THE ART OF CONNECTIVITY

Architect Vistasp Bhagwagar’s new office is a lesson in pulling down barriers and building links with the inside and outside

- Tina Thakrar

THE AVA Office 2.0 marks a rebirth of sorts for architect Vistasp Bhagwagar and his team of 40, who can now proudly claim to work in a millennial-friendly, well connected, coffee shop-inspired premises. Having always worked in offices that lacked connectivity and an openness that absorbed the outdoors, Bhagwagar was on the lookout for those precise features, or even the possibility of them, in a new office that could accommodate his growing staff. He found a rectangular, dilapidated warehouse-like structure with thick walls and limited windows, but a lot of potentials to bring in connectivity, large banyan trees and foliage outside and a quiet setting.

The first task he set upon, in his short 40-day time frame and frugal budget, was to knock down some walls and create windows wherever they could. He then apportioned area for a few cabins and meetings rooms, a quirky reception area with a mini amphitheatre, booth seating, common workspaces, and a cafe with a spill out terrace.