Anything but Ordinary

Education Times Mumbai | Thursday May 24, 2007 By Savia Rajgopal-Shah Anything But Ordinary

Pushkar Pingle and Shoaib Qazi, the young creative team of “Ideas & Infinity” Share their custom-designed success story with
Savia Rajgopal –Shah .

Fresh graduates from an architectural programme who have done their internships always settle into conventional situations of employment. Right? Wrong! Not if you’re Pushkar Pingle and Shoaib Qazi, who decided to tread the path that not many ‘freshers’ would opt for.Upon completing their six-month internship, after graduating in 2005, they decided to launch their independent architectural design firm, quite aptly called ‘Ideas & Infinity’.

Although many dream of setting up an independent corporate entity, not many sacrifice the security and comfort of a routine job. Being a ‘fresher ’adds several more dimensions to this situation. “The biggest challenge as novices,” opines Qazi, “Was to find people who were willing to give us an opportunity. We were without work for sometime, which was frustrating.” Undeterred by the uphill task, this talented duo persisted and their patience paid off whit an interior design task of an office .

Apart from the struggle to be recognized, the basic infrastructure had to be put into place as well. Recounting their initial struggle, Pingle says,”We had limited finances to start with and investing in an office space in Mumbai was out of question, so we decided to work from home. “This common sense approach has seen the firm grow from strength to strength and their current assignments include corporate interior projects and retail design projects, and residences. In an industry where delays are the norm, their USP is honoring timelines without compromising on quality work.

When it comes to work division, with a team of just two, does it get a little overwhelming at times? The answer is no, if these two are to be believed. Job responsibilities are divided equally, and to avoid monotony, they switch tasks every few months. Having established themselves now, both Pingle and Qazi feel their stand to set up independently has been vindicated. While the challenges they encounter may have changed, their approach to work hasn’t. They still treat each project with the enthusiasm of a beginner, backed with the resolute knowledge and experience of a pro. “The biggest challenge now is to match client expectations. Client expect the highest standards of quality from us in the least time, and we are growing, thanks to these challenges,” shares Pingle . They are still awaiting their dream project, ”Which would be an architecture or interior architecture project where the environment is the basis of all design ideas. “Explaining their unusual company name, Qazi shares,”we started putting down a few names for our firm in my diary. It was initially called ‘Ideas Infinite’ which got converted to ‘Ides & Infinity’.” With a name that brings together creativity in ideas and infinite possibilities, there certainly doesn’t seem to be any shortage of ideas here!