Studying Architecture was sheer luck for Sachi Gupta, now she is a founder of Synthesis, London & Delhi

Meet Sachi Gupta (40), an alumnus of  the first batch of Apeejay Institute of Technology- School of Architecture & Planning (AIT-SAP). She is founder of Synthesis, a London & New Delhi based Architecture firm . She shared her journey from getting admission at AIT-SAP, finding her love and then owning a company.
Sachi  is very experimental, believes in breaking the stereotype . Her love for travelling gave her another reason to open an office in London. Expanding my company is a live example of –‘Blurring the boundaries and extending your reach’.
Sachi is a partner in Synthesis and has over 18 years of extensive experience gained in her several years of practice. The influence of her meticulous training in the initial years and coming in contact with influential mentors, played a big part in her own development as an architect.
In her several years of practice she has worked on a diverse range of projects both in India and internationally. Her typical trait of getting bored way too often is actually what she calls her USP as a designer “this urges me to keep reinventing myself both personally and in my design approach…”

Tell me something about Synthesis?
Synthesis is a New Delhi & London based architecture and interior design firm specialized in innovative work rooted with rationalist and humanist ideals. The controlled scale of the firm allows agility and adaptability to all projects while preserving uncommon attention to detail in all aspects of the process – from the initial real-estate and planning issues, through construction supervision, till final staging of the décor
My husband Parvez Alam started the company in 2006 and I joined there in 2013 when he revived the company. Two years ago, we opened our company in London as well.

Story behind meeting your life-partner?
My husband Parvez Alam, is also an alumnus of Apeejay. We met there. Thank you AIT-SAP for giving me my life partner and a business partner. Our college was the place where our journey started and we have come a long way, we got married in 2011 .

Why AIT-SAP and how was your journey?
During our time, there were very few dedicated colleges to study Architecture. AIT-SAP was one of them.
We were the first batch. It has been almost two decades now. But still we have good facilities… We used to hand paint the building, it was a great journey, full of experience. It took us a lot to set a standard. Being a part of this institute, we were part of the research. We were exploring, contributing, learning.  The campus is lovely and I have beautiful memories attached to it.

When did you decide to become an architect?
It was my sheer luck… I come from a town- Kanpur, UP. Two decades back, there was a tradition that you have to be a doctor or an engineer. We didn’t have many choices. I always wanted to have creativity attached with the technicality. Then suddenly an idea just bounced that yes there is a course for it where I can explore and flourish.

What have you done after college?
I joined Morphogenesis. I was fortunate to do projects directly with Sonali Rastogi, a very renowned name in our industry. I started to understand the practicality. I worked there for almost a decade. I was part of a few hospitality companies before I joined Synthesis with my partner.

Traits required to become an Entrepreneur?
From my experience it is totally about passion… It’s passion that drives you to excel & to be out in the world and make a mark. You have to be true to yourself. Very focused and streamlined on what you want. Extra push and hard work are like toppings which will help you achieve your goals.

Your Journey from Delhi to the UK?
It was an interesting journey. In this journey of 2 years, opening an office abroad wasn’t part of the plan. We were then a Delhi based company & having international projects including in the UK. In one of the casual meetings in the UK with the clients, they suggested we open an office in London as well. We were like Why not? Now I have an office in London. It is however challenging for us to make both ends meet. We have to work extra hours to cater to our clients. But it’s worth every effort.

“Be passionate and dedicated. Believe in yourself and don’t try to become anyone else.“

-Sachi gupta