Architectural Digest India – Conde’ Nast- AD50

As the international design authority, Architectural Digest offers exclusive access to the best in decorating, architecture, shopping, art and antiques, and travel destinations. AD brings you inspiration, ideas, and sources from across the design spectrum—from sleekly modern to grandly traditional, and everything in between. The digital edition presents the magazine’s stellar photography in a captivating new light, and signature features such as additional photos and supplemental videos invite you to go deeper into AD’s stories than ever before.

Robert Verrijt and Shefali Balwani met in Sri Lanka while working under Channa Daswatte, a protege of Geoffrey Bawa. Born in the Netherlands, Verrijt had moved to the subcontinent after completing his architecture degree at the Delft University of Technology. Mumbai native Balwani studied architecture in Ahmedabad, then worked under architect Rahul Mehrotra before heading to Colombo. In 2006, they opened their own firm. The two major projects they completed in 2013 – the Laureus Learning Pavilion in Karjat, and the ‘House on a Stream’ in Alibaug- demonstrate ingenuity and integrity. The former used low cost materials to create a dynamic space for children at the campus of NGO, Magic Bus; the latter sits, elegant and austere, in its forested surroundings. both projects respond cleverly and, it seems, effortlessly to their environments, clear marks of great architecture-and of course, great architects.