Mustansir Dalvi

Mustansir Dalvi is Professor of Architecture at Sir JJ College of Architecture (retired). He is on the Board of Governors of the MMR-Heritage Conservation Society and a Trustee of Art Deco Mumbai.

Dalvi holds degrees in architecture and a diploma in Indian Aesthetics from the University of Mumbai. He received his PhD from the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay. He is the author of The Romance of Red Stone: An Appreciation of Ornament on Islamic Architecture in India (2011) and The Past as Present: Pedagogical Practices in Architecture at the Bombay School of Art (2016). Dalvi is the editor of 20th Century Compulsions (Marg, 2016), a collection of writings about early Indian modernist architecture. His latest book, Citizen Charles: a biography Charles Correa, by Niyogi Books, is scheduled to be published in October 2024.

Vandana Sinh

Vandana Ranjitsinh is an architect and educator who is a Founder Principal of Ranjit Sinh Associates. A graduate of the Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology, Ahmedabad, Vandana began her career with prestigious firms like Atelier Dolf Schnebli Associates, Switzerland; with Kamu Iyer at Architects Combine, Mumbai and Kuenleg Professional Consultants, Bhutan. At Ranjit Sinh Associates – established in Mumbai in 1982 –  her work focuses on a commitment to design and environmental sustainability. With over three decades of experience, the firm has been widely recognised and won competitions and awards, including the AESA Gold Award in 2008 for the Best Project in Group Housing for The Woods, Wakad. As an educator, Vandana has taught Architectural Design and Theory at the Kamla Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute of Architecture, Mumbai since 1993, where she has previously held the position of Chairperson of the Academic Forum. She has conducted workshops and has been a juror across various universities. In 2011, she was awarded Best Architectural Design Teacher by the Maharashtra Association of Schools of Architecture.

Ainsley Lewis

Ainsley Lewis, Dean of M. Arch program at USM’s Kamla Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute for Architecture and Environmental Studies( KRVIA)., is an urban designer and a distinguished academician for more than two decades. His pedagogical philosophy centers on the synergy between architectural research and manifestation, grounded in semantics and phenomenology. He has contributed significantly to architectural education through capacity-building workshops and lectures on Architectural Design, Informal Housing, and Conservation. Professionally, his firm’s exploration of spatial nomenclatures has earned him national and international recognition, including the UNESCO Asia Pacific Cultural Heritage Award of Merit in 2019 and IIA National Award winner 2021. He recently presented a paper at the UIA2024KL international conference of architects.His work is published in professional journals of architecture, conservation, urban design and interior design.

Kaiwan Mehta

Kaiwan Mehta is a theorist and critic in the fields of visual culture, architecture, and city studies. Mehta has studied Architecture, Literature, Indian Aesthetics and Cultural Studies. In 2017 he completed his doctoral studies at the Centre for the Study of Culture and Society, Bengaluru, under the aegis of Manipal University. In April 2022 he was appointed as the Dean at Balwant Sheth School of Architecture, at NMIMS University. He was recently elected to the coveted International Committee of Architectural Critics (CICA).