Aurangabad : Early days 10

During all these happenings on the professional side, a major event happened in my personal life - I got married. It was not something that I had planned but when I saw my wife-to-be for the first time, I fell head-over-heels in love with her. It was at one of the events planned by my family for an arranged marriage, though I was not prepared financially for the marriage and had no idea at the time what getting married would mean in practical terms. My wife-to-be was totally unaware of the fact that she was tying her knot with an upcoming, struggling architect and had not even had the opportunity to have a good look at me at the event. I was lucky on both counts.

The first year of marriage was fraught with difficulties of space, finances and relations. It was only after my son Pranav was born that we rented a house big enough to accommodate the family properly. Sanju had already started working at AAMCOL and my practice picked up a bit to give us a certain stability now. The days were full of activities, Pranav was the greatest, nicest and the best looking grandson ever, so much so that my mother was after me to buy a camera specifically for him, which I got for him by travelling all the way to Mumbai. It was at this juncture that I started thinking in terms settling down at Aurangabad by having a place of my own.

Though my experiments with collective housing by buying a plot with a few friends at Khadakeshwar resulted in a great deal of waste of time, money and efforts, it also gave me a great deal of insight in human relations, and a place to stay for a while. But the experience gave me the realisation that this kind of thing was not going to work for me, and I started looking for alternatives.

Around this time, two of my friends, Ashok Mudkavi and Mohan Phulambrikar were looking for plots to build their own houses, and as a consultant, I made many a visit with them looking for a suitable location. We zeroed in on the new settlement planned by CIDCO at N-4, as the prices were within their reach, and moreover, the surrounding development was assured, unlike the areas in Corporation area. I also decided to purchase a plot with them, but even at Rs. 10.00 per square foot price, I could not afford to buy a whole plot and I managed to convince Suresh Karkare to share the price and half the plot. It took us about 5 months to collect money for the purchase of the plot, and then about an year to collect a lot more money to build the house, as housing loan was very difficult to obtain at the time.

As luck would have it, LIC started its operations in housing finance at this time, and we became one of their first customers. Our loan file number in LIC was 25. But more than the loan part, it started a new career for me. After finding out that I was an architect, the loan officer inquired if I was interested in becoming their valuer. I had done a few valuations earlier for the properties under acquisition, and was conversant with the process, which came in handy and I became a panel valuer for LIC, and later LIC Housing Finance Ltd.

Anyway with LIC and many other market borrowings, we managed to build the house and moved in the new house in 1990. My struggling days were over, or at least we all thought so, little knowing the challenges that lay ahead.

Aurangabad : Early days 9

It was when I went with Sanju for some minor complaint at Dr. Joshi’s clinic at Paithan Gate, that we met Milind Ranade, who offered Sanju a job in AAMCOL, a company where he himself was working, and who needed a bright young recruit. Sanju had just come back from Warangal REC after completing his graduation in mechanical engineering, and Srinivas was about 8 years old when we moved to Auranagbad, the family was together again after quite some time, except for Viju, was then working at Mumbai, and living with Wamankaka at Tardeo Police Quarters.

It thus started a whole new set of friendships, when Sanju met Suresh Karkare at AAMCOL, and a lot of his friends eventually became my friends too. Ashok Mudkavi, Sanju’s friend from REC Warangal had also come to Aurangabad and had joined Arwind Machhar’s company ‘Anil Chemicals’, and for the first time after coming to Aurangabad, we were part of a small social circle. Though a lot of my time was spent on travelling to the many construction sites I had all over the Marathwada Region, we used to spend a good deal of time together.

It was also a phase where I did a lot of experiments in my practice, which included a Cinema Theatre at Parbhani. Jayanta actually got the project for me, as the owners, as always, were in search of a young architect who would do the job for lesser fees. I did the entire services for a contract sum of Rs. 5000.00 (about Rs. 1,00,000.00 in today’s value) which was a good deal of money those days for me.

