A fashion statement

Architect Arun Rewal’s factory for designers Hemant Sagar and Didier Lecoanet blends tradition and modernity.

If the Mughals and the British built to a plan, with an aesthetic sense that has survived the passage of time, then modern Indians are doing just the opposite. Gurgaon and Noida — two recent additions to Delhi’s neighbourhood — are uninspiring, whether one looks at individual buildings or at the way they have been laid out.

It was in the ugly chaos of Gurgaon that architect Arun Rewal was fortuitously invited by fashion designer duo Hemant Sagar-Didier Lecoanet (they retail under the label Lecoanet Hemant) to build their factory. Rewal, without getting into the details of his chance meeting with Sagar, says, “Hemant and I had known each other when we were children. Then we lost touch and re-connected after we had both finished our education, started our careers and were returning to India.”

Rewal’s commission began with some despair, as the plot that Lecoanet and Sagar had chosen was among some very unsightly glass facade factories. Says Rewal, “The design that I formulated for the factory was a reaction to Gurgaon, which is maddening. At the same time, I also wanted to do something that was rooted in the culture of the place. I asked myself if one can create something that is modern and rooted at the same time.”

This interplay between modernity and the past (which is always viewed nostalgically) is something that architects are struggling with the world over, as countries aided by technology are moving forward with a speed that may not have been witnessed in recent memory.

Another important conundrum that Rewal faced was to create a humane workplace for the hundreds of workers who would be coming there every day to earn a living. Rewal says, “I asked myself, ‘Can good workplace design be a catalyst for better productivity?’”

Rewal solved this by opting for a low-rise, high-density structure as he felt that would be less energy intensive. To further keep the building cool, Rewal put in a roof garden, which can be put to any use. As we walk on freshly mowed but yellowing grass on the roof, Rewal says, “This building has flexible spaces. For instance, you can entertain a buyer here or even have a fashion show instead of doing it in a hotel.” There was one other, more esoteric reason for the roof garden. Says Rewal, “This also allowed me to give back the land that I had taken to build.”

Though buildings are fixed objects, immobilised by concrete, Rewal says that “whatever we created had to support the possibility of change”. This flowed from Sagar and Lecoanet’s philosophy as well.

Continues Rewal, “Hemant and Didier wanted to start a fashion school here, maybe a shop and so on. The way the space is and will be used will change. You then have to envisage multiple operations and the kind of change that can happen, whether it is controlled or radical.”

Apart from the roof garden and its multiple possibilities, as we walk through the factory, Rewal keeps pointing out the spaces as they have changed. What was once the area where cutting happened, today houses sewing machines. Another space meant as an office is now a small conference room. There are other unused rooms attached to the roof garden, which could be anything from a private dining space to an office to a little pad for a small champagne soiree.

Staying with the theme of change, Rewal reveals that though the plot is 32 acres in size, only one lakh square feet has been built. The remaining part will be constructed as the business grows. Change, like in the fashion business, is the only constant in this building.

Though fashion labels are very conscious of image, branding and so on, Rewal says that his brief wasn’t to make this building a fashion statement.

Sagar, along with Lecoanet, spent considerable time with Rewal explaining how a garment is crafted and how the fashion cycle works. Comments Rewal, “Hemant wanted this to be more than a factory.” Yet details like the exposed concrete ceiling don’t let you ever forget that you are in an industrial space. But the natural light that pours into the work areas, the green grassy lawns, the airy corridors all let you indulge in the deception of its being a gentle country house.

This duality, according to Rewal, is because “the factory is an assimilation of different ideas”. From the Great Wall of China to the ghats of Varanasi to Jantar Mantar to Le Corbusier, Rewal spent time being inspired by each of these elements.

Going back to where he started this conversation, Rewal opines, “Our traditions are refined, so why get blown away by a wind and adopt the worst of the West.” So even though the factory makes high fashion for the mecca of fashion, Paris, the facade is made of sandstone. Says Rewal, “A stone building supports craft.”

As we leave the factory, Rewal takes one last look at his creation and says, “It’s important to make people feel good. If you are a designer but work in a third-rate box, you won’t produce anything worthwhile.”