Renu Saigal

Renu Saigal begins the conversation by introducing her childhood and talking about her father and the important role he played in her growing years. She talks about her journey toward discovering architecture and being one of the few girls in her architecture class. Upon graduating in 1969, she joined the workforce by starting on a few projects in the private sector and soon moving on to government service in 1971. She describes some of her earliest influences, naming Le Corbusier and Chandigarh city’s architecture. Over her span of more than 30 years in government service, she worked on many significant projects and she goes on to describe them in detail. She shares her experiences of working on-site as a woman and the opportunities made available to women architects of the past and present. On her hierarchical climb to becoming the Chief Architect in Chandigarh for a period of four years, she describes the work involved including the Haryana Tourism projects. She talks about her efforts toward the preservation of the original heritage of the city plan during her tenure. Thereafter,  soon becoming a college professor, she spent around 10-12 years in the role, which she describes in detail up till the time of her retirement. She further discusses her observations on the Chandigarh city plan’s capacity to accommodate new concerns and a growing population, and the development in Panchkula and Mohali. 
Going back to her early inspirations from the time she spent interacting with notable projects and people like architect Charles Correa’s Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, B V Doshi, and Eulie Chowdhury. Furthermore, she expands more on the roles she occupied during her tenure and the responsibilities and projects involved including government college auditoriums, schools, world bank aided projects, etc., and her further deputations.

Renu Saigal delves into the general process of working on a project in a government office. She talks about the various tasks, multi-departmental collaborations, and budgeting that go into a project. She also covers the pace of project development and execution, and the various factors involved.  Recalling the many events and programs she was involved with during her tenure, she talks about working on an exhibition on the architectural works of Chandigarh’s planning department in 2003. She mentions a few negotiations she had to maneuver while working in Chandigarh and the liberties and limitations while working in Haryana. On being deputed to work specifically on Haryana Tourism’s projects for 2-3 years, she describes the degree of shift in work and her changed focus on interiors during the period. Furthermore, she describes working on a UNESCO world heritage site in its initial stages and draws a list of more important designs she worked on in other cities. She explains her experience with working on site as a woman architect and the due processes she followed. Moving onto the era of designing with the help of computers, she describes the general impact she witnessed and experienced. On the social aspects of her life, she describes balancing her personal and professional life while in Chandigarh.  Talking about her tenure as the Chief Architect of Chandigarh, she remarks on battling the pressures that came with it, yet enjoying being preoccupied with its responsibilities and the authority that followed. She talks about the ease with which she managed her team, labeling her process as a democratic one and how she carried her particular leadership style forward.

The conversation traces  Renu Saigal’s journey immediately followed by being selected as the Chief Architect of Chandigarh from a panel of three architects. She expands on Corbusier’s significant contribution to elevating the position of the Chief Architect in Chandigarh. She describes the critical heritage conditions and conservation required of Chandigarh city’s various sites, such as the Capital Complex, and accommodating newer plans while maintaining the integrity of the original projects. She explains how she worked around these issues in the capacity of the CA. On Corbusier’s town planning scheme, she provides her opinions and comments on its sustainability in the face of an evolving population and society. In the interests of developmental planning for a growing city, she talks about tackling the need for new infrastructure in the planned city. She explains her role in the phase 3 planning of the city and the projects involved including the continuous garden belt bordering the city, and many others.
On the topic of preserving the existing garden belt and water bodies within the city’s periphery, she remarks on the conscious decisions she had to make in the position and its due process currently.  While discussing the survival of the informal sector within the planning structure, she notes how her office accommodated their needs and conflicting goals. She recognizes the heritage committee’s accountability in the upkeep of heritage site preservation and the ‘modern heritage of the city. Moreover, she also talks about the changes she implemented in her tenure as CA and the procedure it took to get them implemented.  During the time when the states were undergoing division, the various evolving circumstances demanded that she divide her time between various cities.

Renu Saigal recalls her experiences and interactions including her public participation during her tenure as Chief Architect (CA). She further expands on her involvement with Foundation Le Corbusier in the appointment of the heritage status. She talks about the various seminars, workshops, and reports that captured and envisaged the architecture of Chandigarh.  Discussing the key projects she and her team worked on when she was appointed as the CA, she names a few, such as the interstate bus terminus, multiple hospitals, many schools, and specifically, a college auditorium in Sector 42. For this project, she recalls the use of an acoustics design that was created using her favorite material, using external brick for the auditorium. She describes the challenges she faced in designing hospitals and her attempts at evolving the standard perception for design for the patient’s and doctor’s convenience in conjunction with advancing technology.  There was a lot she learned on the job by collaborating with various specialists to design intricate spaces for independent needs within an elaborate design of a hospital. She further describes the minute design elements that went into projects like schools and notes how at one point the Chandigarh office was reported by a newspaper to be headed by women architects. She further speaks of how her gender played out in her office and about workplace safety and functionality for women architects, in Chandigarh as well as Haryana. She also recalls her experiences of teaching at Chandigarh College of Architecture and two other private colleges for a period of time. She mentions how she mostly enjoyed and taught design, Chandigarh by-laws, and architectural legislation, among other subjects. She concludes by remarking that she loves designing houses, although she only designed a few throughout her expansive career.