This project became interesting because of two factors. One, it was the first ever and the only Cinema Theatre that I designed all by myself, and intermittently supervised the construction at my own cost as it was not the part of contract.

The second was the consultant for the air-cooling services was from Mumbai, who suggested that we built the ducting for the cooling system through the load-bearing main walls of the auditorium. I was quite confident now about the load-bearing construction system, having executed a few projects already, and designed the external wall of the auditorium accordingly.

This was also the project where I did the line-out for the work at site because the contractor was unable to do it on his own. The main theatre external walls were not parallel, and not at right angle with the end walls, posing an almost impossible problem for him, though having a good command of mathematics I had provided all relevant co-ordinates in the basic drawing, but the contractor could not execute it at site.

Ultimately, I had to go there at the site and physically draw the centre lines on ground. I also had the sight lines drafted accurately, but the owners did not believe in my expertise, and ended up with a flat slab for the balcony and the steps were made in brickwork, but of course, I had stopped visiting the work by then.

Looking back after all these years, I think most of my clients either were neither aware of the architectural services nor were they interested. What they actually needed was engineering services- making plans for approvals, getting the work done at site and at times checking and certifying contractors bills. If the building turned out to be looking better or designed functionally in a better manner, it was a bonus they had never asked for in the first place.

There is a lot of hue and cry about rights to architectural practice after the recent Supreme Court Judgement, which refuses exclusive rights to architects on practice, but whether the law decrees or not, I do not think you can make your services mandatory if people do not need them.

Aurangabad : Early days 08

It was actually because our entire family moved to Aurangabad on my suggestion, that I thought of setting up an independent office. My father was working in MSEB and we rented a place near the MSEB head office at Mill Corner. Incidentally the Police HQ at Aurangabad was opposite the MSEB office, and we got a place in a colony on the side of Police HQ, which was the only planned area in a sort of slum area in and around the Police HQ.

It was alleged that the land was owned by Aurangabad Mill, but there was some dispute, which was the reason for the un-authorised development. I do not know whether this is true, but I have never had any misgivings about slums. For one thing the Police HQ was nearby, but I have also seen the Mumbai slums quite closely, and found that it houses mainly good, kind people, though a bit short of resources.

Anyway, here I met Sanjay Ballal, his brother Hemant Rakhe and Vasant Bindu, all approx. of my own age, and we became friends very easily. Sanjay was working in an United India Insurance, and I do not now remember where Vasanta worked, and even Vasanta may not remember this now, as he is known to have changed his employers so frequently. Vasant’s grandfather was a senior government officer, and one of his uncles was an architect, employed in the AP Government at Hyderabad, who settled later at Aurangabad, and became a friend, but all this was much later.

In the beginning, we were all single young men, with the exception of Sanjay who was married, and it was good company for many exploits. My father gave me a gift of a Scooter, for which he had to obtain loan from his office, it cost us all of Rs. 6,000.00 at the time. This was in the year 1979, and before this I had been having a makeshift practice, travelling mainly on a bicycle in Aurangabad.

I was the 10^th architect to start practice at Aurangabad, and we used to have Sunday meetings at an open garden restaurant near Siddhartha Garden (where Hotel Devapriya is now), and I remember going to these meetings on a bicycle.

Owning a scooter changed my status immediately. Cars were very rare those day, and a scooter was some kind of indication that you are at least a higher middle class person if not rich. Near my office in Nageshwarwadi Meher Furniture had their workshop and office, and I made friends with the Manager Mr. Gaus there easily. He looked quite gruff, but was a very kind person, and when he learnt that I was an architect, he started greeting me with a great deal of respect.

Naturally, most of the furniture in my office and later at my residence was all bought at Meher Furniture, who had built up a reputation for using the best materials for all their products, which made them a bit costlier than the market but very durable.

