With the whole world evolving towards endless dynamic living, the educational industry is changing drastically too. Moving towards creating a better future of professionals, all the branches of academics have learnt to evolve and adapt to the new-norm of medium-less teaching/learning, post the dawn of COVID-19 on all our lives. Sensing the need for an effective change, architectural education is evolving too, with changed curriculum, teaching systems and teachers. Also, realizing the importance of understanding the emphasis which must be laid on architectural teaching and education in India, both in terms of profession and academics, better education methods, teaching techniques & educational psychologies are being curated, which clearly cater to the new-generation of students. Furthermore, in this creativity-filled world, it has become necessary to use some of these components simultaneously along with the establishments of research bases in all architectural institutions offering effortless design-based learning across India. Giving chances for budding architectural students to become trained architects, new education strategies for both teaching and learning have been adopted across various institutions.
One such educational hub, which works rigorously day in and day out, working on the concept and a mission of creating architects of the new century, Asian School of Architecture and Design Innovations (ASADI) comes as a ray of hope for budding architects, even during these gloomy times of uncertainty. Moreover, having the International Board of Governors at ASADI from various continents of the world, the Governors pass on the mantle of design brilliance to the new generation, in turn, creating socially relevant employable personalities of tomorrow. Believing in the fact that architecture is the art of creating space, all the students on the campus of ASADI are trained towards being competent architects and professionals, who have thorough passion for being useful for the society, promoting sustainable living & development on a large scale.
A vital part of ABR Foundation, a charitable trust formed solely for boosting social and environmental upliftment, ASADI basks in its excellence of 40+ years, enduring towards creating a society of architects, who think and work, with the objective of serving the betterment of mankind.
In pursuit of greater freedom of thought
An inclusive community of learners, ASADI believes that for an aspiring future architect, in-depth knowledge is a must, added with hands-on experience as a skilled worker. Enabling opportunities for students to take part in various building projects, well before their completion, students learn effectively, in turn, developing crucial skills of understanding the complexities or intricacies of the problems faced by on-site architects.
Tutoring them on all fronts, be it personal, academic or professional, the esteemed onboard faculty serve as professional mentors cum GURUS to the students. Following the age-old, yet effective GURUKUL System, each student is assigned with a single Mentor, all throughout his/her education at ASADI. The faculty members, themselves being expert architects and on-field practitioners, guide students through a smooth transition phase of getting converted from a student to a future architecture professional.
Not just academic mentoring, ASADI boasts of having mentors for career guidance and have a whole consultancy division dedicated for pushing students to excel at all aspects of design. “Be it critical thinking or sustainable design development, latest learning is imparted at ASADI, creating future-ready architects”, stated – Prof. Ar. B R Ajit, the Managing Trustee of ABR Foundation and Chairman and Director of ASADI. Leading the parade as the founder of a self-funded educational organization, the ABR group have outdone themselves under the able leadership of Prof. Ar. B R Ajit. Talking to us about the whole journey of ABR to ASADI, he explained in detail the whole working ethos present on campus at the architectural school.
Free environment of good practical knowledge
Having world class infrastructure at their disposal, students benefit through and through, in turn, nurturing their inner talents in sculpting, music and so on. Considering the need of students understanding the building aspects, the infrastructure is built in such a way, that it exposes the building blocks of every unit, enabling students to understand the construction techniques that are designed and implemented. The college building would thus be a “Living Laboratory”, quoted Prof. Ar. Ajit, talking about how the whole environment at ASADI influences students daily.
Having given exceptional architects and design professionals to society, ASADI doesn’t want to stop in this journey just yet. Taking the pandemic crisis in its stride, ASADI started the ASADI Conversations, where leading architects who have excelled in their respective fields and niches, come together to talk about the current situation and how architecture education can evolve. With a total attendance of more than 4000 people, top architects of the country like Ar. Mahesh Naik (Mahesh Naik Architects, Mumbai), Ar Biju Kuriakose (Architecture Red, Chennai), Ar Chitra Vishwanathan (Biome Architects, Bangalore) and other leading practicing architects of the country willingly take part in this weekly conversations, with a vision of imparting their design prowess on to the next gen of architects. ASADI Conversations intend to bridge the gap between academia and practice, which is generally observed to be drifting apart in contemporary times of mass education driven by market forces. Another program that ASADI has started is the “ASADI Think Architecture Club (ATAC)” for its students and faculty. ATAC is an exclusive platform which encourages thinking outside the box and unconventional ideas are shared between unconventional minds.
ASADI also hosted a successful 2 Day Web Conference titled ‘NISTARA 2020’ based on the new National Education Policy 2020 to introduce multidisciplinary education and holistic development of students at ASADI. These two days saw stalwarts such as famed filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Kochi Biennale founder Bose Krishnamachari, Prof Jayaram Siva Rama Menon, Jinan KB, Ar. Sabu Francis and Musician/Singer-Songwriter Nikhil. J. Menon sharing their ideas on multidisciplinary education with the attendees. This conference was a grand success and it saw attendees from all walks of life.
To propel ASADI into a multidisciplinary world class institution and going ahead with the philanthropic gesture of the ABR group, ASADI wants to bring in a lot more subjects into the curriculum which run parallelly to the architecture studies. With plans of getting programs with varying durations of 6 months to 2 years, giving out diplomas and PG diplomas, ASADI wants to venture into the field of interior and automobile design as well. All in all, summing up the whole experience which is ASADI – students not just earn a degree, but live a life of values and principles, skills and capabilities with a robust awareness and responsibility towards society and environment.
