Step No.1 

All of twenty-two and I was off to Bern, Switzerland for an exchange program that I was selected for from my architecture school. Anxiety and nervousness all at once that was my constant feeling for weeks. This is what I always wanted, wasn’t it? I was going to explore a new place, and people and live my best ‘adult’ life. Why were my emotions not close to anything that I had imagined? It took me a while to realize what was happening, I was leaving a very cushioned and protected life back home to try and live my version of a desired one. This was not a holiday or travel with my parents; this was me on my own making decisions and making choices.

It was an adjustment for sure, not a very difficult one because I was amongst students, everyone with a comparable situation of leaving home for the first time. It gave me some perspective on how people of the same age but with very different cultural backgrounds think. This was my first understanding of diversity and how important it is to be accepting and appreciative of diverse cultures.

Along with another friend of mine, I was offered an internship at a design studio in Bern Switzerland. The paperwork was going to take a few weeks, and, in the meantime, we decided to backpack through Europe. This was it; my travel blogging career (no blogs existed then, unfortunately) was about to begin. We really understood the essence of meeting new people in those weeks. People from different walks of life, their struggles, inspirations, the choices that led them to where they were – everything just fascinated us. I had begun imagining my future.

As most South Asians, we have an extremely focused agenda in life – study, work, make money and then live our lives. This is something I have seen and heard for as long as I can remember. In working with my fellow colleagues in the master’s program, I realized there are other ways to approach life. I can work just as hard while learning to live and appreciate life along the way. “It’s your choice to make that change” is what I told myself. Was it going to be easy? I would have to wait and see.

My two years in England were great and I felt I could find my footing in the City of London. I loved every bit of the architecture and heritage it had, and I enjoyed the work to the fullest, but as life would have it, a curve ball was thrown at me. Up until now the diversity I was appreciating was never a conversation but just something you chose to learn from or ignore. Then, I realized its actual importance. We were in 2012 and England was not extending student visas. I needed to now find sponsorships to make this dream a reality. A job confirmation was not enough; I had to prove my worth over someone with equal or lesser experience than me but from England. I realized I am now an immigrant and always will be with the path I have chosen to take. Unfortunately, the paperwork did not translate into what I was expecting but I had the privilege to choose to come back to my home country to pursue my passion.

Back to Basics

Working in Mumbai, India was never a step down for me; it was just not part of the plan. That did not stop me from making the most of it and learning everything I know today. It was six years of my life learning and growing in the industry. My design sensibilities have come from my universities, professors, and mentors but my ability to execute those designs and see them through to reality came from the work I did in India. I have had some of the best managers who have shaped me into the architect I am today. My international exposure spoke volumes about the work I did. The choices I made in my design and approach to life all stemmed from my experiences and the various people I had the privilege to meet and learn from.

My partner and I had to make the big decision of where we would want to ‘settle down,’ I was in India, and he was in Dubai. We had to decide what would work for us both professionally and personally. My not-so-little dream about travelling and exploring a new city reignited. Is England going to take me back? That was my first question to myself. After much thought and research, we chose to make Canada our home together. Some big life choices again were being made.

New Beginnings 

In 2019, I was back to paperwork and documents and everything in between. Life was moving at an amazingly fast pace, and I was hoping or rather trying to enjoy the process and keep up with my choice to not turn this into an agenda of only checklists. My decision during my master’s program was being used.

November 2019 was when we landed in Toronto, Canada. Our new journey had begun, right at the cusp of the onset of the pandemic. We explored this beautiful city through the lens of a global pandemic and masks on. It took us some time to acclimatize, I always felt my past experiences of living away from home would help but this was a different beast. New challenges, new expectations, and a new sense of responsibility.

The cultural diversity that I am privy to empowers me; it makes me confident about myself and my abilities regardless of where I am. Engaging with and appreciating this diversity can enrich personal perspectives, enhance empathy, and foster a deeper understanding of the world. This was my ethos when I stepped into this new world that I now call home. Whether it was job interviews or networking with industry professionals, my stance was always the same. I will not lie – the confidence does shift a few times, but I try my best to stay focused.

My first job interview in the city and eventually my first job was an interesting one. All I had to discuss and show was my international experience and my decision to move halfway across the globe to pursue my passion. I tried to be as confident as I possibly could, it was week two in the country for me but was taken aback by the confidence with which my interviewer spoke. Similar backgrounds, and a remarkably similar journey but the approach to life and everything he had achieved in the last twenty years was giving me the assurance that I could make this work. My choice of restarting my life at thirty-one was not particularly inconceivable.

Through the last four years, I have met several people both from the industry and outside with similar emotions and longing to do well and make their choices count. Every decision came with a fierce amount of eagerness and passion to succeed. A couple of friends and I came together to build a community that can harness and motivate individuals in this diverse, cultural, melting pot of a city. SOSA – Society of South Asian Architects is a not-for-profit organization that was founded for people like me who dared to move, rebuild their lives and choose to move out of their comfort zone. It has been a little over three years and we have gained immense support from the industry.

All the choices that I have made over the years have brought me here to this city, with a talented group of friends, an interesting job, and a place to call home. I know choice is a privilege, I had access to resources, opportunities, and freedom that empowered me to make decisions according to my own desires and values. Not everyone has equal access or the ability to make decisions freely. I hope everyone appreciates the choices they make and works through them with resilience because these are integral to the person you eventually become; these enable one’s growth in life. Though my journey is ongoing with a lot of highs and some lows, with each step forward, I am reminded of the unwavering support of those who have walked beside me, offering encouragement, lending a helping hand when needed and most importantly accepting of all my decisions. As clichéd as it sounds, life has a way to throw you off your course, but one must try and push harder, dream bigger and be accepting of your surroundings.

As Elanor Roosevelt rightly said – “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”