The protagonist of today’s story does not need an introduction. He and his firm are a prominent name in the field of architecture. From India’s first revolving restaurant to the first Platinum Rated School campus, from the first green-rated township to designing homes of celebrities like Rani Mukherjee, Hema Malini, Modi Group, Ambanis, and so on, the firm has created a reputation for itself in the industry and this protagonist has earned the title, ‘The Nawab of Luxury’.
Yes, we are talking about Ar. Prem Nath. Born in 1941, Mr. Nath had a very poor childhood from an economic point of view. A refugee from Pakistan with siblings and a single mother, Mr. Nath today, is a self-made man, all because of his arduous work and his will of converting his shortcomings into advantages.
Emerging strong from his poor background, Mr. Nath came to an understanding that there was nothing impossible for him to achieve. He molded and took advantage of his adversities to reach where he is today. Under his leadership, Prem Nath And Associates (PNA) at present is a ‘Total Design Group’ with the ability to handle complete assignments, from the stage of Planning, Designing, and Service Co-ordination up to the completion of the Project.
The firm handles Total Design Services for Architectural and Interior Design, M&E, Structural including associated services and Project Management as per clients’ requirements and is familiar with local and International codes, regulations, the financial pattern of Institutional projects, liaison work and seeking approvals from statutory authorities. The firm also handles turnkey assignments as per the clients’ requirements.
Born of a Champion
Mr. Nath describes his journey of becoming an architect as ‘luck by chance’. In his young days, to support his family financially, he took a job as a blueprinting boy in an engineering firm. His command over drawing and illustrations gave him an added advantage in earning that job. This was the stepping stone for him as he was advised to become an architect. But when he failed to enroll at night classes at SPA college, Delhi, he turned to the then ‘Bombay’ to learn at Sir J. J. College of Architecture. However, once again, he found himself in the midst of conflicts.
Mr. Nath had trouble blending in with the crowd, making friends, and finding jobs. According to Mr. Nath, his shortcomings were lack of personality and communication. However, he never left his will to succeed. He groomed himself, made friends, and blended in with society, all alongside studying architecture and working.
And soon in 1965, Mr. Nath graduated from Sir J. J. College of Architecture with the highest honors. After that, he started as an interior designer and used to work for 18-20 hours. He always strived to get any architectural work he could. Further with experiments, taking himself out in the world, developing his personality, his desire to learn new concepts and new technology grew with time.
In 1965-66, by accident, he met Dharmendra and received the job of designing his home. Then, Dharmendra offered Mr. Nath more jobs and even introduced him to the Bollywood industry. Later, hungry for knowledge, he worked with prominent personalities, international companies, took diverse trips abroad, and much more to gain understandings, opportunities, exposure, and kept multiplying on to set up robust clientele for PNA.
PNA’s Design Philosophy
Performance and Quality is the design philosophy of PNA – it’s as simple as that. “That’s why you hire Prem Nath & Associates; for efficiency and exceptional quality,” says Mr. Nath.
Explaining the role of an architect, Mr. Nath says that an architect can never cheat. His buildings speak for him. “Architecture is a way of working systems and an architect combines all the resources and integrates them to create a masterpiece. And that’s why he can never cheat; he must be honest every time,” explained Mr. Nath.
Working with the said philosophy, PNA started with interior designing clients, worked towards building corporate offices, worked for big names such as Dhirubhai Ambani and much more to become a household name in the field of architecture. “Opportunity doesn’t come all the time, when it comes better grab it, dare to do it, execute it, and move on to the next client,” says Mr. Nath.
Green and Smart Architecture
Green architecture is not a new thing for PNA. In 2012, the firm built HMEL township in Bathinda, Punjab with green landscape, water management, and sustainable development. The whole township was bestowed with a gold grading, which was 1st in the country. PNA followed this path and has continuously received green certifications for its green architecture.
It would be unwise to say that PNA is new to smart architecture. PNA is a behemoth in building smart buildings. The firm covers full automation, energy savings, data management, building management alongside considering all the traditional values.
Wide Industry Recognitions
With so much caliber at hand, PNA was destined to splash its colors of success on to the industry. Likewise, the firm has been bestowed with numerous awards and recognitions over its fruitful journey. Some of the recent ones are:
- “Design Legend” award by Society Interiors, 2015
- HUDCO Design Award 2015 for Green Township;
- Sustained Excellence in Architectural Design – India – by Build UK
- “Lifetime Achievement Award” by Society Interiors in 2017;
- Awarded “Lifetime Achievement Award” by Icon of Spaces 2017, Singapore
- Icon of the Year 2017 for Outstanding contribution to Architecture by Brands Academy
- Awarded “Lifetime Achievement Award 2017”by WB honours.
- Recipient of “Lifetime Achievement Award: Architecture” by GROHE Huram Report 2017
- Bestowed with “DNA Sir J. J. Architecture Award’18” by Sir J.J. College of Architecture
Advice to Budding Architects
Mr. Nath doesn’t believe in making millions or billions of dollars nor in establishing his name for upcoming decades. He believes to be a good architect and advises the same to budding architects.
“Be a good architect, whatever you do it should be appreciated, it should be worthwhile. You must work with belief, respect others, keep others happy, and feel happy yourself. Once a person puts in his best, be it best as in his passion or as his hard work, success is sure to come,” asserts Mr. Nath.
Luxury for Tomorrow
Sixteen years ago, Mr. Nath constructed Morgan Stanley’s building in just eight months going fast-track, whereas every other architect in the country quoted the company 24 months.
Proceeding with this trend, Mr. Nath cites the future to be fast-track as well and PNA playing an eminent role in the fast-tracked future. The firm also has keen eyes on fulfilling people’s destination settings such as artificial beaches.
You can learn more about Mr. Nath and his firm by visiting www.premnath.com