This reminds me of the dining table that I have now brought in my Nanded City residence recently. When my father was transferred to Aurangabad, we had very little furniture, and no dining table. My mother urged me to buy a dining table, and I designed and got it manufactured at Meher furniture works, at a huge price (at the time) of Rs. 1,000.00 for a standard 5’ x 3’ table and six  chairs. This was my first attempt at designing any piece of furniture and as a design it is not great, but it has lasted for all of these forty-one years without much problem.

I thought of bringing it to Pune where I now live, when the new dining table and the chairs bought by my son Pranav started wobbling and gave way after only about four years of use. The old table only needed some minor repairs and polishing, which I arranged at Aurangabad and got it transported it here. It reminds me both of my mother who is no more and also the fact that the days of doing anything durable are over, at least for the furniture industry.

Aurangabad : Early days 07

I have been teaching the subject of professional practice to the students of architecture for quite some time now, and there have been always questions about the ethical versus unethical practice, both from the students and the fellow professionals. A major portion of my work came from the Government & Semi-Government organisations as well as some corporate sector clients, and it is alleged that you have to use certain unethical means to work smoothly with such organisations.

My own experience is very old now, having stopped working for such organisations for about twenty years now, but I can vouch for the integrity of many persons of authority in the organisations I worked for and can state with certainty that ethical practice is not only possible but can be flourishing irrespective of whether it is a public sector work or private sector. It all depends on your own character, integrity, beliefs and intentions.

My practice started with Mr. Kharkar, a freedom fighter from Sailu and man of integrity, and since then have met many politicians and administrators who have been quite upright and honest, and in fact my practice was built on the support of these people. In course of my practice I have also met my share of the corrupt and unscrupulous people too, but I have always been uneasy and out of my depth in dealing with them. I get similarly upset and at a loss when people, particularly, building contractors and the like try to do me some favour, though in the course of my practice I acquired a reputation for straight dealings and was not troubled much in the later part of my career.

One instance I remember is about issuing false or incorrect certificates. In the early eighties, cement was in short supply and was allowed to be purchased only on a certificate of a practicing architect. I would usually do this for free for my own clients for their need of cement, but once I was requested to issue a dummy certificate by someone who was willing to pay me for the certificate. He told me that the government officers don’t bother about the correctness of the certificate and nobody keeps count so why bother?

‘You can cash in your qualifications and the fact that you are a practicing architect, nobody would even read the certificate except for the figures where you mention the number of bags of cement’, he told me. I had to tell him that it was my reputation at stake for such a certificate, and I had to read the certificate before signing it, so I would not do it. He was not pleased, and must have taken me for a fool to lose out such easy money.

Exactly similar to this is the certificates Contractors require to continue their registration with the government. As most of the projects in the private sector are done without the tendering process, it is easy to falsify the records and issue dummy certificates to contractors whom you may have never met and earn some extra money on the side without doing much.

In all my practice I have steadfastly refused to issue such certificates, and have been called a fool, a simpleton and many other names. But I have since met many of my own professional colleagues, touring all over the nation while working for IIA, architects who are also scrupulous about this, and feel a certain satisfaction in being part of the ethical brigade.

When I look back now on all these facts, I think I should give credit for this to the people of integrity I met in my early career, who shaped the character of my practice and behaviour. If I had not met people like Mr. Kharkar, I do not whether I would have been able to maintain such a straight path throughout my career.

Aurangabad : Early days 06

Meanwhile, my practice was taking a good turn now, as my first project got certain recognition from both the Sailu Municipal Council and the Town Planning Department. The Sailu Municipal Council, impressed by my previous work decided to demolish its own old office building and entrusted me the task of designing a new one. I was, at the time, very much influenced by the work of my former boss, Ar. V. T.  Kota, and the office building shows a distinct relation to his work. I did a lot of experiments in the construction and the detailing, and I was glad that I could get a good contractor like Mr. Balchandani to get it executed.

