Sonali Rastogi

ARCHITECT & FOUNDING PARTNER, MORPHOGENESIS

- Maahi Shah

You have often spoken about the narrative of a building. In your travels, how have these narratives been different across the places you have visited?

Every region expresses its architectural story through climate, culture, and community, and I tend to read buildings through these layers. When I travel, I see clear differences. In Japan, there is quiet precision where light, shadow, and proportion become the vocabulary. In Europe, the narrative is shaped by continuity, where cities reveal memory over centuries. In the Middle East, the story is one of aspiration, identity, and technological speed. India remains the most layered. Our narratives shift every few hundred kilometres because our response to climate, craft, and community keeps changing. At our studio, I often say that architecture must listen to its place before it speaks. Travel keeps deepening this belief.

In what ways have you seen luxury design evolve over the years in India?