Awards for Mumbai developers

Winning Laurels

Awards are pouring in for developers as they choose to bring the best to the real estate industry, says Shilpa Sachdev



The real estate sector has seen a key transformation and as it gets highly organised, a new breed of developers is pushing the envelope in delivering the best of lifestyles to people. And being rewarded for the work done is only a reiteration of the fact that the real estate sector is indeed reaching newer heights.
An example of the changing design dynamics in real estate is the recent award presented to the Lodha Group. The Group has won the Green GOOD DESIGN Award 2012 for its most iconic project World One, the world's tallest residential tower. 

World One is being designed by the internationally acclaimed architects Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, based in New York. The uber-luxurious World Towers will be part of Lodha Place, an 18-acre development at Upper Worli, Mumbai's urbane epicenter.  The towers are designed to be environmentally sustainable, offering exotic configurations that range from exclusive three and four bedroom residences, lavish villas, and luxurious duplex mansions laced with the design genius of Giorgio Armani. 

Talking about the design of this landmark project, Jay Berman, Partner, Pei Cobb Freed & Partners said, "We have designed World One as a unique and iconic response to luxury and sustainable living in Mumbai.  The Green GOOD DESIGN award is an apt recognition for a tower that will define the skyline of this magnificent city, yet become one with the city and its surroundings."

On winning the award, Abhisheck Lodha, Managing Director, Lodha Group commented, "We have strived hard to ensure that this development not only gains from Mumbai's energy but also gives back to the city and the environment around it."

Maintaining its own record, Godrej Properties was selected as amongst 'India's Top 10 Builders' at the sixth Construction World Architect and Builder Awards 2011 for the sixth consecutive year. Their project Planet Godrej has also emerged as one of the winners in the 'Tower Project of the Year' category at the inaugural Construction Week Awards 2011.
Many a times, winning such awards also involves competing with international players and emerging victorious is then an experience to cherish. Talking about their achievements, Vikas Arora, Director, Runwal Group says, "We have recently won an international property award for our project Orchard Residency as the best residential project. Also our retail project R City has been awarded for its mixed use development and also for being the most commended retail mall. Projects across 27 countries were selected and reviewed to choose the best. We have also received the best CMO Award for R City again. All these awards have been awarded at the Asia Pacific level."

In recognition of her immense contribution to the field of real estate, Manju Yagnik, Vice-Chairperson of the Nahar Group, was recently honoured with the prestigious Udaan Sanman - "Business Woman of the Year 2012 Award" at the hands of Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan. Sharing her reaction on winning the award, Yagnik says, "I consider this as the well-deserved respect paid to all those women who have successfully broken barriers, establishing themselves as leaders in various fields. It also means that women's contribution to business has been recognised yet again that too in a sector like real estate which is considered to be tough and out-of-bounds for women. What's more satisfying is that this particular award is also in appreciation of opening newer career opportunities."

The traditional equation has rather changed as women are increasingly becoming a part of the real estate industry. According to Yagnik, a woman's strength lies in her inborn skills and instincts, which are effectively utilised in the real estate sector. She adds, "Her perspective on lifestyle, architecture and landscaping is positively better and to top this all, her proficiency in acquiring technical knowledge that score high points in the realty industry. Woman has exceptional abilities on creativity, coping with stress, on gaining trust, building relationships and negotiating skills, so essential in this domain. And once she establishes her reputation for competence, it gets reflected not only within the organisation where she works but on the entire industry. And on this count, I am confident that we will soon come across an increasing number of success stories."

The traditional real estate industry is up for a change. Giving the industry the encouragement it deserves, the awards are an encouragement to the new thought process that is changing the perception of the real estate sector in a global context.

- published in Times Property on August 18, 2012