However, by the time the building got completed, the state government dissolved the Municipal Council and appointed the Deputy Collector as an Administrator. This fellow, in order to be in good books of his boss, the Collector of Parbhani, invited him to inaugurate the Office Building and the ceremony turned out to be a sort of anti-climax, with me & our contractor felicitating the Collector for inaugurating the building instead of him felicitating us and giving some public recognition of our contribution in design and execution of the project. This was the first and only time it happened, and I was too young to notice the irony; it was Mr. Kharkar, the ex-president who pointed this out to me later.

Of course, as luck would have it, elections were announced and Mr. Kharkar was elected President again, this time by direct voting, instead of being chosen by the council members. He thus was now in a stronger position and executed many more development projects in Sailu. It goes without saying that I was entrusted with all the building projects in this scenario, but I was also entrusted with a lot of other work, like development of roads and construction of bridges, of which I had some awareness but not expertise. I confessed this to Mr. Kharkar, who said that he had implicit faith in me to get the right guidance from experts in the field, and get the works executed in the most appropriate way. I was overwhelmed by his confidence in me, and hope that I have not let him down in all the years I worked for the Sailu Municipal Council.

I am proud of the fact that my work with Sailu Municipal Council got recognition from the Town Planning Department, particularly by the Deputy Director of Town Planning at Aurangabad, Mr. Patharkar, who was also an architect himself. Two of my projects, a public library and a primary school, were adopted as type design for the department, though I did not get any royalty for the design. But I was content to be recognised, which made my work with the department quite easy, as they were our financers. It was the Town Planning Department who would approve the project, approve the budget and disburse the money, so it didn’t hurt to be in their good books.

On the background of allegations of large-scale corruption today, it may come as a surprise to many when I remember that at that time the Department of Town Planning was once the cleanest department in Maharashtra. The decisions were based on merits of the case, and I do not remember a single incident of any untoward practice. In fact, after we got acquainted fairly, the Deputy Director himself would phone me and take me with him in his own car for his site visits to project at Sailu and nearby places, and he would not allow me to pay even for the tea on the way. ‘Mr. Kulkarni’, he would explain, ‘the Government pays me TA and DA.’ It reads like a fairly tale now, but I can vouch for it as I have personally experienced the favours of the good-natured people all my life without any expectations of returns.

Aurangabad : Early days 05

When I set up my practice in an independent place in Nageshwarwadi, it was a very humble arrangement consisting of a single room about 15’ by 9’, in which I had an office table in the centre of the room and two large drawing boards facing the rear wall, behind my chair, one for me and the other for the large number of the draughtsmen I employed one after other as the attrition rate was high. I could not afford to pay an architect, hence I followed the standard pattern of employing a draughtsman with ITI qualifications, and training him in the ways of architectural drafting standards.

The problem was, once the man got trained enough, he would seek a better paying office and leave the job, making me repeat the whole process again. Once, getting tired of this, I tried to appoint an architect-trainee, but his salary expectations were very high and he also left after a while. My finances were so strained at the time that I could not pay his salary when he left, and had to send him payment after a month. This must have surprised him, as his letter indicated, and made me wonder whether I was the only one from his acquaintances who would keep his word.

I also bought a portable typewriter from my uncle at a huge price of Rs. 1400.00 and practised touch typing on it. Of course I could not afford to pay for a typist, I used to type all my letters myself, and outsourced the heavy typing work for estimates and tenders etc. I even bought an automatic ammonia printing machine by taking loan from the bank, and the set-up of the office was almost complete, except for the telephone connection, which I got after 10 years of waiting in the queue. During all this period, Meher furniture works, graciously allowed to use me their telephone connection, and I used to have a lot of informal meetings with the manager Mr. Gaus as a result.

