I M Kadri – One of Greatest Icons When it Comes to Architecture

Mr. I M Kadri is one of the top architects in Mumbai. I M Kadri is perhaps among the last of that generation of iconic architects alive who began their practice at the dawn of independence. Influenced by the dreams of an emerging nation and steeped in Indian heritage, he strived to create a new language of architectural design, modern yet uniquely Indian. Kadri developed a distinct style, an amalgam of the havelis he grew up around in Ahmedabad, Moghul architecture, and international contemporary design.

Kadri was born in Ahmedabad in 1929, attended the Jamia Millia Islamia University in New Delhi and completed civil engineering at the Pune Engineering College in 1953. Excelling in perspective drawings from a young age, he practiced his talent at every opportunity. At university, he became completely enamoured by the style of the Jamia Millia edifices. It was then that he realised he wanted to design buildings. Mr. Kadri also admired architect, Karl Malte von Heinz a lot. Mr. Kadri once said - “I remember when the architect, Karl Malte von Heinz visited the college, I followed him around like a puppy”.

Mr. Kadri relocated to Mumbai and started his firm IMK Architects in 1958. His lucky break came in 1960, and he has never looked back since. A significant number of his projects have been prestigious public and institutional spaces across the country and abroad, including The Shivsagar Estate, Nehru Centre, Haj House, Ceat Mahal, and Sahyadri Guest House to name a few in Mumbai, several Taj Mahal Palace Hotels including those in Goa, Udaipur, Chennai, New Delhi, along with The Oberoi Hotel, Bengaluru, Owaisi Teaching Hospital, Hyderabad, and National Judicial Academy, Bhopal are the popular ones.

Since the last few years, Mr. I M Kadri has been semi-retired. He used to spend half a day at the office, drawing and overseeing projects, till the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Now, it’s largely work-from-home for him. The few assignments he continues to be involved with are mostly for charitable organizations.

I. M. Kadri’s firm I MK Architects is one of the top architectural firms in India. The firm aims to consciously design a building that is contextual, sustainable, and environmentally holistic. Through careful articulation of form, materials, textures, and proportions, the firm aims to design socially responsive environments where people thrive and activities flourish.

To know more about this resort architect, hotel architect, healthcare architect, residential architect, or an education architect in India, do get in touch with the team today!