PLUS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Landscape and Urban Designer
Abinaya is a Landscape and Urban designer at PLUS, Chennai, India. She is a recent graduate from CEPT Ahmedabad in the field of Landscape Architecture.
Her interest lies in place-making, decoding socio-cultural connections, landscape planning, and ecological restoration. She was awarded the National Landscape Scholarship Programme for the academic year (2019-20). One of her academic works was displayed as a part of India pavilion content at the London design biennale in June 2021. Prior to going to CEPT, Abinaya worked as an architect in Ficus Landscape Architects, Bangalore, on large-scale residential development and landscape conservation projects.
Abinaya holds her Masters in Landscape Architecture (2021) from CEPT University, Ahmedabad, and Bachelors of Architecture (2017) from Tamilnadu School of Architecture, Coimbatore.
Ari Daman is the Founder, Creative Director of PLUS. He is an accomplished landscape architect and urban designer with a broad range of project experience throughout the world. Educated at prestigious schools in India and the U.S., Ari has blurred the lines between different disciplines in his practice to address issues like sea-level rise and resiliency, ecological urbanism, and sustainable communities. His projects range from small pocket parks to large campuses, mixed-use projects, urban corridors and regional plans. He focuses on bringing out the best sustainable and innovative ideas to maximize the social impacts of his projects.
In 2017, Ari co-founded The Narayanan Family Foundation with the goal of improving people's lives through investments in education, culture, and environment. The foundation provides funding for public space initiatives in underserved areas, innovations in landscape architecture, and education programs for underprivileged children. Ari serves on the boards of several nonprofits.
Job Titles:
- Landscape Architect
- Researcher
Meghana is a landscape architect and researcher at PLUS, and operates from Bengaluru, India. She is interested in developing a landscape approach to sustainable urban planning and design in India. She has previously been involved in drafting Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment reports as a part of the Landscape Planning team at CSA Environmental, UK. Prior to getting her Masters degree, Meghana worked at Ficus Landscape Architects, Bengaluru on landscape restoration projects, residential and commercial landscape design, and research on culturally important landscapes.
Meghana holds a Masters degree in Landscape Architecture (2021) from the University of Sheffield, UK, and a Bachelor of Architecture degree (2016) from BMS College of Engineering, Bengaluru (now BMS College of Architecture).
Job Titles:
- Head of Research
- Landscape Architect
Rushika is the Head of Research at PLUS. She is also currently teaching at CEPT University and is actively involved with academics and research at the University. Her interests lie in exploring systemic and qualitative narratives of indigenous landscapes. She has recently authored a book ‘Transgressing Wilderness' facilitated by the LEAF Fellowship 2019, which investigates the wilderness idea within the urban realm. Through her research, she wishes to raise awareness and appreciation towards wilderness and contribute to the domain of naturalistic planting within the context of India. Prior to pursuing her Masters in Landscape Architecture from CEPT University, Rushika was working with Integrated Design (INDE) Bangalore with the capacity of an associate architect and a landscape Designer, with her scope of work ranging from developing design strategies for large-scale and small-scale projects to environmental planning, landscape conservation, architecture, graphic design, and research.