EVERY LINE WE DRAW
and the power that they hold
Last week, yet another batch of students received their degrees at a convocation ceremony hosted on the campus. This is a day full of mixed emotions. I feel joyous at the sight of students (now architects) confidently beaming at this major milestone. At the same time, I can’t help but wonder, “Will the world out there be kind to them? Will they remember the lessons about purpose and passion that we tried so hard to impart? Most importantly, will they go on to shape a better, kinder world?”
Every year, I pen down a message for the graduating batch at the convocation ceremony, as a parting note and a last lesson from me as they move on to life beyond the campus. This year, as I ponder over the power of a line, I remember the words by my mentor and the founding principal of Rizvi College of Architecture Prof Akhtar Chauhan, who said, “As architects and planners, every line we draw has great power. In 1947, someone chose to draw a line on the map of India and divide it into two nations. We are still facing the negative consequences of the same…”
These words expressed by him over a decade ago, have often urged me to think about the great power and great responsibility that lies in every action we take. Inspired by his thoughts and words, I write…
Dear Students,
I am here to briefly take you back to the year 2019 when you crossed a threshold, a line, which brought you into the world of architectural education. One of the first exercises you did in the studio was to learn to draw lines. Pages and pages of lines - horizontal lines, vertical lines, thick lines, thin lines, oblique lines, wavy lines…
Well, you progressed through five years of learning and growth, but one thing that continued was this ritual of drawing lines - at first lines drafted by hand to draw objects, lines drawn to shape building models, and then lines drawn on a computer screen to create plans, sections, isometrics and perspectives.
Today, as we gather here for your graduation ceremony, you find yourself at another threshold, another line, that you will soon joyously cross over to begin the journey of a freshly graduated architect.
As you cross this threshold, dear students, please remember that every line that you will now draw as an architect holds deep meaning and great power.
Every line in a drawing defines an entity - a step, a wall, a roof. These lines shape spaces, provide homes and places for work and leisure. They shape openings that bring in daylight and breeze, sounds of chirping birds and views of trees. Remember that these lines can also shut out people, light and elements of nature.
Remember, that these lines you draw can be used to comfort and protect or to obstruct and exclude. Remember that these lines can create designs that include the needy, the marginalised, all genders, castes, ages and abilities, or these very lines can be used to discriminate and segregate. Remember that these lines can build bridges and doors that unite people across borders, faiths and cultures or these lines can also build solid walls that isolate and separate.
Everyday, my dear students, for the rest of your life as you draw lines and design a small part of the world, you will face these choices. Exercise your choices well.
I pray that every time you lift your hand to draw a line, you make your alma mater proud. I pray that with every line you draw, you shape a kinder, inclusive and joyful world. And I pray that the loving hand of the Almighty forever guides you to draw the right lines and make the right choices.
God bless.
Every newsletter I write is a labour of love. If you wish to support independent writing, do buy me a book.
Ma'am , can I join your class?
Your guidance to your students on threshold of entering world outside the class is just practical and useful for the professional life ahead.
May they are blessed always.