The initiative attempts to make marginalised communities—farmers, ragpickers, and street vendors—equal collaborators in modern-day city planning. At this year’s W Awards, the 37 year old was awarded the ‘Moira Gemmill Prize for Emerging Architecture’ that recognises leading designers under the age of 45. We speak to Janu about SDC, the award, and more. Excerpts…
Tell us a bit about SDC.
Although farmers have been farming the land around Yamuna for years, with the planning authority building parks to beautify Delhi, these people are now considered as encroachers. What we try to do is convince the authorities that it is possible to integrate farming into the city’s future vision. We work on two levels—directly with the locals by building community spaces in their settlements. On the other hand, we also work at a policy level and come up with strategies for the planning authorities.
Tell us about the ‘City for All’ project, a part of Bonjour India, which attempted to look at public spaces through a gendered lens.
I feel it was a very important discussion that we tried to generate through the project across India. Our cities are designed from the perspectives of a few people. Unless we have more women and transgender communities actively planning our cities, we will not have cities that feel comfortable and safe for all. For spaces that are right now predominantly occupied by men, the idea was to bring diversity in design and take into account the viewpoints of people who feel vulnerable in these spaces.
How was the response?
Many people showed up and people were comfortable enough to ask questions. We had also invited local artists to showcase their works on gender and sexuality, which created a very rich space where people learnt a lot. It was important to make the project as mainstream as possible, so we invited important diginitaries to further the conversation.
How did it feel to win the ‘Moira Gemmill Prize’?
It felt great! It brings us recognition and visibility. It is important that younger architects look at different ways of pursuing architecture that place people at the heart of the design. Since it is an international award, this helps us connect at a global level and create networks of knowledge across countries. I really hope this helps us build a community, which can learn from each other.