Industrial development at Aurangabad was in full swing, resulting in a large influx of people, and construction industry was booming. I had a large number of commissions, even when I had virtually no local contacts, save the ones I made socially like at Vasantrao Naik College. Of course, it did not bring in as much money it would have brought in a place like Pune or Mumbai, as majority of these projects came in from the middle class segment, people building a house for themselves for the first time in a few generations, spending their entire lifetime savings and naturally, paying architect’s fees was the last item on their agenda. I now realise that people were looking for cheaper options in architectural services, looking for a inexperienced person, and that it the reason I had a huge number of clients.

Of course, my projects with the Sailu Municipal Council gave me a certain financial stability, and I did not mind the miniscule fees I used to get for these projects, as was one way getting known in a city where I had absolutely no family ties or any other prior association. Of course the agenda was not for a great architectural design in any of these projects, but only a workable plan with least construction cost. That meant that most of the projects were based on load-bearing wall construction, a pattern I had learnt to work on a great deal while working at Solapur under Ar. V. T. Kota.

When I moved from this rental office to my own place at Shangrilla Complex, near the Varad Ganesh Mandir, I had already completed 10 years in the rented premises, and found out during the shifting process that I must have designed at least about 800 houses during all this time. If I had received even the miniscule fees I was promised for all these projects, I would have become a very rich person indeed. But the problem with architectural practice is that you never get any respect nor fees when you are young and gullible. May that is the reason why it is called an old man’s profession.

Aurangabad : Early days 04

The first project that I designed for the Municipal Council, Sailu was for a Multipurpose Function hall, with some sports facility. I still remember the day of bhoomi-pujan (ground-breaking), where I was invited to speak about the project in front of the assembled guests. I did the presentation well, and spoiled the whole impact by turning to the President and asking him if this was all I was expected to speak. Anyway, the project was completed to the satisfaction of everyone, the Contractor Mr. Balchandani turned out to be a good choice, the President and the Council very much interested in doing a good project than anything else.

President Advocate Kharkar was a freedom fighter and a man of principles, and would not allow any corruption to happen under his guard. This was rare, even in Marathwada, which was a backward region in many respects except corruption, but I did not know it then. I don’t remember even paying for tea in his presence and he rarely would come to Aurangabad those days so the question of my entertaining him did not arise it at all. Not only that, he would keep a strict eye on the happenings at the site, as I later found out.

Sailu Municipal Council was my only major client at the time, but there were others too. The most notable amongst them was the Vasantrao Naik College, whose Principal Dr. Rajaram Rathod, became a good friend over time, and I did many projects for the college. The first project was the design of the hostel, which was a straightforward block without much scope for design, but later I did the Principal’s Bungalow at the campus and also his own private bungalow in N-3, CIDCO.

But more than the projects, it was the friendships I nurtured here that have lasted me a lifetime. Many illustrious people were working as faculty then, including the Principal Rathod, Dr. Ajit Dalwi, Bapurao Jagtap, and many others. I had a lot of free time in the beginning of my practice and I enjoyed conversation with these learned people about anything and everything. I had a slight leftist leaning at the time due to my previous participation in Yuvak Kranti Dal activities in Solapur, and it turned out that the majority of people at Vasantrao Naik college were either leftist themselves or at least sympathisers of the cause.

This association with Vasantrao Naik College also gave me an opportunity to meet notable people, like Hon’ble Sharad Pawar, whom I met at a school run by Late Mr. Omprakash Shinde. Vasantrao Naik college was at the forefront of the Namantar movement, and many teachers had a direct rapport with the great leader. Pawar saheb was also the Chief Guest at the Inauguration of the Vasantrao Naik memorial at the college, which I had designed, and at time he remembered meeting me earlier, which I found quite remarkable for a public figure who meets hundreds of people every day.  

I became a part of the many activities that were taking place at Vasantrao Naik Collge, and when the college decided to take out a weekly paper, I wrote two articles with tongue-in-cheek humor, my first attempt at political satire, and I think if I had continued, I would have become at least a free-lance columnist, but I started getting more and more work after establishment of a proper office with a reasonably decent set-up, and all thought of being journalist was lost under the pressure of work at the office.