Karl Wadia: Raising the Bar

In an in-depth conversation with A+D, architect Karl Wadia talks about his design philosophy, the built environment of the country, and his vision for the future.

-  SEEMA SREEDHARAN

Minerva is officially the tallest building in India,” says architect Karl Wadia, Design Principal at Architect Hafeez Contractor, as he strides in with an air of laidback confidence. “It’s 300.6m tall,” he corrects one of us as we get the dimensions ever so slightly wrong. Precision, I guess, comes naturally to an architect so passionately involved in his work. Karl Wadia joined AHC as an intern in 1999, and since then, has played a significant role in defining the built identity of the nation. We met him at 25 South, yet another prestigious project that stands testimony to the city’s economic and socio-cultural growth. We are on the 47th floor, and as we stand in awe of the unsurpassed skyline of Mumbai, Karl reiterates, “The future is vertical.”

Known for his culturally modern and sophisticated, yet often playful and colourful approach to architecture, Karl Wadia is now recognized as one of India’s most renowned architects. On earning his Master’s degree from Columbia University, New York, and gathering four years of precious work experience at KPF London, Karl returned to India to set up his design studio under his long term mentor, Padma Bhushan Shri Hafeez Contractor. Through sheer hard work and his philosophy of empowering talent at the workplace, he now heads a design studio of over 150 young and exciting designers.