Vows Architects

The office is tucked away in Kasba Peth, which is always a bit crowded and noisy. We are up on the seventh floor—well, unit 704—and it feels quite high when you’re carrying rolls of blueprints up. It’s an old part of Pune, so everything feels very lived-in. We started Vows Architects here because it’s central. Most of our day is spent hunched over desks or talking to contractors on the phone. It gets pretty dusty with all the papers and the windows open to catch a breeze. We don’t do the whole corporate thing with suits and formal meetings. Most of our clients are just regular folks from around the city who need a plan drawn up or some advice on a renovation. We keep things pretty straightforward. There’s usually a pot of tea going and a lot of pens lying around that don't work. We work late quite often because that’s when it finally gets quiet enough to think. Kasba Peth has its own rhythm, and we’ve just become part of it over the years. It’s a small space, but we manage to fit all our drafting tables and a couple of computers in there. Sometimes it’s a bit of a squeeze when everyone is in at once. We just focus on getting the lines straight and making sure the measurements actually work on-site. It's a job like any other, really.