Chinta Sthapatya is featured in Bondhon Magazine (August 2022) by Akij Group with a few of our projects and our thinking process. 

"'Less is more' became the mid-century modern mantra, and people demanded simple and minimalistic designs. The clamor of visual noise from intricate design began getting replaced by a more measured approach," said architect Mahmudul Gani Kanak from Chinta Sthapatya.

According to Mahmudul Gani Kanak, a Dhaka-based architect from Chinta Sthapatya, knobs and handles are now integrated into the broader architectural context, especially in interior design. "We can no longer say that knobs and handles are mere appendages to our home and furniture doors. Rather, they contribute to the overall rhythm and harmony of the space," Kanak said. The feeling of holding the door handle or knob can determine whether you feel welcome in a place or not. Photo: Junaid Hasan Pranto Kanak had the opportunity to design door handles for both homes and furniture. What fascinates him the most about the knobs and handles is that they react and have dialogues with light, shadow, and surrounding elements. "This is how handles and knobs create a visual symphony that engages us in many ways with the overall theme of the space," he added.

In the heart of Dhaka, a quiet architectural transformation has taken place—one that balances urgency with calm, efficiency with reflection, and structure with growth. Designed by Mahmudul Gani Kanak, Principal Architect of CHINTA, along with his team, including Ahsan Habib, the office interior for a now-prominent e-commerce headquarters tells a layered story of brand emergence, spatial dialogue, and adaptive reuse.

At its inception, this project had no clear roadmap. The client, still in the early phases of development, had no established visual identity or fixed brand guidelines. What they did possess was a compelling philosophy: to provide safe, organic, halal food. This principle, sincere and unpolished, became the project’s conceptual anchor.

The site itself posed an initial challenge. Originally a residential building and later used as a community center, the space was compromised—leaking walls, mismatched finishes, and structural ambiguity. Yet CHINTA did not erase the site’s past. Instead, they treated it as a conversation already in motion, designing a space that could evolve as the company evolved.

The design team split the project into two floors, treating them as distinct yet connected phases of identity. The lower floor was envisioned as a high-density call center—bold, geometric, and rhythmic. In contrast, the upper floor was crafted as a more introspective and ambiguous terrain, meant for creativity, management, and future IT expansion.

In a typical call center, function often overrides form. But here, CHINTA infused care and tactility into the functional core. Acoustic foam panels not only dampened sound but doubled as pinboards—allowing individual expression within compact workstations. Each agent had a personal nook, balancing the need for density with dignity. Color played a powerful role

While CHINTA typically leans towards a neutral palette, the client requested vibrancy.

The designers responded with orange and grey acoustic panels and pops of red upholstery inspired by the brand’s developing identity. The space pulses with energy—vital for the intense rhythm of call center operations.

Circulation was fluid and non-linear, avoiding rigid corridors. Diagonal movement patterns broke visual monotony, while green walls and planters softened the intensity. Recognizing the mental fatigue of repetitive work, CHINTA carved out relaxation zones—areas designed not just to rest, but to recharge. Even prayer and dining spaces were integrated with equal attention to sensory comfort.

Where the lower floor is defined by performance, the upper floor breathes ambiguity. Previously a kitchen space, this area required complete overhaul—from flooring to layout. CHINTA embraced its uncertainty, using it to guide a design of flexible intention.

At its core is a sculptural reception desk—an organically fluid form that serves both as counter and seating. Its design dissolves the binary between host and guest, embodying the client’s familial values and approach to customer care.

Muted greys dominate this floor, creating a tonal landscape that’s calm and contemplative. Lighting is layered—diffused whites for clarity and focus, warm spotlights for intimacy. Green interventions reappear here, but they are more restrained—small plant pockets and breathing zones quietly asserting the brand’s ethos of care and sustainability.

Transparency and privacy were choreographed with precision. Glass partitions allow visual openness without compromising acoustic control. Executive and studio areas are semi-enclosed, fading gently from open-plan workstations. Movement is intuitive—more like walking through an idea than navigating a floor plan. When CHINTA began this project, the brand hadn’t yet been visualized in logos or manuals. Instead, the architects built its identity spatially

Values like trust, care, and organic growth were embedded into each design gesture—from the pinboard partitions to the fluid reception form.

Materials were locally sourced and budget-conscious. Foam panels, basic tiles, plantation wood—all chosen for function, resilience, and context. Even affordability was not treated as a constraint but as a condition for innovation. Design precision transformed modest materials into tactile experiences.

Color psychology was used to define emotional zones: energetic hues below, subdued tones above. Even the asymmetrical meeting room upstairs breaks away from standard corporate symmetry, inviting creative engagement. In this way, every room becomes a chapter of the company’s evolving story.

Beyond aesthetics, this project is a masterclass in adaptability. The client’s organization was still forming during construction, which meant that the architectural team had to design for roles and departments that didn’t yet exist. Plug-and-play workstations, modular layouts, convertible zones—all emerged from this ongoing negotiation with uncertainty.

Sustainability was embedded, not declared. Adaptive reuse of an existing structure, indoor planting with air-purifying species, and localized material sourcing became the silent backbones of the project’s environmental logic.

This office interior, like the e-commerce company it houses, is an unfinished conversation—a space designed not as a final product but as a framework for future growth. The two floors speak in different registers: one loud with activity, the other quiet with intention. Together, they form a spatial dialogue between function and philosophy, between identity and evolution.

For CHINTA and Mahmudul Gani, this was more than a design task. It was an act of listening—translating abstract values into real, breathable space. As the brand grows, the architecture will remain as its first clear articulation—a memory of its beginnings, and a blueprint for what’s to come.